Hatching Without an Incubator

[machoman]

Hello Chicken Heads!

Just curious and probably a most stupid question, but can I hatch fertile eggs without an incubator?

I have a brooder lamp my other chicks no longer need and was wondering if that would work.

I have a MASSIVE rooster and GIGANTIC hen, the person I purchased them from said they are probably a Jersey Giant/Domique cross. Her eggs are fertile, but she's not broody. She's too busy eating.

 

[Crehan]

they won't hatch if she don't get broody. of course you can hatch chickens without a brooder! I mean, there where no incubator a thousand years ago but there where chickens! I will suggest to let the hen hatch them and raise them on the natural way.

The Old ways is always the best ways!

 

[Gypsy07]

Well, you could use your lamp to build an incubator. Just putting your eggs under a warm lamp is unlikely to be successful as you have to think about regulating the humidity as well as the temperature. But an 'incubator' doesn't need to be anything fancy - one of mine is a styrofoam cooler with two lightbulbs, a cheap thermostat and a dish of water on the floor...

P.S I like the sound of your birds. I have a huge greedy fat hen of my own. Post some photos please

 

[Ridgerunner]

You can make your own incubator. The keys are a constant temperature, correct humidity, and turn them. There are a whole lot of threads on here about making your own. Some work better than others.

 

[Jewels1935]

That movie "Fly Away Home" always gave me hope! lol To see that little girls eyes light up after opening her make shift bator, was awesome! Not saying that would work but ..you get my point

 

[GaryDean26]

I had 9 eggs in a small incubator and 12 days into the incubation the incubator died on us. Yep, it was room temperature one morning and hasn't heated since. We didn't have a back up incubator, so we lined a warming tray that we use to serve food at house parties with towels and put the eggs in to stay warm. The temperature in the warming tray got turned too low on two occations and we woke up in the morning with room temperature eggs. On two occation we also got it a little to hot and we woke up with temperatures over 110 deg. F. The humity was also hard to maintain, but we did our best and were plesantly supprised last week to have two of the eggs hatch without any difficulties and are now happy healthy chicks. So... yes you can hatch eggs without an incubator, but an incubator with greatly increase your hatch rate. 2 out of 9 eggs is not a good htch rate. Good incubator and fresh home breed eggs should give you 75% or more of the eggs hatching.