Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My 2nd clutch is currently hatching....#1 and #2 are already out and in their own tubs, #3 and #4 are almost completely absorbed and already stretching their necks out. #5 is having some major issues -- he never stuck his head out, so I cut the egg. Since then he still hasn't put his head out, and is not absorbing his yolk whatsoever. He is very tiny, much smaller than any of the other babies I've hatched this year (from this clutch and the first one). The yolk sac is almost bigger than he is. I decided to see if he had any physical problems, and I found that there was a thin sac around him that wasn't broken. I broke it and pulled some of it off so he could move. He won't flick his tongue, but he does move a little bit on his own. Then I gently lifted him up a bit to see if his cord was tangled, and found that it was partially stuck over his head and neck. I touched his nose so he'd back up and I could scoot it off over his head. Nothing else about it was tangled, it looked normal and still had good blood flow. I decided to take him out of the egg, yolk and all in one scoop (I had gloves on) and put him into a small cup with damp paper towels. I'm going to leave him in the incubator for the next 24-48 hours to see if he'll start waking up and absorbing his yolk. He seems very weak and listless and doesn't seem to know that he's supposed to come out.

If he doesn't absorb his yolk, what do I do from that point? I don't want to lose this little one.

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~* Jen *~

Pink Lady Constrictors

Well, I decided that I don't have time to wait for responses. I just checked on him, and he's dying. He's limp and laying there all weird. He's alive, I can see his heart beating and he does slightly respond when I touch him -- but he isn't going to absorb that yolk. It's turned to thick pudding and he's too weak to even lift his head let alone absorb thick yolk. After re-checking Markus Jayne's story on his Miracle Ball and realizing the time line is exactly the same, I did what he did -- I tied off the cord near the stump, cut it, and tube-fed him some chicken egg yolk. Unfortunately, I didn't have any tubes, so I had to find a skinny straw and make one. Luckily I do have syringes. I got the straw down his throat with ease, he didn't resist at all. I gave him about half the total egg yolk -- I was too afraid of overfilling him. He's so skinny and caved in...I just didn't want to hurt him. Plus the eggs were refrigerated so the yolk was cold and I didn't want to bring his temperature down too much and shock him. After the first syringe-ful, he didn't move. But after the second, he sort of made an attempt to work the yolk down his body to his stomach. After we were done, I layed him back down in a new clean cup with paper towel and put him back into the incubator. He didn't move, just layed where I put him. Now I guess I have to wait -- I really hope I have the same luck that Markus did with his super duper girl...I really hope he's alive in the morning. I got really choked up while tube-feeding him -- I'm so used to them being feisty and robust and independent...to hold a tiny baby that is so weak he can't even bite when my finger is in his mouth is really horrible.
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~* Jen *~

Pink Lady Constrictors

I hope the little guy through, It must be very heartbreaking to watch. It sounds like you have done the your best. let us know how he is doing. Best of luck with the little one.

Well, he died at about 4am this morning. I kind of had a feeling he wasn't going to make it, he just wasn't doing well in his egg and once I took him out, he declined too fast. It had been almost 3 days since the others had pipped and started coming out, and he hadn't even begun to absorb on his own. He was tiny, I weighed him after I found his body and he only weighed 23g.

I know this comes with the territory, but it's still hard to see since he's the first one I've lost. Thanks for the support guys.
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~* Jen *~

Pink Lady Constrictors

I am so sorry, that is hard to go through. 23 g that is so tiny.

I'm so sorry to hear of this little one. I lost a little one last season and another little one this season. They just don't seem to do very well when they are that tiny.
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2.1 Albino BP
0.4 100% Het Albino
2.1 100% het Caramel Albino BP
1.0 100% Het Clown
1.0 50% het clown
2.12 Normal BP
0.0.2 Western Hognose
alot of cornsnakes
0.1.0 Dumeril Boa
3.6 Bearded Dragons
1.0.2 Sulcatta tortoise
3.3 Russian Tortoise
1.0 Cockatiel
0.1 Rottweiler
0.2 Boston Terriers
0.1 White Boxer
0.1 Paint Mare
bunch of geckos
0.1 Cat
0.1 Teenage daughter
1.0 Husband who puts up with all my critters.

Hi Jen ! It sounds like your doing every thing you can and a lot more than most would attempt ,so if he doesn’t make it you must know that it is gods will and that if your going to be a breeder this will happen again and brace your self for the heart aches that come with doing what you love , if it were EZ every body would do it as a fulltime job . Good luck and our thoughts are with you . David of DS Reptile Rescue , Removal & Rehabilitation