Lost 2 Hatchlings before they fully exited the egg -help?

[Macaulay]

I pulled 3 eggs from a nest in April (I live in Texas a bit north of Houston) because the area was flooding. The eggs were very wet when I pulled them and they looked like they had just begun to chalk.

I stuck them in the incubator and they began to develop just fine. Last week the first one hatched and it is still doing just fine. Saturday night the second started to hatch. I checked it Sunday morning and it had made it halfway out but was no longer alive. I just found the 3rd baby also in the same way. The 2 that died during exist still had not absorbed their yolk sac whereas the first one had fully absorbed it's sac by the time it was fully out (which happened overnight).

For these eggs, i used an incubator from tractor supply and vermiculite with a 1:1 of water and vermiculite. I added water as needed to preventthe vermiculite from drying out. I also keep open containers of water in the incubator. For my previous succssful hatchlings last year I used a tote inside of a larger tote with a layer of water on the bottom. I figured this incubator set up would be better, but maybe I should be doing something better? I don't seem to be having success with these. I had another clutch in there from a different female. Two out of 3 never chalked. The one remaining has been in there since end of February but I think it's no longer viable either. It developed fully but the egg seems like it's going bad (included pic of that one too).

I'm attaching some references pictures of the babies that didn't make it. Once realizing they weren't alive, I did extract the rest of the egg to see if I could find anything wrong.

 

[TammyJ]

Sorry for your loss. Maybe @zovick or @Tom may have some ideas.

 

[Tom]

Do you keep a lid on the plastic tubs inside the incubator?

My first thought was that it might have been too dry, but if you added water throughout incubation, and kept it humid, that should not have been the case. When my eggs pip, I add a bunch of water to the media to make sure it is plenty moist in there, and simulate a rainy day.

 

[Reptile Wise]

Hi Macaulay, you're doing a commendable job trying to save these little ones, but it sounds like you're facing a few hitches. It's a tough game, but don't lose hope.

First off, the issue with the yolk sac absorption. This typically happens when the hatchlings are still in the egg. If they're exiting before it's fully absorbed, it's a sign that they might be trying to hatch too early. You might want to check the incubator temperature and humidity levels. These factors play a crucial role in the developmental process of the eggs.

As for the incubator setup, it's not always about upgrading to a better model. Sometimes, simple is best. If your previous setup yielded better results, why not revert back to it? Experimenting is part of the process, but make sure you don't stray too far from what has worked before.

Regarding the eggs that never chalked, this could be due to a multitude of factors - from the health of the female, to fertilization issues, or even incorrect incubation conditions. It's key to ensure that your breeders are healthy and the environment is optimal for egg development.

Lastly, always remember - Mother Nature's methods are tough to replicate. We can do our best, but there will always be some that don't make it despite our best efforts. Keep learning, keep trying, and don't beat yourself up over the ones you couldn't save. You're doing more than most, and that's commendable.

Best of luck, and keep us posted on your progress!

 

[Macaulay]

Do you keep a lid on the plastic tubs inside the incubator?

My first thought was that it might have been too dry, but if you added water throughout incubation, and kept it humid, that should not have been the case. When my eggs pip, I add a bunch of water to the media to make sure it is plenty moist in there, and simulate a rainy day.

I do not have lids on the containers. I can certainly put lid on. I have 5 more eggs in there now that have just started to show the pink embryo. The incubator and my temp probe both showed humidity to be 90%. I have the probe directly in the container next to the eggs. Is there a temperature humidity probe you have found to be the most reliable? I haven't found any of the more expensive reptile specific ones that are better than these cheap ones from Amazon. I don't think they are 100% accurate. If you have any suggestions, I will take them.

 

[Macaulay]

Hi Macaulay, you're doing a commendable job trying to save these little ones, but it sounds like you're facing a few hitches. It's a tough game, but don't lose hope.

First off, the issue with the yolk sac absorption. This typically happens when the hatchlings are still in the egg. If they're exiting before it's fully absorbed, it's a sign that they might be trying to hatch too early. You might want to check the incubator temperature and humidity levels. These factors play a crucial role in the developmental process of the eggs.

As for the incubator setup, it's not always about upgrading to a better model. Sometimes, simple is best. If your previous setup yielded better results, why not revert back to it? Experimenting is part of the process, but make sure you don't stray too far from what has worked before.

Regarding the eggs that never chalked, this could be due to a multitude of factors - from the health of the female, to fertilization issues, or even incorrect incubation conditions. It's key to ensure that your breeders are healthy and the environment is optimal for egg development.

Lastly, always remember - Mother Nature's methods are tough to replicate. We can do our best, but there will always be some that don't make it despite our best efforts. Keep learning, keep trying, and don't beat yourself up over the ones you couldn't save. You're doing more than most, and that's commendable.

Best of luck, and keep us posted on your progress!

Thank you, that's very kind of you to say. I am definitely feeling disappointed and blaming myself for the loss. I am always trying to improve on my tortoise care and I beat myself up easily when I learn something new that I hadn't done before and wish that I had known sooner. I read tons of threads on this forum since finding it a few months ago. Too bad I didn't discover it years sooner. I got my first hermann's 9 years ago. I'm glad he was able to tolerate my learning curve lol! My adults are doing great. They all live outside. I have 2 egg producing females. My younger female has only produced 4 viable offspring out of 12 eggs laid. Two eggs out of those began to develop and then stopped before hatching. The rest never seemed fertile. Her eggs are also smaller than the older female. They started laying only a year apart though. My older female typically has great results, but these were the first that have incubated inside. I usually wasn't aware she had laid eggs until babies appeared outside!

I will maybe lower the temps a bit and add lids to increase humidity.

Thank you again for showing me compassion when I am having trouble showing it to myself.

 

[Macaulay]

This was my previous set up. A box inside a box with some water and a ceramic heat emitter above it. The inside temp was usually 77-80. I never put water in the container with the eggs, just in the grey outside container. The humidity always read 99%. Not sure of that was accurate though.

 

[Tom]

I do not have lids on the containers. I can certainly put lid on. I have 5 more eggs in there now that have just started to show the pink embryo. The incubator and my temp probe both showed humidity to be 90%. I have the probe directly in the container next to the eggs. Is there a temperature humidity probe you have found to be the most reliable? I haven't found any of the more expensive reptile specific ones that are better than these cheap ones from Amazon. I don't think they are 100% accurate. If you have any suggestions, I will take them.

I do incubate with the plastic lids on my egg containers. I use shoe boxes, but I'm dealing with more eggs at a time than you are.

I have the same observations as you regarding thermometers. My solution has been to run two or more and compare them all.

 

[Macaulay]

I do incubate with the plastic lids on my egg containers. I use shoe boxes, but I'm dealing with more eggs at a time than you are.

I have the same observations as you regarding thermometers. My solution has been to run two or more and compare them all.

Thanks Tom. I will add lids to this round.