1 chick hatched

[somebodysfool]

Hi after stressing out 1 chick hatched out of 12 2 days ago. Are any more likely to hatch now or should we remove them now? I have to admit it's the sweetest thing (bar my kids) I have ever seen and am hoping it's a hen so we can keep it.

I haven't a clue but think I've read that they can hatch over quite a few days. Have a look on the omlet forums, chicks/hatching board and I bet you'll get some info.

Enjoy!

They can hatch out over several days but more that 3 days apart is unlikely. Have you listened to the eggs? If you have live chicks you will be able to hear them starting to pip the egg - they'll tap against it with their egg tooth. If you do make sure the ground around the nest box is damp as the humidity need to be higher to enable them to hatch. If you've had rain recently it should be fine.

Are the eggs under a hen or in an incubator? Either way, they should hacth within a day or two, as a hen wont actually 'sit' properly to 'activate' the eggs IYSWIM until she has what she feels is a full clutch, so unless they are different breeds of egg, ie bantam and largefowl, or hen and duck eggs, they should all be ready about the same time. If you are using an incubator, basically the same thing applies. If you are using an incubator, try investing in a hydrometer for next time, as incorrect humidity can affect the chicks ability to break through the shell. Too much moisture and the chick basically drowns in the shell, too little and the shell becomes too hard for the chick to break.
When you finally decide that no more are going to hatch, take them out and break into a bucket. (just dont inhale to heavily, infertile eggs may be rotten!) completely undeveloped eggs, may mean that your cockerel is infertile, half developed chicks means something has interrupted the process and is just bad luck, or a faulty incubator(or a hen has got into the box and laid an egg after the broody began to sit). After that, sit back and enjoy your chick.

Only 1 chick hatched the others hadn't developed which I am delighted by as we haven't really got room for more than 8 and I was was worried about what to do with the cockerals. This one might be male so not out of the woods yet but so lovely to see her fuss around the chick and glad after all her hard work she can be a mum. Wonder why the others didn't develop the eggs he bought were supposed to be fertilised ones.

Oh I remember, youre the lady with the naughty husband! If he bought the eggs, it's worth complaining. People usually say they don't garuntee fertility, but 1 of 12 is very poor. Mind you, you may end up with more eggs!
Watching a hen and chick is lovely, have you any idea what breed it is?

Not sure what breed he bought as they were mixed bunch including silkies, arucunas and other purebreeds. It's a yellow chick though will be exciting to see am really hoping it will be a hen.

In a couple of weeks, when it has All of it's feathers, post a picture and see if anyone can identify it. You will know now if it's a silky, as they have blue skin and legs, and it should have an extra toe on each foot. If I remember rightly, arucanas have feathery legs so of it doesn't have fluffy legs it's not one of those either. I'm pretty sure arucana eggs are blue/green too, so that should be an indicator. If you tell me what breeds the eggs could be, and what colour the egg that hatched was, I might be able to narrow it down for you.