➡ Quail Hatch Along🥚

[Pennys Mama]

I did a @Kiki today. My new pen arrived yesterday late afternoon, so I assembled it, got it arranged, and put most of my 4th hatch in there. I moved the five birds that didn't integrate into the other pen figuring that it's new, neutral, territory, and they're seriously outnumbered by the youngsters.
Four are getting along just fine with the younger birds, but one was pecking every bird it could reach. She's cooling off in the 'fridge now.

She went to camp!!!
That's what I do!
Get along or go to freezer camp, I don't play!
It's too easy to replace them to have to put up with meanness!


Oh, I got surprise when I got home from town!!!

Biggest quail EVER!
Gonna name it "Vangeline" (hoping for it to be female of course).
Why & how did I never know turkey poults are ginormous?

 

[R2elk]

Why & how did I never know turkey poults are ginormous?

Duh, look at the size of the eggs.

 

[Pennys Mama]

Duh, look at the size of the eggs.

All 3 hatched out!!!

 

[RUNuts]

All 3 hatched out!!!

Christmas Eve Turkeys! How wonderful!

 

[Pennys Mama]

Christmas Eve Turkeys! How wonderful!

They were dated to hatch tomorrow, but ALL of my batches start hatching a day early. Wonder why that is?

 

[ShrekDawg]

They were dated to hatch tomorrow, but ALL of my batches start hatching a day early. Wonder why that is?

Is the temp running high? I’ve heard that can be a big reason why for early hatches and for late ones, too low. But I’m sure there’s other reasons too but if multiple batches are consistently hatching early then that’s probably high. Even if it runs just a little bit high that would do it. Do you have a calibrated thermometer in there? That’s a big lesson I learned from @Kiki and I made that mistake with my first hatch. I still had what I consider a great hatch for my first ever hatch and shipped eggs (9/13) but I had some early quitters that I believe may have been due to possible temp spikes before I got a calibrated thermometer.

 

[Pennys Mama]

Is the temp running high? I’ve heard that can be a big reason why for early hatches and for late ones, too low. But I’m sure there’s other reasons too but if multiple batches are consistently hatching early then that’s probably high. Even if it runs just a little bit high that would do it. Do you have a calibrated thermometer in there? That’s a big lesson I learned from @Kiki and I made that mistake with my first hatch. I still had what I consider a great hatch for my first ever hatch and shipped eggs (9/13) but I had some early quitters that I believe may have been due to possible temp spikes before I got a calibrated thermometer.

I put multiple thermometers in the Incubator, showed that I had hot spots & cooler spots, so I just rotated the eggs around every few days so they weren't in the same place the whole time. Doing that put a stop to my 5 day long hatches, thank goodness!

 

[ShrekDawg]

I put multiple thermometers in the Incubator, showed that I had hot spots & cooler spots, so I just rotated the eggs around every few days so they weren't in the same place the whole time. Doing that put a stop to my 5 day long hatches, thank goodness!

I rotated my eggs too and it definitely seems to help especially since mine had hot and cool spots too (think most bators do) but thermometers can be wrong, even brand new ones, which is why having at least one calibrated one is important.

I’m sure yours are fine but I just trusted my thermometers I had in there instead of having a calibrated one for a while.

I forget exactly when I finally got one but it was pretty late. I thought it would be fine and didn’t see how they could be off.

I had a Brinsea Spot Check in there too, the probe typing sticking through the air hole, and since Brinsea is a trusted name, just trusted it.

Thankfully in my case all my hygrometers and thermometers mostly agreed with each other or very close but usually, from what I gather, that’s not always the case, and even if it, even a degree or two off can affect things.

I had some early and late hatchers but for the most part everyone hatched on time and all healthy.

But I might have gotten more if I had listened to @Kiki about the thermometer to begin with. Or I might not have. Shipping might have messed them up too. But still. I’ll never know now ha

I actually had another one that made it to lockdown too but it never internally pipped.

It was still alive for a little while too so I tried to give it time to hatch but I think it died at some point during that time and I wish I had helped it out instead of waiting.

 

[Pennys Mama]

I rotated my eggs too and it definitely seems to help especially since mine had hot and cool spots too (think most bators do) but thermometers can be wrong, even brand new ones, which is why having at least one calibrated one is important.

I’m sure yours are fine but I just trusted my thermometers I had in there instead of having a calibrated one for a while.

I forget exactly when I finally got one but it was pretty late. I thought it would be fine and didn’t see how they could be off.

I had a Brinsea Spot Check in there too, the probe typing sticking through the air hole, and since Brinsea is a trusted name, just trusted it.

Thankfully in my case all my hygrometers and thermometers mostly agreed with each other or very close but usually, from what I gather, that’s not always the case, and even if it, even a degree or two off can affect things.

I had some early and late hatchers but for the most part everyone hatched on time and all healthy.

But I might have gotten more if I had listened to @Kiki about the thermometer to begin with. Or I might not have. Shipping might have messed them up too. But still. I’ll never know now ha

I actually had another one that made it to lockdown too but it never internally pipped.

It was still alive for a little while too so I tried to give it time to hatch but I think it died at some point during that time and I wish I had helped it out instead of waiting.

I hate trying to decide if & when i should help aHatcher. This last turkey that hatched was the first to pip (it pipped on the bottom of the egg) and the other 2 pipped & zipped all on their own and hatched out unassisted. So I felt justified in helping it. I know there has been a time or two that I was absolutely not helpful in "helping". My hatch rate increased when I changed to a dry hatch except or adding water at lockdown.

I don't trust digital thermometers at all, hate them actually. I prefer the glass/mercury type and the humidor hygrometers.

I just candled tonight, looks like almost all of the quail eggs were fertile, already showing some veining. Unfortunately looks like only about 1/2 of the guinea eggs are, they are very young pullets though that have only been laying a few weeks. It's still early though, wasn't due to candle until Friday.

 

[CindyinSD]

All 3 hatched out!!!
View attachment 1987468

You think they’re big now?