How can you tell if umbilical is knotted

[Galaxygirl]

So with our last clutch, for the first time we had to deal with a umbilical cord that was knotted. We were lucky that the baby came out of his egg with him umbilical still attached, so we could see the problem.

Do breeders check for twisted umbilicus while the hatchlings are still in the egg?

For instance in that same clutch, we had a Bumble Bee that didn't even pip. We left it alone and it died. We didn't check why it wasn't even sticking his head out. In situations such as this, do breeders intervene, or just let nature run its course? I'm not even sure how to go about checking for a twisted umbilicus without disturbing the hatchling/removing it from its egg.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

This type of thing is VERY rare and in most cases happen when eggs are cut and animals disturbed. Best is to leave the eggs alone if you see an animal is not coming out like the others (they will usually come out within a few days from each others) than you can check if there is an issue.

[Galaxygirl]

This type of thing is VERY rare and in most cases happen when eggs are cut and animals disturbed. Best is to leave the eggs alone if you see an animal is not coming out like the others (they will usually come out within a few days from each others) than you can check if there is an issue.

Deborah, do you know about how long it takes for the twisted umbilicus to kill them? The baby did not pip for two days after the first pipper, which doesn't seem too long. How many days would you wait before checking?