first eggs in the incubator

[chrisarvor]

I have just put 10 eggs in the incubator for 28 days it says in my book
do they rear much the same as chickens or do they need anything extra
cheers

 

[zekii]

Poults will require more help from you to get them to eat & drink, they are almost blind when they are born. Be ready to help them thru the first couple of weeks, after that they grow quick, and
start acting like adults.

 

[Arielle]

I hatch chicks at the same time then the chicks are always showing the poults where the food and water is.

Start the chicken eggs 7 days after setting the turkey eggs.

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Congratulations!

I have sixty two that I'll be doing the day twenty five candle on tomorrow night preparatory to going into the hatching trays.

Turkeys are basically like chickens so far as incubating and brooding are concerned, but there are a few differences.

The first is that they take a little more care for the first three days to get them well established. With chicks I dip each and everyone's beaks in their water (NOT their whole heads) then set them down on top of their feed. At least a few will figure both out in a few minutes and the rest will quickly learn from them.

With poults you may need to do this two or three times. The first time when you put them in then again about an hour later and possibly one more time later still if you're not seeing anyone eating or drinking yet. All you need is for a few to figure it out then the rest will learn from them.

Second is that poults need a higher protein feed than chicks. Gamebird starter should be at least 24% protein with 28-30% better still. I've had several customers insist on raising theirs on chick starter then wonder why their birds never grow as large as mine. That's why.

Third is when to take them out of the brooder. With chicks I like to do this at six weeks, maybe even five if the weather is hot, sunny, and dry. With poults I prefer to wait till seven or eight weeks. They don't take to getting wet at an early age so I prefer to grow them out a bit more before they hit the ground. Try not to run them over ground that has had a lot of chickens on it in the last several years until they are well grown.

Other than those three things they're basically the same as chicks.

 

[judsenn]

I have just put 10 eggs in the incubator for 28 days it says in my book
do they rear much the same as chickens or do they need anything extra
cheers

I set mine 7 days ago...so I got to see them for the first time today during candling. I LOVE IT!!