Baby /egg question

[bartuska]

Well, my birds one egg hatched! It's their (and my) first one! I think the other egg is infertile, but I'll give it another couple of days. Will the parents push the egg out of the bowl if it doesn't hatch--or should I remove it? Another question--what happened to the egg the chick hatched out of? Do the parents eat it?
And one more--I have a huge wedding to do with them this weekend and the father of the baby is my main bird --and the best looking one being they are all in various stages of molt except him. I need to remove him for about 2 hours--will mom take over when he's gone even though it isn't her "shift"?
Thanks!

[Skyeking]

If the egg doesn't hatch it would be best to remove it. The shell of the baby that did hatched is usually pushed out of the nest. I usually find the shells outside, they seem to pick up air and blow out of the cage.

I had one male that took over the shift of the hen when she was lost overnight. He stayed with the eggs until she came back the following day, and the eggs were due to hatch in 3 days.

It is possible she may take on the duty. Try taking him away for a minute and see if she goes to the nest. In any case make sure the baby is covered from cold air just in case. Also, do you have another couple to take over as foster parents if the unexpected should happen?