orloffer's Coturnix Quail Project

No visible fertility signs at day zero without cracking one open (that's actually what I do with the ones that don't pass my inspection). They'll have the same bull's eye like a fertile chicken egg. "Go bad" as in contamination, they stink and leak of you don't catch them in time. I candle day 4 to check for veining, you can't always see through well but developing eggs often have a spot that had a pink cast. I sniff the air vent daily as well, just to be safe. I have had 3 contaminated eggs this year even with being selective, been incubating a lot of shipped eggs for new bloodlines and colors.
I used to "set and forget" quail eggs until lockdown but I had an egg explode and I never EVER want to deal with that again!
 
I used to "set and forget" quail eggs until lockdown but I had an egg explode and I never EVER want to deal with that again!
How terrible! I have hatched quail eggs twice and never candled, but I will consider doing it from now on because I definitely do not want to have an exploding egg. I am just worried that the temperature and humidity will fluctuate a lot if I open the incubator lid so much. In my experience the Janoel 12 is not the most stable in terms of those factors.
 
How terrible! I have hatched quail eggs twice and never candled, but I will consider doing it from now on because I definitely do not want to have an exploding egg. I am just worried that the temperature and humidity will fluctuate a lot if I open the incubator lid so much. In my experience the Janoel 12 is not the most stable in terms of those facto

How terrible! I have hatched quail eggs twice and never candled, but I will consider doing it from now on because I definitely do not want to have an exploding egg. I am just worried that the temperature and humidity will fluctuate a lot if I open the incubator lid so much. In my experience the Janoel 12 is not the most stable in terms of those factors.
Does it not have a vent outlet somewhere on the top? I'm not familiar with that model. You should be good if you just candle once before setting and once after setting, just to check for stinkers. Does it have a viewing window?
 
Does it not have a vent outlet somewhere on the top? I'm not familiar with that model. You should be good if you just candle once before setting and once after setting, just to check for stinkers. Does it have a viewing window?
This is a picture of the incubator from the Internet. It has a small hole/vent at top center, and overall the material is kind of see-through, though it has no designated viewing window.
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my mother has one of these. She's had very good luck with it the 3 times she's used it for small hatches. You can see through fairly easily. It comes with a warning not to try to put water through the vent hole though as it's right above the heater motor.:)
 
my mother has one of these. She's had very good luck with it the 3 times she's used it for small hatches. You can see through fairly easily. It comes with a warning not to try to put water through the vent hole though as it's right above the heater motor.:)
Last time I hatched eggs I used an eyedropper to add in water (through that vent hole), angling it toward the side so it would drip down the wall of the incubator and not touch the motor. It worked alright, though it is not very practical.
 
Last time I hatched eggs I used an eyedropper to add in water (through that vent hole), angling it toward the side so it would drip down the wall of the incubator and not touch the motor. It worked alright, though it is not very practical.
She just quickly opened and poured some warm water in. Because is so small it comes back to temp pretty quickly
 
This is a picture of the incubator from the Internet. It has a small hole/vent at top center, and overall the material is kind of see-through, though it has no designated viewing window.
View attachment 2730169
Ok at least you have a place to sniff without opening the lid, lol! Most of the time the very strong membrane in quail prevents explosion but you need to keep an eye out for weeping eggs, generally you'll smell something rotten before they weep. Hopefully you don't have to deal with any of that, but better safe than sorry!
 
The eggs have been in the incubator for 7 days now. There are 27 of them now: 2 were slightly cracked in shipping, and another I discovered was cracked yesterday, likely because the incubator lid fell in at one point. :oops: I cracked it open and it appeared to either have been infertile or never developed. The temperature seems to be fairly stable; the humidity, not so much. I am hoping for the best, though! :)
 
Another egg was taken out of the incubator today because I found a crack. This was the second of the three eggs that did not fit in the tray and were just squeezed in on the side. Unlike the first one to be removed, this one was fertile and had a 7.5 day old embryo in it. :eek:It was probably alive when I took it out, but I don't believe it would have continued to develop much longer. I currently have it suspended in water so I can examine it more closely. Pictures coming soon.
 

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