HELP!!!! When to remove hatchlings from egg box in incubator

[hartge330ci]

First time father here and my babies stuck their heads out early. I opened the egg box in the incubator today and five little ones were looking at me. They all only have their heads sticking out. When do I take them out of the egg box and incubator and put them in the hatchling rack? The egg box only has one small hole for ventilation. Is that enough? HELP!!!!!!

 

[RoyalPythonPros]

I wait until they are completely out of the egg before I move them. They will come out on their own sometimes within a couple hours or a couple days. As for ventilation, it's a judgement call on your part unless you upload some pics to show us what it looks like.

 

[hhmoore]

There is no definitive answer to your question (the timing can be more important with some species, but I'm keeping my response to ball pythons). Some people remove them as soon as the entire clutch has pipped (before they're out of the egg); some wait until after the first shed. Most of the rest are somewhere in between.

 

[hartge330ci]

Looks like this:

 

[bones93]

In my own collection I wait for the snake to crawl from the egg on its own. As they crawl out I put them in the hatchling rack. I keep the whole clutch together in a 6qt tub until they shed. As the snakes shed they are moved to their own tub on moist paper towels. I have always done it like this and had no issues. Congrats on your first clutch!

 

[hartge330ci]

Two are totally out of the egg now. I think I will move them to the hatchling rack. What do you guys set the temps at in the hatchling rack?

 

[Randy F]

I do not adjust the temp in my baby rack. I put them all in a tub with wet paper towels on them. Another thing you can do is put them in another box in the incubator with nothing but a paper towel in it. This will give them a good temp and high humidity until they shed. It will help them shed a little faster than in a tub. I sometimes leave a clutch in the incubator this way.

 

[Pasodama]

Never should you move a baby that is not completely out of its egg. This could take up to a few days (+/-).

Some people do things differently. The following is what I do:
No matter the species, I place each baby into its own tub when it has fully left the egg. This is done as each individual leaves (is fully out of) its egg.
Temps are whatever is appropriate, for that species, and have a higher humidity level until after first shed.
As for air, they do not require much (especially if there is plenty of "air space" in the egg/hatch container). However, a few small holes would be beneficial. If there is only one very small hole, or no holes, I would open the lid, "once or twice" a day (how often, again, depends on how much "air space", etc., that there is in the container), to allow fresh air in (until all have been moved out of the egg/hatch container).

 

[Shadera]

Once they're all out of their eggs, I place them into a tub with moist paper towels and a small water bowl, then place that back into the incubator. As each baby sheds, I set them up in their own individual tubs in the baby rack, with the same temps as the adults.

 

[David Reid]

I let the babies pip on their own, I never cut unless it is day 60-65, and one baby has still not pipped. At this point, cutting is necessary, something is probably not right with the baby, and it needs help.

I wait for all the babies to come completely out of their eggs and then move them all to one hatchling tub. It seems they like to be in a group, and usually all pile on top of each other. After they all shed, I put them in their individual hatchling tubs in my rack. I have Styrofoam cooler looking egg boxes, with glass tops. I give the egg box fresh air daily, to every three days. Once they start pipping, I slide the glass to allow an air hole at one of the corners of the egg box.

Dave