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INCUBATION:

SO YOU’RE EGG-SPECTING?

A week does not pass without one of us telling someone about the amazing experience of incubating and hatching chicks. We have hatched out chicks many times, and the twenty-fifth time is just as exciting as the first! It only takes twenty-one days for a chick to hatch. It’s a great project for young and old alike.

INCUBATION MATERIALS

To create a successful hatching environment, you need the following:

Image An incubator

Image A thermometer

Image Water

Image A hygrometer

Image An egg turner

INCUBATOR

Incubators come in all shapes and sizes, with two standard styles: the tabletop version, typically made from Styrofoam or light plastic, and the cabinet version, which holds eggs on built-in shelves. Most home users choose the tabletop style because it’s more convenient and less expensive than cabinet style. Incubators also range in costs, so they fit in any budget. With a little know-how, you can even build your own. An incubator contains two thermometers: a dry-bulb (regular) thermometer and wet-bulb (relative humidity) thermometer.

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You will never grow tired of the remarkable experience of watching chicks make their way into the world.

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The tabletop model is an alternative to the more-expensive cabinet model, which offers an accurate digital thermostat with LCD display of temperature and humidity.

THERMOMETER (DRY-BULB TEMPERATURE)

For a successful hatch, you need to closely watch your incubator’s temperature. A chick embryo begins to grow at 86°F (30°C), but for appropriate development to progress, an incubator with a fan must maintain a temperature of at least 99.5°F (37.5°C). Incubators without a fan must maintain a temperature of at least 100.5°F (38°C) due to air stratification. (Believe it or not, some avid hatchers have identified a temperature down to one hundredth of a degree above or below that.) From our many incubation experiences, we have found that 100°F (38°C) also results in a successful experience. Adjust the incubator’s temperature using the built-in thermostat and heating element.

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A thermometer is used to monitor the temperature of your incubator.

Place the thermometer inside the incubator to ensure it starts at and maintains a correct temperature consistently throughout the entire incubation period. Even with an incubator that self-regulates inside temperature, check it at the outset and daily throughout the incubation process to ensure the incubator consistently holds that temperature. If you have experienced difficult hatches in the past, you may opt to use two thermometers. By placing two inside the incubator, you can compare their readings to confirm accuracy.

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A hygrometer is a tool used to measure relative humidity.

HYGROMETER (WET-BULB TEMPERATURE)

The hygrometer, an instrument that measures humidity level or moisture content in the air, is just as important as the thermometer in creating a successful hatch. Hygrometers are easy to find, both online or at the local cigar or hardware store. For the first seventeen days, the incubator needs to maintain 45 to 55 percent humidity. To reach this, it should read 82°F (28°C) to 84°F (29°C). On the eighteenth day, increase the humidity level to 55 to 65 percent. The hygrometer should read 86°F (30°C) to 88°F (31°C). Keep it at this level until day twenty-one.

EGG TURNER

For the first eighteen days—no more, no less—the eggs inside the incubator must be rotated a minimum of three times daily. You can do this—carefully—by hand, but if you do, try to complete the task as quickly as possible to prevent too much heat from escaping from the incubator. Also, make sure to wash your hands and use hand sanitizer before and after handling the eggs.

If you don’t want to turn eggs by hand, try an automatic egg turner. It’s certainly not required, but it’s not too expensive and sure makes the process easier, particularly on busy days when getting to the incubator is a challenge. An automatic turner, which constantly rotates the eggs so slowly that it’s hard to see with the naked eye, plays the role a hen does in nature, naturally moving the egg around in the nest. The movement keeps the embryo centered inside the egg so it doesn’t stick to the side membranes.

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An automated egg turner

We highly recommend an automatic egg turner for hatching chicks in classrooms. Though turning eggs by hand may be a fun activity for children, it’s sometimes inconvenient. Plus, hatching eggs in a classroom without an automatic turner means packing up the incubator, eggs, and equipment every weekend for three weeks so eggs can be turned at home over the weekend.

GETTING THE EGGS

For about ten days after a rooster breeds a hen, she lays fertilized eggs. To determine whether embryos are growing, approximately seven to ten days post-incubation, hold a strong light to the outside of the shell (as shown shown here). You’ll actually be able to see a developing embryo. This is called candling. Throw away those that are not developing; they can develop mold or bacteria or even explode.

If you don’t have a rooster, there are many ways to obtain fertile eggs. Do you know other flock owners who could provide them to you? What about a local farmer or hatchery? You also can purchase fertile hatching eggs online from poultry breeders or businesses. Be aware that fertilized eggs sometimes cost more than day-old chicks.

If your home flock produces fertile eggs, collect them daily from your hens and store them in a clean egg carton at a temperature between 50°F (10°C) and 60°F (16°C)—the average refrigerator is too cold—and at 75 percent relative humidity for no longer than two weeks. The fertility of eggs stored for longer than a week decreases significantly. Do not wash the shell of eggs destined for incubation. Once you collect the eggs you want to hatch, place them all into the incubator all at once. Why? To follow the lead of hens in nature; these animals don’t sit on their nests until after they’ve laid clutches containing several eggs. For your purposes, as eggs set in the incubator, embryos begin to grow. Twenty-one days after you place an egg into the incubator, a chick will hatch. If you do this as you collect the eggs, all your chicks won’t hatch together. Chicks typically prefer being brooded in groups, and the convenience of having many chicks born at the same time means opening the incubator minimally and caring for the babies together.

READY TO INCUBATE

Have in mind a number of eggs you’d like to hatch. Once you near that amount, plug in the incubator two days prior to setting your eggs to ensure that everything works properly. Place a thermometer inside to test the temperature, which should range from 99.5°F (37.5°C) to 100°F (38°C). Add water to the incubator’s tray and use a hygrometer to maintain the appropriate humidity level (45 to 55 percent until the eighteenth day, 55 to 65 percent after that).

Also, remember that eggs must be turned a minimum of three times a day. Egg turners do influence the incubator’s inside temperature, so install the turner two days prior to placing the eggs inside. This will let you adjust the temperature to compensate for the heat of the egg turner’s motor.

With your incubator ready, place the eggs inside. If turning them by hand, implement a system to track rotations. If using an automatic egg turner, place the eggs in with the small end pointing down. On the eighteenth day, stop turning the eggs, remove the egg turner, monitor, and adjust the inside temperature. Lay the eggs flat on the floor of the incubator. Your chicks are almost here!

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Be sure to set up your incubator prior to beginning the hatching process so all systems are in order.

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Use a candler to check the progress of an egg’s development.

THE HATCHING PROCESS

On day eighteen of incubation, after you remove the automatic turner (if you used one), lay the eggs on their sides in the incubator. On this day, the chicks begin their two-part pipping process.

First, during internal pipping, chicks break through the air cell inside the eggs and take their first breaths. During this stage, the chicks communicate, encouraging each other to speed up hatching so they hatch simultaneously. In nature, the mother hen starts talking to the chicks on this day as well, encouraging them to hatch. Studies have been done during which eggs are hatched singly, in groups, and under a hen. The rate at which chicks hatch speeds up when they communicate with each other.

The second stage is external pipping, during which the chick makes its first break through the eggshell. This crack is small and difficult to see. The chick is using its egg tooth (as seen in the photos below) to crack open the shell. The egg tooth falls off a few days after hatching.

Do not help the chicks out of their shells. They must use their special hatching muscles to get out. Also, by turning inside the eggshell, the chicks pull in blood from the circulatory system and the yolk. Without these essential components, chicks may bleed uncontrollably. There is one instance, however, when you should help a chick: If it becomes stuck to the inside of its shell due to a dried remnant of umbilicus. When this happens, free the chick by snipping through the umbilicus piece with scissors.

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Chick has already “pipped” (pecked a hole in the shell with its beak) and is now working to enlarge the hole.

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The process of enlarging the hole by pecking around the entire shell, splitting it in two, is sometimes called “zipping.”

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The chick is starting to push its way out of the shell.

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The chick is using its feet to push the bottom half of the shell away.

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She’s hatched! Chicks come out of the egg wet, but when they dry, they look more like the fluff balls you’ve been expecting.

AFTER INCUBATION

Once the chicks are out, you’ll focus much of your attention on their care. However, remember that every incubator, no matter the size, requires a thorough cleaning after every batch of chicks moves to the brooder. It may be boring work, but it is crucial. Bacteria and fungi love the little bits of shell, blood, and feces your chicks leave behind. If you ever wish to hatch eggs again, washing is a must.

Here’s how you do it:

1. Sweep up. This includes removing all fluff (a chick’s first feathers, technically called natal down) and shell bits.

2. Dump out any water that remains in the incubator and remove sponges. (You will have already removed the automatic turner, if you had one, but do not forget to clean it as well.)

3. Take apart the incubator and wipe down all surfaces with warm, soapy water. Avoid coming in contact with electrical components; instead, spray them with compressed air. Rinse the sponges by squeezing them out in hot, soapy water.

4. Wash the sponges and all surfaces to get rid of any soap. Heat the wet sponges in the microwave for fifteen seconds. They will come out hot, so let them cool before touching.

5. Dry everything completely and then use a disinfectant. This will rid your incubator of almost all remaining harmful organisms. A disinfectant can be a simple bleach solution of 1/4 cup (60 ml) of bleach in 17 cups (4 L) of water. For Styrofoam incubators, do not use bleach because the material may break down if left in place for too long. Instead try products such as TEK-TROL, Nolvasan, 1-Stroke Environ, or Oxine. Always apply disinfectants according to the label directions. The amount of contact time needed for the surface varies with each disinfectant. To apply the disinfectant, wear gloves, spray with a bottle, and wipe with a clean sponge.

6. Use a clean sponge to wipe off the disinfectant after the prescribed contact time and then let the incubator dry thoroughly.

7. Put everything back together and test your incubator by turning it on to make sure it works.

THE LIVING INCUBATOR

Are you considering hatching eggs using hen power rather than an incubator? Make an educated decision after weighing the pros and cons. Setting refers to a hen’s desire to incubate eggs. A hen willing to sit on and hatch eggs is said to have become broody.

PROS OF THE HEN

One benefit of having a hen go broody is a lower electric bill. It is, indeed, a greener option than an electric incubator.

Also, it is nice for children (and adults) to see a hen brooding eggs and chicks. As with any new chick, be aware that you will not know whether your chicks are pullets (females) or cockerels (male) until they are much older. If you end up with male birds that aren’t permitted on your property—the law in some places—have a backup plan in mind (for example, a place to which you can sell them).

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Some breeds have a stronger constitution when it comes to setting, such as the Cochin or Silkie. Leghorns, particularly single-comb White Leghorns, are not known to have a strong instinct to set. Research your breed type in this aspect before deciding whether you should invest in an incubator.

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CONS OF THE HEN

Some hens are overly broody. That means they choose to sit on eggs rather than to eat, drink, or leave the nest. These hens require constant monitoring or else they may die on the nest. Also, some hens go broody without any eggs upon which to sit. Broody hens undergo a change to their bodies and hormones so that they stop laying eggs. If you want eggs from a hen, discourage broody behavior by dunking her body only in ice-cold water for one minute then letting her dry in a warm area. For a few days following the ice-water bath, keep her out of the area where she wants to sit on eggs. She may be “as mad as a wet hen,” but you need to break her broody habit if you want eggs.

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It is amazing how quickly your chicks develop after the hatching process. It’s time to prepare for the next batch!

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Not all hens have a strong setting instinct. Make sure you find a hen willing to set if you prefer a living incubator.

Secondly, you must check hens daily for chicks, in case they come out in a staggered hatch.

Third, you need a hen with a strong setting instinct, something not all hens possess. Take advantage of a hen willing to sit on eggs but know that such timing may not correspond with when you wish to hatch eggs. Though hens of any breed are capable of going broody, chicken breeds with strong setting instincts include Cochins and Silkies.

Finally, mother hens do an excellent job protecting their chicks, but they need a safe, secluded area separate from the rest of the flock for the first couple of weeks after the chicks hatch. The chicks also need a separate feeder. The hen may continue eating a laying-hen pellet or crumble diet; however, because she is brooding, she is not laying, so she can eat the same food as her chicks. In fact, layer diets are harmful for chicks because of their high calcium content.

Mother hens will teach their chicks how to eat and drink. You may need to monitor the lessons in case they do not catch on right away. Without a doubt, your interaction with the hen will raise her defenses, so be forewarned that you may become henpecked!

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