I have some turkey eggs in the incubator due this Sunday. I am taking them out of the turner tonight I have hatched chicken eggs before but first time with turkeys. Do I need to do anything different when they start to hatch? Someone told me you had to help turkeys out of the eggs, is that true? Thanks in advance all help is appreciated.
If you've successfully hatched chicks, then follow the same process for turkey poults. Do NOT help them hatch. They will pip, then rest, then pip a little more, then rest, then zip, then pop. That time and turn is needed to finish absorbing the yolk and close down the blood vessels and twist the umbilical cord.
If your incubation humidity was correct and the air cells are about 20% of the egg volume at lockdown, then mark the lowest point of the air cell and place the mark facing up. That is normally where the poult will pip, or just below it as the air cell grows a little more the last few days.
Be sure you have plenty of humidity in the hatcher at first pip, by day 27 for sure. I run 65% to 75%, depending on ambient temperature. I like just the slightest bit of condensation on the corner of the incubator windows, and no more...but I also want good ventilation.
Only after most of the poults have hatched and dried should you think about "helping" others. Some may just need to finish their pre-hatch preparation, but some may actually be too large or in distress. You can't save all of them, and it's up to you if you try.
I have about 80 turkey eggs in my incubator right now, first set to hatch next weekend.
