Quail Newb!! Inquiries about Incubation

[adubsroit]

After much reading I realize that the sniff test it the tried and true MO for many a quail breeder/owner. I am new to quail and currently have my first set of 41 eggs in the bator , a mix of jumbo pharaoh and tuxedo; they are on day 4 of incubation as of 19 October. Being new to quail I am still trying to figure which MO of checking for viability suites me: candling or stink.

My question is, for those of you who do candle or have candled: when is best? My parents were both teachers and growing up I was constantly bantered to question and figure new ways of doing things and this quail deal is exciting!! I attempted to candle two eggs today. I know for myself now how difficult the specks/thickness/color make it to see observe anything. If I was to candle again, at what point would I see anything in the egg that would prove it is really going somewhere? With chickens (standard and bantam) and ducks I hold true to not making any decisions as to tossing until 14 days. What is the quail's equivalent check-point (if I was to candle)?

Also, and this just bothers me to no end: how do you keep the eggs still? Ever since learning it is best to set eggs point down I do anything and everything in my power to assure they maintain such posture. Right now I have placed marbles between certain eggs to maintain the up-right position but some eggs just always seem to slide around. Is this detrimental to the young embryo? Usually it is only one or two that slips under others and get settles on its side, and I do open the bator (strictly once a day) reposition the wobbly eggs. I'm afraid my boyfriend or I may have thrown out the egg cartons in which they came in during this weeks cleaning spree. Ideas, or should I let them be?

Thanks, can't wait to hear back from y'all!!

 

[JJMR794]

Basically It Will Be Next To Impossible To Candle Effectively Until Day 12-14 Or So And Then All You Will Be Able To See Will Be The Airsac On Developed Eggs. ( For Coturnix Speces)

As Far As Setting Upright- Thats For Lockdown( The Last 3 Days Of Incubation) During The Entire Incubation They Need To Be Turned Either Manually Or By Autoturner. If Turning Manually Lay Them On Their Side And Turn As Any Egg. If Autoturning Dont Worry About It--- The Turner Is Doing It

Getting Them To Stay Upright--- The Shipping Cartons Or Flats Work Best, Or If You Have A Turner Simply Time It Until The Eggs Are Upright And Unplug The Turner. Or Remove The Egg Rails From The Turner And Set Them Directly On The Floor Of Your Bator. You Can Get Creative And Find Ways Of Keeping Them Upright In Regular Chicken Egg Cartons If Need Be. Or A Couple Of Pices Of Cardboard Taped Togather With The Appropriate Sized Holes For The Tip Of The Egg To Set In And Remain In The Upright Possition.

 

[adubsroit]

In keeping with the positioning of the eggs I managed to find the shipping cartons and thankfully they were stacked together and nowhere near garbage. Cut them and now have eggs sitting in their respectable places pointed end down. We have a Brinsea Octagon 20 Eco with auto-turn. Is it okay to keep them in this position anyway? I'm legitimately OCD about doing things precise, lol (but by no means certifiable) and it would feel VERY weird for me to set the quail eggs on their side when I have learned the benefit of keeping them upright.

Anywho, as I set them in the modified carton I did quick sweeps with our little beast of a flashlight. Sadly I found an egg with cracks and am glad I caught it so early on. 40 are set, no clue as to which are the jumbos and which are the tuxedos though I have noticed something. All the eggs are in fact brown or black specked to different degrees, but some eggs seem to have entirely different shell colors. Most range from a sort of cream hue and other white, but there are a few that can only be described as having a striking similarity to a pale mint chocolate chip ice cream color (or lime sherbet if that's more your thing). It's fun, lol, and I haven't heard much about this, is it normal? Could it in anyway denote either a tuxedo or pharaoh/brown hen? I only say this because of how certain chicken breeds lay certain colors. I realize that tuxedo and brown are the same breed and the difference is variety but iono, lol, just throwing it out there.

Almost forgot about the stink. I assume this early one nothing is going to start up, but when could I expect this? In searching for the stinker do I go about my individually sniffing them? Lol, just seems odd to me but I'm sure it will prove entertaining when the day comes.

 

[ctsanders1]

I'm just curious where I would find these cardboard egg crates so that when I finish building my incubator, I can use them for the trays....

At our grocery stores I see the Styrofoam cartons...

Thanks (I'm also trying to do my first hatch ever of anything and they are quail, too)

 

[JJMR794]

That Method Will Work Fine In A Brinsea Octagon

Does Yours Not Have Adjustable Dividers? All Of Mine Have Slots In The Side Walls And Aluminum Dividers That Can Be Adjusted By Sliding In And Out Of Various Slots-- So I Just Make The Section Narrow Enough To Keep Them Upright By Moving The Dividers.

 

[JJMR794]

Quote:
EBAY

 

[adubsroit]

Quote:
It does have the slider partition deals but they are so funny with the quail eggs. I found myself constantly rearranging them because some eggs didn't fit flush and caused other eggs to tumble when rotated. I blame it on the large eggs, which I would like to say are the jumbos Coturnix but doubt so because there are so few of the large eggs (there should be a 50/50 ratio). When the eggs were first set one of the large eggs got cracked for this very reason too, I felt so bad but wasn't to distraught because technically it was an extra.

 

[tuesdays chicks]

Ok another newby here, ? About seeing the air sac. I saw 1 yesterday, do you only see it on developing eggs don't all eggs get the sac? Is it all dark on the other side. Its so difficult to know if the eggs are growing. When do they start smelling if they are no good? I'm assuming that the smell is really bad and there is no doubt.

 

[JJMR794]

You're Still Way To Early For Candling. At Or About Day 14 You Should Be Able To See The Air Sac Clearly And Everything Under That Should Be Dark--- If So It Was/ Is A Fertile Egg That Has Developed To An Advanced State.--- No Guarentee Of Hatch, But Its A Viable Egg. The Chances Of You Being Able To Accurately Candle The Eggs You Have Now Are Slim To None--- The Spots On Them And Darker Shells Just Dont Co-operate. As Far As Egg Size--- Jumbo Does Not Mean Biggest Eggs. Technically Yes Their Eggs Are Bigger To Start, But As A Hen Ages She Lays Larger And Larger Eggs.... So A Standard Size 2 Yr Old Bird Often Lays Eggs Noticeably Larger Than A 5 Or 6 Month Old Jumbo Bird.

 

[JJMR794]

Quote:
YES THERE SHOULD BE AIR SACS IN ALL EGGS, BUT DEVELOPED EGGS THE SAC IS LARGER AND THE CHICK IS DIRECTLY UNDER IT--- THATS THE "DARK AREA" THAT YOU CAN SEE WHICH MEANS DEVELOPED EGG. AS FAR AS SMELL QUAIL EGGS ARE SMALL, RARELY EXPLODE, I HAVE HAD EGGS RIDE OUT THE ENTIRE 21 DAY ALLOTMENT OF TIME AND NO HATCH AND HAVE NO NOTICEABLE ODOR--- REALLY DEPENDS ON HOW OLD, SIZE, AND HOW THEY HAVE BEEN HANDLED, AS WELL AS FERTILITY TO START WITH--- NON FERTILE EGGS NEVER START DEVELOPMENT, SO THERE'S NO "BODY INSIDE TO DECOMPOSE" AND MAY THEREFOR NOT GIVE OFF AN ODOR. THAT ROTTEN EGG ODOR IS ACTUALLY SULFUR DIOXIDE GAS, ITS A BYPRODUCT OF TISSUE DECOMPOSITION. NO TISSUE= NO DECOMP= NO STINKY EGGS