Times of year and amounts of birds to hatch?

[Titantherooster]

Hi all, first timer here. Been keeping chickens and ducks for a few years but first time for trying to hatch my own. Considering an incubator but wondering if it will be dumb if I don’t begin the incubating process til mid October? I understand chicks need to be inside for 5-6 weeks til they are feathered and all that. Ducks a bit less. What do people normally do when they want to hatch their own? Can it be done year round as a backyard operation?

 

[MGG]

Hi all, first timer here. Been keeping chickens and ducks for a few years but first time for trying to hatch my own. Considering an incubator but wondering if it will be dumb if I don’t begin the incubating process til mid October? I understand chicks need to be inside for 5-6 weeks til they are feathered and all that. Ducks a bit less. What do people normally do when they want to hatch their own? Can it be done year round as a backyard operation?

I would suggest waiting until spring. For those who hatch year round, they usually have some kind of heated building that their birds can live in until 10 weeks or so. Where do you live? What are your winter lows/highs?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

You also need the birds to lay the eggs, and they don't without artificial lighting in that time