How to Incubate Chicken Eggs

Raising chickens is not only an entertaining activity but can also help you sustain in these trying times of recession. Incubating chicken eggs will help you raise chickens that grow into hens that will provide you with more eggs that can be sold and you can earn some extra money.

Eggs sold in the local stores are not fertile eggs and cannot hatch. Fertile eggs are those eggs in which ovum has been fertilized by male sperms. You can get fertilized eggs from hatcheries or poultry farms. When selecting an egg, keep the following instructions in mind:

• Select medium-sized eggs as large eggs hatch poorly and small eggs produce small chicks
• Avoid eggs with cracks and thin shells
• Select clean eggs for hatching as cleaning or wiping dirty eggs removes their protective coating on the shell. This makes the eggs prone to diseases.

Selecting an Incubator to Incubate Chicken Eggs

Incubators used for incubation of chicken eggs are of two types. The force air incubators, have a fan and are large in size. These incubators are good for hatching a large number of chicken eggs. These incubators have automatic turners that help turn eggs during incubation. The still-air incubators are small and do not have a fan. You can hatch smaller number of chicken eggs in this incubator.

Incubating Chicken Eggs

• Mark the chicken eggs with a small 'x' using a permanent marker. This will be helpful when turning the eggs around during incubation.
• In a forced air incubator, adjust the temperature to 100 °F. The temperature should be set at 102 °F, in a still-air incubator.
• Set the humidity levels at 58-60% for the first 18 days. During the time of hatching, that is, between 18 to 21 days, raise the humidity level to 65%. This is to prevent the loss of moisture in eggs.
• If you are using a still-air incubator turn the eggs around 2 to 3 times a day for 18 days after incubating. Do not attempt to turn the eggs after the 18th day as you may injure the chick.

Hatching Chicken Eggs

The chicken eggs begin to hatch on the 21st day of incubation. If your eggs fail to hatch by the 26th day, discard them. After all the chicks have successfully come out if their eggs, remove them from the incubator. Place them in a warm, dry place and feed them with chicken feed and water. Incubating chicken eggs is an interesting activity and you can even use candling to demonstrate your children the various stages of chicken development in the egg.

Incubating chicken eggs is as enjoyable as watching the chicks grow. Incubating chicken eggs is not a complected procedure as test-tube baby. With a bit of care and presence of mind you can successfully incubate chicken eggs.