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How-To #1: Hatching Eggs
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#2: The First 60 Days
General Hints
First things first - eggs should hatch in 21 days,
give or take couple, after the hen has begun to "set"
or incubate them.
Before putting your eggs into an incubator, plug it
in and make sure the temp is steady at 99.5 degrees. I
use a thermometer and a hygrometer (which measures humidity)
in my incubator. Hygrometers can be purchased quite cheaply
at a cigar shop, Radio Shack and I believe even Walmart.
You want 50% humidity for day 1-18, then 70-80% for the
last few days.
Mark eggs, using a pencil, with an X on one side
and an O on the other. Make sure to turn the eggs
at least 3 times a day (turn an odd number of times a
day). You cannot skip weekends - you might get deformed
chickens or none at all. You must keep adequate moisture
in the incubator at all times. A couple of small paper
cups or a pie pan (with water in them) will do nicely
for your moisture supply. Or, just follow the directions
that came with the incubator.
Note: Some people report good success and excellent hatch
rates with no-turn hatches. I happen to enjoy the personal
connection and turn them myself.
Incubators
An incubator keeps the eggs uniformly warm and moist,
as it would be under a hen's tummy. If you're going to
buy one, there are lots of options, depending on capacity,
features (auto-turning and such), and your budget!
Here are two examples:
There are links to homemade ones on our Resources page.
Fertility and Candling
Natural fertility is rarely 100% - it may vary from 55%
to 95% with season, condition and type of birds. You might
be safe to expect that 50% to 75% of the fertile eggs
will hatch. Eggs that aren't fertile, or if incubator
conditions are too far off won't hatch.
Fertility of eggs cannot be determined before incubating
them. After 2 to 3 days, white-shelled eggs may be candled
to see if embryos have developed. Cracked or damaged eggs
usually do not hatch and often develop odors - they should
be removed when detected.
Uniformly colored or white-shelled eggs may be candled
by placing a light bulb under a box or can. Make a hole
slightly smaller in diameter than the egg through which
light will pass. Place the egg over the hole, if a cloudy
spot or mass is observed, this can be assumed to be a
growing embryo. If the contents of the egg allows light
to pass uniformly through it (it's clear), assume that
the egg is infertile. If an egg is candled at 7 days or
older and is absolutely clear, it is dead or was never
fertile.
The Air Bubble in the Egg
Soon after an egg is laid, a small air bubble forms in
the large end under the shell. A membrane separating the
mass of the egg and the air bubble moves back and forth
to relieve stress and pressure on the embryo resulting
from changes in temperature. The drier the outside air
is, the more fluid is depleted and the faster the bubble
grows. Correct humidity in the incubator insures that
the bubble does not grow too big, depleting essential
fluids, or deny the chick enough air by remaining too
small.
The importance of correct humidity is more apparent
at the end of incubation. The normal condition is that
the bubble has enlarged to the point where the chick can
reach his beak through the membrane wall and pick around
the shell, breaking the bubble area off as a door. If
humidity has been excessive, the chick may not reach the
bubble but will pip the shell in the fluids under the
bubble and may drown at that moment, before she is able
to go any further with her effort to release herself from
the confines of the egg. On the other hand, if humidity
has been too low, the bubble will be oversized and the
fluids under it will have dehydrated to the point where
final development of the embryo will be retarded and the
chick may become stuck to the shell when it pips. In this
condition, the chick will exhaust itself, unable to get
out of the shell. After half a day, a chick that is stuck
to the shell, after pipping, may be released by pulling
the top of the shell off.
Positioning of Eggs
An incubating egg should set in a normal position as it
would on a flat surface; that is with the large end slightly
higher than the point. An egg that persistently has the
small end elevated may cause the embryo to be misoriented
with the head toward the small end. In the misoriented
position, the chick is likely to drown on pipping. Therefore,
it is quite important that in general, the large end of
eggs should be slightly higher than the small ends; or
as they would lie naturally on a flat surface.
Turning
Turning 3 times a day seems to be adequate for chicken
eggs. Turning is essential in the early stages. For the
last 3 days of incubation when the bird is preparing to
hatch, do NOT turn. If not turned to a fresh position
frequently during the early stages, the developing embryo
touches the shell membrane and sticks to it causing abnormal
growth. Turning the egg aids these movements within the
egg, and mimics what a mother hen would do naturally.
Temperature
A fresh egg takes up the temperature of its surrounding,
but as development proceeds the embryo generates its own
body heat. By hatching time, it has an internal temperature.
Chicken eggs should incubate at 99.5 degrees. The embryos
are extremely sensitive to overheating; if the temperature
strays beyond 103 degrees for any length of time, the
embryos may be damaged or die.
What to do With Hatched Chickens
Do not be in a hurry to take chicks out of the incubator.
Gallinaceous birds, such as chickens, quail, and pheasants
survive up to 3 days without feed or water. The yolk of
the egg is drawn through the navel into the stomach of
the baby bird before it hatches. That provided enough
nourishment for the transitional period from the time
the bird hatches, fluffs out, gains strength and becomes
active enough to go out and seek food. Chicks continue
to grow and develop in the incubator, before they receive
food. Of course, they do not gain weight, but they do
gain in stature, activity and use of their faculties.
They will instinctively be interested in drops of water,
each other's toes, and other objects of possible experimentation.
Do not assume from these evidences of interest that the
chicks are hungry. It is simply nature's way of experimentation,
exploration, and learning of the young. In general chicks
are taken from the incubator after 24 hours. No harm is
done if they are not taken out for 48 hours after they
hatch.
Feeding Baby Chicks
Feed and water must be available at all times from the
time they are out of the incubator. Do not dole out a
measured daily ration. Do not let feed or water run out!
Baby birds should be fed a dry mash. Chicken and pheasant
chicks do well on baby chick mash. Solid grains are not
suitable for feeding baby birds. No grit is needed when
a mash feed is used. Best source is a poultry feed store.
Prevent Drowning
Water receptacles are a problem with baby birds during
their first week, in that if they can, the birds will
drown themselves. The urge to get into water is thought
to be related to the fact that the birds are fresh out
of the fluids of their natural environment. The younger
the bird is, the stronger the urge to throw herself completely
into any water that is available. After a few days, certainly
a week, this instinctive compulsion to flounder in water
disappears.
A common device to prevent drowning is to use a shallow
water cup with marbles set in the water over the entire
drinking area. The chicks will drink in the spaces between
the marbles. |
