Features of hatching chickens from eggs

Success in breeding any bird depends on how well the breeding process has been set. And this is also true for domestic chickens, regardless of whether chicks are hatched in an incubator or under a brood. And in this matter a lot depends on the quality of the eggs, on heredity and on the conditions of incubation. The success of the appearance of the chicks can be affected both with the help of preliminary preparations, and in the process of hatching.Moreover, the effect on hatching of chickens can be not only positive, but also negative.

Chicken hatching from the egg

What factors influence the successful appearance of chicks from eggs

There are a number of factors that affect how chicks hatch and whether they even appear in the light. They should be taken into account when breeding chicks, so as not to waste the eggs, and not lose time and energy. Most of these factors can affect both positively and negatively, it all depends on the specific situation. It should be borne in mind that it is more difficult for chicks in an incubator to hatch than those that are hatched. Therefore, the farmer who uses the incubator should pay special attention to the hatching process.

It is worth dividing all the factors into two main groups. And this is not about positive and negative influences and causes. They are divided according to another characteristic, namely, according to whether they are bred in an incubator, or by a brood hen. There are a number of factors that act in both cases. All of them will be listed separately. You should start with those factors that affect both artificial conclusion and natural hatching. Here is a list of these effects, and the possible results of their influence:

• The first factor that always affects the quality of eggs is feeding , which is obtained by hens and hens. The process of hatching a small chicken will not even begin if the embryo is lacking in nutrients. Therefore, it is worth paying attention to the quality and quantity of the food that the parents of the chicks receive.
• The second factor, which sometimes is combined with the first, is the amount of vitamins and minerals in the bird feed. There must be a balance. An example is the amount of calcium that a layer receives. If there is little calcium, then the shell is too fragile, and the embryo is weak, and with thin bones. If there is a lot of calcium, then the shell turns out to be hard, and the chicks usually do not hatch without help.
• The third factor, which, of course, always affects the percentage of hatching from eggs, is the breeding stock of hens.If the birds are sick, or if closely related crosses are allowed, then many chicks do not hatch, or are not able to break through the shell. Sometimes they don’t even peep inside, but silently suffocate in the shell.
• Eggs that have lain for a long time in the storage. The so-called old eggs are the reason that chickens are poorly hatched in an incubator or under a brood hen. There is even a separate table that shows how the shelf life affects the overall percentage of hatching. And so that the chickens hatch on time, it is better to use a fresh egg.
• Too large eggs. Embryos in them are always worse hatched, and larger chicks are weaker than their counterparts, and often die without hatching. When incubated in the incubator, they are more sensitive to humidity and temperature, and heat up more. Therefore, the owners of these cabinets usually have to lay a larger egg separately from the rest of the clutch.

What exactly affects the output in the incubator and under the hen

Described below, the group of factors affects exclusively the incubator conclusion, and it should be considered only for those who prefer to use artificial growing. But the owners of layers may also find this information useful if they decide to purchase or manufacture an incubator. They should also be considered because sometimes a good laying hen can turn out to be a poor brood hen, and the egg will have to be urgently transferred to an incubation cabinet.Here is a list of factors that influence chick hatching in an incubator:

• Indoor humidity level. Due to the low humidity, there is often no bite, and the egg is already dead by the time of hatching. And with high humidity, the baby may die after the bite has appeared. Or the shell may crack prematurely and on time.
• Temperature condition. For example, at high temperatures, the egg may not even bite. And if the temperature was raised on the last day before hatching, the chicken may die after biting. Well, at low temperatures, the embryo may not even develop.
• Flip eggs. If they are not turned over correctly, or left with the pointed end up, the embryo may die. Therefore, it is worth watching the available video on how to properly turn the masonry in the incubator. The help of a more experienced farmer will not be superfluous.
• The quality of ventilation. If ventilation is poorly done, then this very negatively affects the percentage of chicks that were born. Too strong or weak airing leads to sad consequences. Possible options are the lack of biting, the death of already hatching babies, and their sticking to the shell.

The reasons that affect exclusively the output under the hen are slightly less. The greatest influence in this case is exerted by the maternal qualities of the laying hen.Many egg chickens do not have a maternal instinct, and the clutch has to be shifted to other birds, or incubated artificially. And in the event that the laying hen honestly hatches the masonry, a lot depends on its owner. It is necessary to ensure that she leaves for drinking and food, and also to make sure that she sits back in time on her nest.

How does the process of hatching the chicken out of the egg

Every beginner farmer should know how the process of the appearance of the chick proceeds. Chicks hatch three weeks after the start of hatching or artificial incubation. And exactly how the babies hatch, you can watch the video to reinforce theoretical knowledge with observations. And incubator owners should remember that the better the egg care is, the higher the percentage of output. And no matter what a good incubator model is, you need to keep the clutch in a healthy condition.

Chicks are born on the 21st day of incubation, but the first signs can be noticed already on the 18-19th day after the start of breeding. And even if you look at the hatching of chickens in a good video, there you will not be able to see this moment. By this time, the kids have already formed enough, and within 1-2 days you can hear how some kind of stirring occurs in the egg. And if you look at it through the ovoscope , you can already see the chick itself. But ovoscopy does not need to be carried out without a really important reason.

And on day 19-21, the chickens begin to move more actively. Usually at this time the first holes are pecked on the shell. But do not immediately rush, and try to help the baby get out. If an egg breaks an egg ahead of time, it may die. But if in the future new holes do not appear, then you already need to help the chick, and break the egg manually. According to some farmers, the breeding may take a day or two. And if the baby is moving, but does not crawl out, then he already needs to help.

Chicken from the egg

If you pick the time in time, the owners can watch the whole process with from the very beginning to the end. It takes several hours and varies depending on the quality of the eggs and breed of the hens. On day 19-21, the first crack appears on the egg, and the first squeak is heard. And after a couple of hours, the shell pecks at the crack site. Then new cracks and bends begin to appear, usually in a circle on the egg. During this period, the shell cracks within a few hours and is ready to fall apart completely.

Cracks in the shell appear due to an egg tooth – this nestling is designed specifically to crack an egg. This does not take longer than a day. Duration depends on how long it took to hatch. The fact is that in all chickens, eggs should become more fragile during hatching.Therefore, the longer the incubation took place, the easier the eggs should crack. And, if you look by the day, after three weeks the shell becomes very fragile, and very thin.

Sometimes the nestling does not have enough strength to break the shell, and then he, if left alone, may perish.It is not difficult to determine this moment – cracks and bends are visible, a squeak is sometimes heard from the inside, but the baby does not get out. In this case, you need to help him. What to do? It is necessary to carefully break the shell and release the chick from the egg. But this must be done when the time of day has already come to the light of day. Otherwise, this process, sometimes necessary for chicken chicks, can cause their death.

Help the chicks hatch from the egg

So, here is a description of the situation in which it’s early or later, everyone who breeds chickens gets caught. The day has already come when the babies are born, the farmer begins to count how many birds he will have – and the chickens do not hatch. And development should have been normal, but no results were visible. And it’s not clear what to do these days. But something needs to be done, and it does not matter that the withdrawal takes place at home, and many tools are not available. Otherwise, you can lose from 50 to 90 percent of the whole chicken brood.

First, you can’t let the panic break out – if you start breaking eggs right away, you can lose all the kids. Otherwise, there will be an unpleasant sight of dead embryos lying in their own blood. You need to start by listening to the eggs. If a squeak was heard from within, a day passed, and the baby still could not get out – it means that he most likely needs help. First of all, ovoscopy should be done. This is the process of scrolling the eggs, and the right device is quite possible to do at home.

An ovoscope is used to accurately locate the location of the air chamber. It is there that one must begin to open the shell. This is done with a needle or other similar tool. In this case, you must not leave unnecessary damage on the film located under the egg shell. Then one neat hole is made on this film, so as not to damage the baby’s body. after that, you need to consider the beak so that after that you can already begin to release the chick from the shell.

The process of release from the shell

Usually this procedure is carried out according to the following principle – they begin to break the shell from beak and in a circle, if the baby can not do it yourself. But before this, it is not in vain that ovoscopy is performed. You need to see exactly where the egg sack is located, where the nutrients needed by the chick are in the first days of life. And if this bag is still full, it’s too early to release the baby. You can make an artificial bite, but not break the whole shell. Otherwise, the chick will bleed after birth.

With further release, it is necessary to clear that part of the body where the circulatory system is not shown. It is easy to see the vessels, and if you look at the photo the approximate location of the chick in the egg, you can understand how best to remove the shell. If by days it turns out that it is too early for the chick to appear, then it is worth expanding the bite so that there is no damage on the film under the shell.Then the baby will not suffocate, but also will not get out of the egg ahead of time. Moreover, these recommendations will work not only for chickens, but also for other birds.

But in this situation, the film can dry to the calf, and it will need to be removed when the time is right. And the question remains how to do this. Everything is quite simple – you need to spray dried film with warm water, and then remove it from the body. Water should be heated to the temperature of the chicken body, but not higher than this level. If you try to remove the film without wetting it first, it will remove the first fluff from the chick and damage its skin. And such injuries carry a certain danger at an early age.

Actions when blood appears from an egg

When blood drops appear from a hatching egg, this is very unpleasant. This can happen both during natural hatching and in the situation when you had to manually clear the shell. You can try just to put the egg in the incubator for further development, but in this case the embryo will not survive, most likely. Therefore, it is advisable to clean blood clots with a cotton swab, and only then put it in an incubator. And you need to do this even when the egg was under the hen.

For cleaning, it is advisable to use a very weak solution of potassium permanganate, heated to the temperature of the egg. Then there is a chance that the infection will not get into the open embryo, and it can develop as it should.Clean the egg carefully but quickly so that it does not have time to cool. It must be remembered that the stronger and more often the temperature inside the shell changes, the less likely it is that someone will hatch from it. But here’s what professionals say about interference in the hatching process:

“If there is a chance that no one will appear at all from the egg, then you should try to intervene. Of course, there is always the possibility that later the chick will still be born. But, as practice shows, it is better to intervene in time than to passively wait. As a rule, with timely and correct measures, the chickens are greatly increased. Especially when it comes to artificial breeding. Although the choice remains, as always, with the farmer. ”

Conclusion

To increase the chances of healthy chicks appearing, the farmer needs to know exactly how hatched from an egg. And he needs to understand what factors influence the development of the embryo, and how to help the chick in the process of being born. Then the breeder will have the opportunity to grow strong and healthy chickens.