Quail and chicken at the same incubator?

[Maiahr]

Question. Can I hatch quail and chicken together in the same incubator? Has anybody done this? I put the chicken eggs, then 3 days later I put the quail eggs. Lockdown all the same time and in the same incubator. I could put a plastic divider in the incubator during lockdown so the chicken do not crash the quail after hatching.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

You could do it that way but I recommend that you set all the eggs at the same time.
That way the quail will be out before the chickens hatch. That will prevent all kinds of issues.

 

[muddy75]

Question. Can I hatch quail and chicken together in the same incubator? Has anybody done this? I put the chicken eggs, then 3 days later I put the quail eggs. Lockdown all the same time and in the same incubator. I could put a plastic divider in the incubator during lockdown so the chicken do not crash the quail after hatching.

I have hatched like that without issue of course fewer chickens than quail....as long as monitored shouldn’t need divider

 

[Maiahr]

@ChickenCanoe So do you suggest that I set all eggs say on Sept 1st, (30-40% humidity), then Sept 15 is lockdown for the quail and I need to increase the humidity to 60-70%... Chicken eggs will keep turning until Sept 19, but won't the humidity mess up the hatch?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

IMO, those concerns are less of a problem than hatching chickens and quail together.
Humidity bounces around in nature. A setting hen can't control a rainstorm or dry spell so it won't hurt to raise the humidity for a couple days as long as the chicken eggs have lost sufficient weight to that point. It isn't about daily humidity %, it is about weight loss throughout incubation. It should be about 13%.
Turning is not essential after the first two weeks.

 

[Maiahr]

Thank you, where do I read about the weight loss during incubation? How and when do you measure it?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I use small pocket gram scales. I weigh the day of setting and weekly thereafter. If pre-incubation storage in a cool humid space, they won't lose much till incubation starts.
https://poultrykeeper.com/incubating-and-hatching-eggs/weight-loss-method-forl-incubation/
If they are losing too much, you can raise the humidity. If they aren't losing enough, let it dry out.
This article further explains humidity and weight loss.
https://www.pasreform.com/en/knowledge/18/humidity-in-incubation

 

[ChickenCanoe]

To further emphasize that turning in the last week is of much less significance I recommend reading the following paper. Turning as much as possible in the first week will yield better results.
https://www.pasreform.com/en/knowledge/10/the-biology-behind-egg-turning

 

[Maiahr]

The 13% weight loss is for chicken, right? What about quail?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

The 13% weight loss is for chicken, right? What about quail?

That number is in the ballpark for virtually all species of birds. Most range from 12-15%.