Quail egg incubation tips advice?

[won023]

im going to start to incubate quails soon just wondering if anyone can give some advice?

 

[Pleasant_valley_farm]

I had Quail and raised them for a couple years. I had Coturnix and Bobwhites! I raised Bobwhite quail for a dog training facility and they are a little tricky. Definitely different from baby chicks. What kind of breed are you thinking of incubating and raising?

 

[won023]

Thanks for the reply! I’m going to try and hatch 12 Japanese coturnix quails buy using the janoel 12 incubator

I had Quail and raised them for a couple years. I had Coturnix and Bobwhites! I raised Bobwhite quail for a dog training facility and they are a little tricky. Definitely different from baby chicks. What kind of breed are you thinking of incubating and raising?

 

[Pleasant_valley_farm]

Okay! In my opinion, the Japanese are easier to raise then say bobwhites. I personally raised some Japanese quail myself and had a success! But, I did run into some trial and errors with raising these guys.

First thing you have to know is that quail are not like chickens. If you have ever raised chickens, you would know that after they get done hatching, you put them in the brooder, dip their beak in water, sprinkle some food on the ground and call it good. That's not the case with quail. Quail are much different than chickens. Hopefully my trail and errors can help you!

Now, I can not stress to you how important humidity and temperature is when raising and incubating quail eggs. I'm not very familiar with the incubator that you have, but I'm guessing it is just like any other incubator. (has manual temperature settings, humidity readings and so on.) But, with raising quail, the temperature will need to be either 99.5*F or 37.5*C for the first 14 days. (which ever setting your incubator has or you prefer) If the temperature reaches lower or higher than this, then your hatchability rate with significantly drop. The humidity needs to be between 45-50%. Humidity is very important especially when the chicks start to hatch. So opening up the lid for long periods of time could potentially kill the baby chick. (letting the humidity out can cause the membrane inside the shell to shrink. Not letting the chick be able to hatch or move.) Now, a quails incubation period is 18 days. So, for the first 14, you will be turning them and having the humidity between 45-50%. On day 15, you can stop turning them. At this point, you need to let the chick start to pip and get ready to hatch. These last couple days are crucial! On day 15, you need to increase the humidity to 75-80%. Increasing the humidity helps to soften the shell membrane, making it easier for the chick to hatch. Also prevents the membrane from drying up and trapping the chick inside the egg. Adding all this moisture also enlarges the air sac into which the chick will peck and take its first breaths. Also on day 15,you need to reduce the temperature to 98.6*F or 37*C to compensate for the chicks own body heat production. While the chicks are hatching do not open the lid! The chicks can stay inside the incubator for 12-24 hours. ( the chicks don't need food or water as soon as they hatch as the yolk is still in their abdomen.)

Once most of the eggs have hatched, you can move the chicks into the brooder. Make sure before you put them in the brooder, that you have warmed it up. (keep the lamp on for a little bit.) chicks are unable to regulate their body temperature so it's essential to get this right! (Also with putting them In the brooder, dip their beaks in the water)Also, if any other chicks are still trying to hatch or are still piped, be very fast and diligent with taking the lid off for a long time. Even more than a couple minutes can harm the chicks and shirk the membrane. If a chick is still piped after 24 hours( time it takes after they pip to hatch) and after you take the remaining chicks out, try to help it by peeling some of the shell back around the hole. These late bloomers are normally weak or smaller and most the time don't make it even if you help them.

Now to the parts where I made my trial and errors. The brooder. The most essential item in your brooder is your heat source. With this said, it is very important to make sure that the temperature does not get too hot or too cold for the chicks. (having a thermometer in the brooder helps a lot to maintain and watch the temperature.) For the first 24 hours, the temperature needs to be 98.6*F (37*C). As the chicks get older, you want to reduce the temperature each week so you can prepare your birds for the outside temps. (I'd say decreasing it by 5-7 degrees each week is good.) Also, make sure you put rocks or marbles in your chicks water. They are not the smartest and can drown. Make sure you are feeding them a nutritional starter (24% protein for the first 6 weeks) to help them grow and for their systems. With their bedding, to prevent splayed legs, use paper towels for the first few days, Then you can move on to dust free sawdust or absorbent bedding. Making sure their cage is clean can prevent diseases and the ammonia from the feces can damage their lungs.

Other than all of this, I think you should be good! Hopefully this helps and gives you some tips and ideas on how to hatch your birds! Happy Hatching and let me know how it goes!

 

[won023]

Okay! In my opinion, the Japanese are easier to raise then say bobwhites. I personally raised some Japanese quail myself and had a success! But, I did run into some trial and errors with raising these guys.

First thing you have to know is that quail are not like chickens. If you have ever raised chickens, you would know that after they get done hatching, you put them in the brooder, dip their beak in water, sprinkle some food on the ground and call it good. That's not the case with quail. Quail are much different than chickens. Hopefully my trail and errors can help you!

Now, I can not stress to you how important humidity and temperature is when raising and incubating quail eggs. I'm not very familiar with the incubator that you have, but I'm guessing it is just like any other incubator. (has manual temperature settings, humidity readings and so on.) But, with raising quail, the temperature will need to be either 99.5*F or 37.5*C for the first 14 days. (which ever setting your incubator has or you prefer) If the temperature reaches lower or higher than this, then your hatchability rate with significantly drop. The humidity needs to be between 45-50%. Humidity is very important especially when the chicks start to hatch. So opening up the lid for long periods of time could potentially kill the baby chick. (letting the humidity out can cause the membrane inside the shell to shrink. Not letting the chick be able to hatch or move.) Now, a quails incubation period is 18 days. So, for the first 14, you will be turning them and having the humidity between 45-50%. On day 15, you can stop turning them. At this point, you need to let the chick start to pip and get ready to hatch. These last couple days are crucial! On day 15, you need to increase the humidity to 75-80%. Increasing the humidity helps to soften the shell membrane, making it easier for the chick to hatch. Also prevents the membrane from drying up and trapping the chick inside the egg. Adding all this moisture also enlarges the air sac into which the chick will peck and take its first breaths. Also on day 15,you need to reduce the temperature to 98.6*F or 37*C to compensate for the chicks own body heat production. While the chicks are hatching do not open the lid! The chicks can stay inside the incubator for 12-24 hours. ( the chicks don't need food or water as soon as they hatch as the yolk is still in their abdomen.)

Once most of the eggs have hatched, you can move the chicks into the brooder. Make sure before you put them in the brooder, that you have warmed it up. (keep the lamp on for a little bit.) chicks are unable to regulate their body temperature so it's essential to get this right! (Also with putting them In the brooder, dip their beaks in the water)Also, if any other chicks are still trying to hatch or are still piped, be very fast and diligent with taking the lid off for a long time. Even more than a couple minutes can harm the chicks and shirk the membrane. If a chick is still piped after 24 hours( time it takes after they pip to hatch) and after you take the remaining chicks out, try to help it by peeling some of the shell back around the hole. These late bloomers are normally weak or smaller and most the time don't make it even if you help them.

Now to the parts where I made my trial and errors. The brooder. The most essential item in your brooder is your heat source. With this said, it is very important to make sure that the temperature does not get too hot or too cold for the chicks. (having a thermometer in the brooder helps a lot to maintain and watch the temperature.) For the first 24 hours, the temperature needs to be 98.6*F (37*C). As the chicks get older, you want to reduce the temperature each week so you can prepare your birds for the outside temps. (I'd say decreasing it by 5-7 degrees each week is good.) Also, make sure you put rocks or marbles in your chicks water. They are not the smartest and can drown. Make sure you are feeding them a nutritional starter (24% protein for the first 6 weeks) to help them grow and for their systems. With their bedding, to prevent splayed legs, use paper towels for the first few days, Then you can move on to dust free sawdust or absorbent bedding. Making sure their cage is clean can prevent diseases and the ammonia from the feces can damage their lungs.

Other than all of this, I think you should be good! Hopefully this helps and gives you some tips and ideas on how to hatch your birds! Happy Hatching and let me know how it goes!

Thankyou so much that was really helpful! Will keep this in mind! And will update