Day 51, eggs not looking so great

Hey all, the eggs are at day 51 of incubation and a new development has occurred between last night and this morning. A blackish spot has emerged and this being my first clutch I'm not sure what to do. As you can see, the eggs are very dimpled and pliable and I candled them one more time last night and I could see veins. Im not sure if I should try and cut them open or wait till day 56 or so. Here's what this one looks like, in your guys more experienced opinion what do you think?

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...magejpeg_2.jpg

Wow, they are realy dimpled. What is your humidity like? I would go ahead & cut that one egg, just to see what's going on inside & to add a little saline to it.

Oh whoa.. That looks like a little more than just almost pip dimpling.
You should still see some fullness. Generally when I see dimpling, it's just the top that dimples in.
When you candle, is there movement?
Anyways, The black spot could be a number of things. I've heard of people putting a little elmers glue on little spots like that.
You could cut now BUT keep in mind that 60 days is the normal Inc time. So you may have 9 days of caring for the babies.

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Ll- you type fast lol.
I agree you need way more humidity. Something is wrong with that dimpling. They are far too dimpled.


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you can cut now if you wish. many people cut at day 52. he average is day 55 to cut from people i talk to. i know of one big breeder that cuts at day 50 no matter what. what was your incubation temps? i incubate at 89 and mine pip on day 52 normally. 88 degree's can change that date by a day or 2. they are extremely dimpled. me personally i would cut them
adam jeffery

It looks to me your peralite was not moist enough and they are drying up

Hey all, the humidity is in the 90's and I'm incubating them at 88-89 degree's. I'm using a hovabator and its been really consistent at those temps. I think I made the mistake of not covering the container the eggs are in, I modified the incubator so it sits about 6-7in above the eggs, the reason I did that is because I couldn't find a good cover to use and I was told that with the humidity I was holding at that they would be fine that way. I didn't observe any movement when I candled them, but I was looking for veins so I'm not sure. When you cut an egg, can you use a straight blade razor or is it best to use a pair of small scissors?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by deathblooms

Hey all, the humidity is in the 90's and I'm incubating them at 88-89 degree's. I'm using a hovabator and its been really consistent at those temps. I think I made the mistake of not covering the container the eggs are in, I modified the incubator so it sits about 6-7in above the eggs, the reason I did that is because I couldn't find a good cover to use and I was told that with the humidity I was holding at that they would be fine that way. I didn't observe any movement when I candled them, but I was looking for veins so I'm not sure. When you cut an egg, can you use a straight blade razor or is it best to use a pair of small scissors?

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I always cover my eggs. Tupperware containers are cheap and work great for incubating. Its a lot easier to maintain humidity that way, at least for me. I'd suggest covering them with a damp paper towel and bump your humidity up quick!

If you decide to cut the eggs, a razor blade or scissors will both work great, just be careful. I have used both. Just make sure they are clean and keep a bottle of sterile saline on hand in case you have to replenish the fluids in your eggs. If you use a razor blade I would tape all of the blade but the tiniest little corner. Just enough to cut through the shell of the egg.

I'll probably use the razor blade since I have a huge supply of them (we keep boxes of them at work) as for the sterile saline, can I just get that at like the Wal Mart pharmacy section? Also if I lose some fluid from the eggs, do I just put about the same amount in? Sry so many question, just never done this before =/

I'll cut them later tonight and post updated pictures of whats up with them. I hope they are ok or at least some are ok. Either way its been a learning experience and I'll be really more prepared this coming season.

Yup they do look a bit dehydrated. Let us know what you find after you cut. Good luck.

They do look really dimpled, even for eggs that are about to hatch. The humidity could definitely be a problem!

Well I cut them, good news first, it seems we have 4 perfectly healthy and quite active I must say, baby snakes, looks to be two normals and two spiders, Their still in their shell and back in the incubator until they wanna come out on their own. The bad news is two of them didnt make it, one spider and one normal. I'm going to get pics and post them up asap. Very excited even though two didnt make it all the way =(. But for my first time im over all very pleased.

Congrats & sorry, the 2 that didn't make it, how much fluid was in the eggs?

There was quite abit of fluid in them, I pulled the dead snakes out and one didnt look like it had absorbed much if any yolk and the other looked like it died recently. So i'm not sure what went wrong, I put some more water into the incubator just incase the humidity is extremely low, I want these other 4 to make it, so I'm trying everything within my power to do so.

I would think they died bc of the humidity problem. The eggs pretty much were desiccated. I would add the saline to the living ones and cover that top.


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So this saline solution you guys speak of, what exactly is it? Where can I get it? I want to try everything to make this clutch a healthy one.

You can buy it at any pharmacy.

If you want to, you can make your own from one tsp of non-iodized salt added to 1 quart of distilled water. I'm a nurse, and this homemade stuff works fine for wound cleaning on people, so I wouldn't be afraid to use a little to hydrate snake eggs. I've used it to clean wounds on numerous animals and it's worked fine for them too.

Pitch what you don't use in a 2-3 days and make some more if you still need it. The stuff you make yourself is dirt cheap so it's not worth taking a chance of getting some sort of excess crud growing in it.

The normal saline you make at home won't be perfectly sterile but neither is the inside of a cut snake egg--once you cut that egg bacteria enter and reproduce in the egg fluids, and snakes are capable of handling a few bacteria. Use a clean measuring spoon for the salt, make the solution in a bottle or jar that has been cleaned, rinsed in very hot water , and air-dried, keep your fingers out of the inside of the jar, and keep a lid on it when you're not using it. You can even pour the stuff into capped glass baby bottles and sterilize it by boiling if you really want to get nutty about it.

Ok, thanks for the help! I figured that's what the saline was, but I'm just making sure. Now how much would you guys recommend putting in? There's still quite abit of fluid in the eggs, I only lost maybe a couple small drops when I was cutting them.

try and post some pics!!!!
adam jeffery

Haha I'll take some when I get home from work tonight, I was so nervous and shaking last night when I cut them that taking pictures was the last thing on my mind. But dont worry, pictures will be up tonight :gj:

Ok this is what I got at the local CVS, is it the right stuff? Also do I just fill the eggs all the way back up with this or just put alittle bit in at a time?

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...3/IMAG0152.jpg

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...3/IMAG0153.jpg

Nooooooo, do not put that stuff in the eggs, as suggested before use normal saline, if not then use some bottled water, that you have kept in the incubator. Take the wound wash back for a refund

Lol I figured it wasn't the right stuff, no one around here seems to have just normal saline. I'll mix my own up with the previous posts instructions. I did use just normal bottled distilled water in the incubator. I figure the snakes that lived would be crawling out of the eggs any day now. If that distilled water will work in a pinch, I'll just use that and save myself the trip to the store for a bottle of salt.

Yeah, I would just use the bottled water you have in the incubator (as long as it is still sealed). I added distilled water last season to eggs I had to cut early.

Good luck with your remaining babies! Might be a good idea later to get a bottle of saline for future breedings just in case something happens again where you need to cut!

As promised I have pics, its day 55 and they haven't shown their pretty faces yet but as far as I can tell they are alive and well. I have added abit of distilled water twice to their eggs. I'm still thinking 2 spiders and 2 normals.

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...3/IMAG0154.jpg

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...3/IMAG0155.jpg

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...3/IMAG0157.jpg

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...3/IMAG0158.jpg

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...3/IMAG0159.jpg

cool glad there doing well take some more:D pics when there fully out

So quick question, some of the eggs have started to rot out, as the pics above show this. Its day 56 and I figure they would crawl out by now, especially with the eggs the way they are. Is this normal or am I just a worried dad?

Just try to get the humidity as high as possible and let them be. all you can do is wait to see how it goes. I think antifungal foot powder can help stop the mold

Well here are the ones that have made it out, looks to be one really light normal and one really dark normal, I cant believe how small they are. Still awaiting the spider to come out, he's being a slacker but showing promise.

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...3/IMAG0168.jpg

Congrats :)

Congrats! I'm sorry those other two didn't make it. Interesting how different two normals can be :) very cute

Here they are, all three that made it, they seem happy and healthy. As you can see, I think they really like to be with each other lol.

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...3/IMAG0169.jpg