It all starts when you collect or buy your eggs, you decide to eat or incubate them. Eating them is good but incubating them into little fluff balls is even better.
First things first you’re going to need an incubator that is reliable. If you don’t know about it yet always do a test run without eggs.
You always need an hydrometer thermometer it will save you a lot of trouble you can never trust the incubator display.
No when you decide you are ready to incubate you will need to make sure the incubator is on and steady, if you are storing your eggs in the fridge leave them out for a couple hours to get to room temp. Once you do that you can add the eggs into your incubator fat side up pointy side down. Make sure to keep the date.
Now that you have added the eggs it is the start of day 0.
You want to keep the humidity somewhere between 15%-30% humidity for the first 14 days and the temp at 99.5F or 37.5C.
If you do not have an auto turner you are going to want to turn the eggs a minimum of 4 times a day.
You can candle the eggs starting around day 3 but I wouldn’t candle until day 5-6.
You will be able to see veins like a spiders web which means it is alive and growing. If you do not and it’s clear it means it is infertile and not going to develop but I don’t take those out until lockdown.
If you smell any rotten smell in the incubator find the source and remove it immediately.
When day 14 comes you’re going to want to stop turning the eggs.
On day 14 you’re going to candle again and if any of them that are clear you’re going to want to remove them they will not hatch.
You can choose to either raise the humidity now or when you see your first external pip. You are going to want to raise it to around 45-50
Around day 15-16 you’re going to want to start setting up your brooder. I like to use paper towels for the first 5 days so they know what they’re food looks like most people use pine shavings which is totally fine and recommend I use them until around day 10-12 i switch my chicks to dirt but most people don’t.
Make sure to have a heat lamp or a brooder plate.
Now the hardest part about incubating is to sit on your hands and leave it alone other than to keep up the humidity.
Be ready to start getting chicks day 16-19.
Do not help until there has been a pip for 24-36 hours or without any research about how to assist. the people here on byc will be happy to help.
When they are fluffed and dry they can carefully be moved to the brooder.
You are going to want a very shallow water dish with pebbles or they will drown themselves.
For the food you are going to want a gamebird starter the one I recommend is purina gamebird starter with 30% protein.
For the first 3-5 days I crush my food so that it’s small enough for them to eat
around 5 days they can eat full crumbles.
You will start to see feather development around days 3-5 as well.
You are going to want to keep your brooder around 95 degrees then drop it 5 degrees every week. or if your weather is hot and allows it you can move them outside around day 3 if your temps are in the 90s.
Around day 10 they will look mostly feathered and you can start figuring out what they are.
For the next 2 weeks you’re going to want to continue changing thier water and food every day and they’re brooder every 1-3 days or as needed.
Around 4-6 weeks of age they will be fully feathered and you can move them outside.
Around 6-8 weeks of age they will start laying unless they are celadons celadons take around 8-10 weeks to begin laying.
They will lay one egg almost everyday.
They are mature at 6-8 weeks old and reach full size at 12-14 weeks old.
If you are keeping them and processing them for meat you will harvest them around 6-8 weeks of age.
Around 12-14 weeks of age you are going to want to switch them to an adult feed a game bird layer or chicken layer will work.
If you are keeping them to breed you need proper ratio which is 1 male to 4-5 females or else you will end up with scalped birds.
If you are just keeping them for eggs keep them as is until they stop laying where you can decide to retire them and keep them, sell them or cull them at around 2 years old.
Then you can start the process all over again
I hope this helps anyone who reads it and I hope you can successfully hatch and raise quail.
First things first you’re going to need an incubator that is reliable. If you don’t know about it yet always do a test run without eggs.
You always need an hydrometer thermometer it will save you a lot of trouble you can never trust the incubator display.
No when you decide you are ready to incubate you will need to make sure the incubator is on and steady, if you are storing your eggs in the fridge leave them out for a couple hours to get to room temp. Once you do that you can add the eggs into your incubator fat side up pointy side down. Make sure to keep the date.
Now that you have added the eggs it is the start of day 0.
You want to keep the humidity somewhere between 15%-30% humidity for the first 14 days and the temp at 99.5F or 37.5C.
If you do not have an auto turner you are going to want to turn the eggs a minimum of 4 times a day.
You can candle the eggs starting around day 3 but I wouldn’t candle until day 5-6.
You will be able to see veins like a spiders web which means it is alive and growing. If you do not and it’s clear it means it is infertile and not going to develop but I don’t take those out until lockdown.
If you smell any rotten smell in the incubator find the source and remove it immediately.
When day 14 comes you’re going to want to stop turning the eggs.
On day 14 you’re going to candle again and if any of them that are clear you’re going to want to remove them they will not hatch.
You can choose to either raise the humidity now or when you see your first external pip. You are going to want to raise it to around 45-50
Around day 15-16 you’re going to want to start setting up your brooder. I like to use paper towels for the first 5 days so they know what they’re food looks like most people use pine shavings which is totally fine and recommend I use them until around day 10-12 i switch my chicks to dirt but most people don’t.
Make sure to have a heat lamp or a brooder plate.
Now the hardest part about incubating is to sit on your hands and leave it alone other than to keep up the humidity.
Be ready to start getting chicks day 16-19.
Do not help until there has been a pip for 24-36 hours or without any research about how to assist. the people here on byc will be happy to help.
When they are fluffed and dry they can carefully be moved to the brooder.
You are going to want a very shallow water dish with pebbles or they will drown themselves.
For the food you are going to want a gamebird starter the one I recommend is purina gamebird starter with 30% protein.
For the first 3-5 days I crush my food so that it’s small enough for them to eat
around 5 days they can eat full crumbles.
You will start to see feather development around days 3-5 as well.
You are going to want to keep your brooder around 95 degrees then drop it 5 degrees every week. or if your weather is hot and allows it you can move them outside around day 3 if your temps are in the 90s.
Around day 10 they will look mostly feathered and you can start figuring out what they are.
For the next 2 weeks you’re going to want to continue changing thier water and food every day and they’re brooder every 1-3 days or as needed.
Around 4-6 weeks of age they will be fully feathered and you can move them outside.
Around 6-8 weeks of age they will start laying unless they are celadons celadons take around 8-10 weeks to begin laying.
They will lay one egg almost everyday.
They are mature at 6-8 weeks old and reach full size at 12-14 weeks old.
If you are keeping them and processing them for meat you will harvest them around 6-8 weeks of age.
Around 12-14 weeks of age you are going to want to switch them to an adult feed a game bird layer or chicken layer will work.
If you are keeping them to breed you need proper ratio which is 1 male to 4-5 females or else you will end up with scalped birds.
If you are just keeping them for eggs keep them as is until they stop laying where you can decide to retire them and keep them, sell them or cull them at around 2 years old.
Then you can start the process all over again
I hope this helps anyone who reads it and I hope you can successfully hatch and raise quail.
