Dead chicks

[Bojan]

Hello.
For years I'm trying to breed IRN.First I put nests too late.(mid-march) Then the males did not know how to mate.Last year I finally got three babys from a one pair.One chick is pierced a hole in the shell, but it died.Second pair did not get chicks.This year, that pair started earlier lay eggs.Unfortunately it was colder weather but still after 34 days, 2 chick hatch.One died after one day and another next day.I think that hen is fed them because they had food in the crop.Four other egg had fully developed chicks, but they died in the shell.
Does anyone have any idea why the chicks died and why they failed to get out of the shell?
Is not to poor humidity because it was raining those days.
Sorry for my bad English.

[Skyes_crew]

Have your birds been seen by a vet and tested for diseases? Have they been tested as carriers for polyomavirus? That's the only thing I can think of why they can't hatch healthy babies.

[Bojan]

I have not tested for the disease but doubt that they have.Chicks in eggs develop but fail to come out of them. That is known to happen with the second pair of IRN and the rosella. I do not know what happened to the two chicks because they look healthy. Maybe they froze or were weak.

[Skyes_crew]

Parents that pass a disease to the chicks can have normal healthy looking chicks. But because of the lack of immune system in the babies, they will not survive long. I can only suggest you have your birds tested before breeding again to prevent any more deaths. Good luck

[Bojan]

I have sent samples for testing.
Thanks for your help.
I found in one article that sometimes the chicks turned upside down in the egg and then they need help to come out of the shell.

[Skyes_crew]

Good glad to hear it. As for the embryos dying in the shells, it most likely is a humidity issue. This can be combatted by spraying the eggs lightly with warm water starting from three days before they are due to hatch. If your natural climate is constantly changing it could cause egg dehydration. The other possibility is excess calcium in your birds diet. It will make the shell impossible to break for the chicks. Hope you get it all figured out soon

[Mad Max]

I think you should look at the position of your nestbox . If the air can flow directly into your box and the tempreture changes rapidly , Hot days with cold nights , This might be your problem . If the sun shines directly onto your nestbox , it could also heat the nest to a tempreture that kills the eggs .

Regards
Robert

[Bojan]

Im Still waiting for the results.
Here is still quite cold so I think that temperature changes are not responsible,also it was raining and the humidity could just be too big.
Just one more question.
Do your birds lay eggs in the sawdust or on the floor or the nest box? My birds scatter sawdust and I'm afraid to put more because I do not know if I will be able to rotate the eggs if they are in deep sawdust.

The good news is that the Lutino IRN started lay another round of eggs.

[Skyes_crew]

How thick is the substrate on the floor of the nest box? Also, can you get your hands on some pine shavings instead of sawdust?

[Bojan]

I meant pine shavings instead of sawdust.Poor choice of words.
I put 5-6 cm wood shavings but they scatter that and lay eggs on the bottom.

I can't put pictures.

[nalukaikamahine]

If it's not genetic or illness, it's got to be humidity. If the humidity isn't high enough, the chicks can't pip and hatch because the inner membrane dries out and shrinks [commonly referred to as shrink wrapped]

That would be my guess. They pipped but the humidity wasn't high enough for them to zip and hatch.

[Bojan]

It is not humidity.It was raining.I think it was could wheter.I found a page that explains the possible causes of death of chiks and eggs.

http://xa.yimg.com/kq/groups/23389175/1 ... alysis.pdf

[Bojan]

Here are some my videos from last yeare chiks.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlCwvdgu ... mA&index=8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6Qt9OSD ... mA&index=7

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6Qt9OSD ... uGFubMAfmA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGuDd_MG ... mA&index=5