How to take care a egg

[shorthorn1996]

Hi, my chickens have been lay eggs about every day. I was wondering what i should dew with them in the incubator . For example how high should the temp , when should i move them. And how long will they take

 

[Dixieangus]

Well my friend has eggs in incubaters and ill try to ask him this week

 

[dun]

http://www.shilala.com/incubating.html

 

[hillsdown]

Here I thought this was going to be about embryos... :lol2:

Shorthorn try the BackyardChickens Forum a few CT members belong to it as well and it is supposed to be very helpful..

Good luck and I hope all of you babies hatch..

 

[I luv herfrds]

Incubator should be at 98.9 degrees. Use a thermometer to check the temp. Run it for 24 hours before adding the eggs to make sure the temp stays constant. Add warm water to the bottom. Re-check the temp.
An egg turner is a great investment then you don't have to do it by hand. Now if you are going to do it by hand mark one side of the egg with an "X" and the other side with an "O". Place the eggs in the incubator with either the X or O is on top, and let sit there for 24 hours with out turning them. Turn them so the other mark is up. Turn twice a day at the same time. Should take around 28 days.
Candle the eggs at about 2 weeks. You can see the chick developing. Place the candler at the large end and look for blood vessels. No blood vessels, throw it out.
At about day 26 hold the egg up to your ear and listen for a tapping sound. When you hear that stop turning the eggs. That is the chick now trying to hatch. Try to avoid opening the incubator at this time.
Now it is a good idea to have an extra incubator. Once the first chick hatches put it in the second incubator. The chick will start moving around and cause death in the other unhatched eggs.
Once the chick is dry it can go into the brooder.
First feed should be corn meal. They should be good for 3 days after hatching. Make sure they drink water first.

 

[angie1]

I do my own hatching as well as custom hatching. I keep the temp at 98.5. It can vary a degree either way. I highly recommend a fan in your incubator. I know Murray McMurray sells these very reasonably and the forced air dramatically increased my hatch rate (most often 100%). Also with these incubators there are like ditches you fill, and they control the humidity in your incubator ~ very very important. I RARELY open the incubator when chicks are hatching. It causes a decrease in humidity when it is needed most, and negatively impacts the hatch. I wait until I have a bunch running around in there before I take out any, and then I get in and get out.

Chicks take 21 days, ducklings 28 days. Candle at 12 days and see what is alive. It will look like a lava lamp in the live egg ~ real cool! Take out what is not alive. Just use a flash light in a dark room to candle ~ you don't need fancy equipment.

A hen turns her eggs almost 100 times a day (who counts this stuff??). I turn for the first 5 days 7 times a day, marking x and o as was suggested. After the first 5 days turn 5 times a day (always an odd number). Some suggest not to turn in first 24 hours because the blood vessles forming are so fragile. I find you will have greater successs if you roll them carefully as opposed to not at all. Do not turn at all after day 19, they are getting in position to hatch and you will screw them up.

Mine go from the incubator to under a heat lamp. Watch them, if they gather under the heat lamp, they may be too cold. If they gather to the edges away from the light, they are too warm. You will be able to see when they are comfortable.

I hatch ducklings, pheasants, goslings, turkeys, chicks and quail. It is a great time!! It is like all things ~ the more you do it, the better you will get. Don't get discouraged if it does not work out as you hope ~ but the more you know ahead of time, the better you will do.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Glad you remembered the things I forgot Angie.

 

[novaman]

Just thought I would add a few things about egg handling before they go in the incubator. The eggs must not go in the refridgerator. The eggs should be free of any manure or other material as this introduces bacteria that thrive in an incubator and reduce hatch rates. However, don't wash the eggs to clean off any contaminants. The eggs must be picked clean and remain that way. You should use eggs as fresh as possible. Once the eggs are in the incubator keep a close eye on the temperature and the humidity. If either gets off too far you'll have problems. Good luck

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

I used to mark them with AM & PM and turn in am & pm

 

[brandonm_13]

I only have a small incubator(I'm incubating some eggs now), but my thermometer is set for 99.5. Turn the eggs at least once a day although two or three is better. Chickens turn them multiple times a day(I usually turn it three times- before work, after work, and before bed). As far as humidity goes, I went low tech. I fold up a couple of paper towels until they are about 2 inches by 2 inches. I wet it down and pat out the extra water. It usually takes a full 24 hours to get bone dry, so I re-wet it once a day. Works pretty well so far.

 

[mnmtranching]

I have a couple little incubators, I think they hold 4 dozen eggs. Has this little insert that turns the eggs. Has a fan, all you do is add a little water to the tray once in a while. I remove the turner at 19 days. This works pretty good.

Our local farm store has a variety of chicks, ducklings and geese for sale. People come in and pick what they want, a couple chicks or hundreds. The cheapest chicks are $1.69 each. :shock: :roll: Many are over $2. Why the heck would anybody pay that much for a chick?

 

[Arkieman]

Laying hens start at $12 here..

 

[angie1]

my thermometer is set for 99.5.

Yes, this is right. I said 98.5 ~ but I was not thinking. It is 99.5.

 

[TexasBred]

Here I thought this was going to be about embryos... :lol2:

Shorthorn try the BackyardChickens Forum a few CT members belong to it as well and it is supposed to be very helpful..

Good luck and I hope all of you babies hatch..

Me too...I was gonna say "find a bull". :lol2: