Breeding quail at home began only 50 years ago. This bird has a lot of advantages, among which: precociousness of individuals, low prime cost of eggs, dietary meat and unpretentiousness in keeping.
In this article we will talk about the features of incubating quail eggs at home, consider the quail incubation table, talk about modes and learn how to lay eggs in an incubator.
Table of contents
- What incubators are needed to breed chicks?
- How to choose quail eggs
- What humidity should be?
- Temperature table for the incubation period
- Laying quail eggs: how much time is needed for breeding
- Conditions for home incubation of quails
- Features and temperature conditions of incubation
- Causes of unsuccessful quail output
What incubators are needed for breeding chicks?
Quails have lost their incubation instinct, therefore, the hatching of young stock is due to incubators. One of the best and most popular models in Russia is the “Mouth” model.
Made from extruded polystyrene, the incubator weighs 16 kg and has standard dimensions: 70x50x40 cm. The whole case is lined with plastic, and there is a cover with an electric cable on top. In the case of removing the cover, the entire apparatus is automatically shut off. Equipped with a removable tray device that turns the eggs every 40-60 minutes.
The rotation function at the time of hatching can be turned off. Under the tray itself there are incandescent lamps, which provide a constant temperature regime, uniformly heating the incubator. You can set the temperature in the range of 25 - 40 ° C. The value is maintained automatically by an electronic thermostat. Provided fire protection.
Humidity is maintained by evaporating water from the 2 tanks that are above the heater. There are special holes at the bottom and in the lid of the incubator, which serve as ventilation.
The “Mouth” Model will allow not only to hatch the young, but also to contain quail in it for 2 weeks. To do this, instead of a tray, a drawer is installed and the growing mode is activated.
Quail eggs in an incubator How to choose quail eggs
There are a number of options for quail eggs.
- Mass.
• 10-15 grams - for breeding birds;
• 8-13 grams - for poultry for meat. - The smooth surface of the shell , without any flaws: growths, dents, notches, cracks.
- Form .Percentage ratio of the smaller diameter to the larger one is 65 to 70.
- Frosted surface.
Each egg must be viewed through the device - an ovoscope. You can use a flashlight for the "light".Look carefully at the egg for flaws: the location and size of the air chamber, the presence of blood inclusions, mixed protein and yolk.
For good hatchability of quails, an incubation egg should not be longer than 10 days of .Storage temperature - 10-15 ° C.
What humidity should be?
When storing eggs, the air humidity should be kept within 80%.
When incubated for the first 15 days, this value varies from 53-60%.On the 16th and 17th day, the humidity is reduced to 47-49%.During the hatching of chicks, the value is increased to 65-90%.
Humidity is the main indicator during egg incubation. Since the beginning of the development of the embryo, metabolic processes occur. It is necessary to regulate the moisture index in order to avoid embryo water starvation.
If, on the contrary, the humidity in the incubator is too high, a similar situation may arise with the curved shell, since the germinal envelope will be supersaturated with moisture.
Incubator dampness can cause mold and fungi in the pan. Bacterial diseases can be transmitted to the embryo.
To increase the humidity during the withdrawal, install containers with warm water to the bottom of the incubator.
You'll also be interested in:
- Incubation of turkey eggs.
- Instructions for the Domestic Incubator: how to apply.
- Proper incubation of duck eggs at home.
Maintaining the right temperature in an incubator Temperature table for the incubation period
Now let's talk about what temperature should be in an incubator for quail eggs. Quails are more resistant to overheating or power outages.
While shutting down the incubator, quickly remove the tray from the housing and cool the eggs to 15–18 degrees. As soon as the problem is solved, bring the temperature to the desired value, and put the tray back. With such interruptions, the embryos may linger a little in development.
The first 12 days, the temperature in the quail incubator should be constant - 37.7 ° C.From 13 to 15 days - 37.3-37.5 ° С.During quail removal, the temperature is lowered to 37.2 ° C.
The following table shows the incubation of quail eggs.
| Specifications | Incubator for 50 eggs 220 / 12V( quail.) | Incubator “Layer” for 77 eggs 220V | Incubator “Neptune” for 80 eggs 220V | Incubator “Bird” for 60 eggs 220D ASA3A3AVA3AVA3AVA3AVAAAA3AVA Incubator “Bird” Incubator for 60 eggs 220D ASA3AVA3A egg incubator; | digital | analog | digital |
| Digital Number of eggs, pcs. | 50 | 77 | 80 | 60 | |||
| Temperature Accuracy Accuracy, ° C | ± 0.2 | ± 0.1 | ± 0.5 | ± 0.2 | |||
| Power consumption, W | 40/25 | 40 | 42 | 70 | |||
| Dimensions, mm | 470 x 470 x 235 AS2 A2. | x 290 x 796 610 x 236 620 x 480 | x 260 | ||||
| Weight | 4 | 2,4 | 4 | 6,5 | |||
| Flip | automatic every 1 hr( to four hours) | automatic | automatic, 7 times a day automatic | , every 50 minutes | |||
| thermometer no | electronic, built-in | thermostat analogue | electronic, built-in thermostatp | ||||
| Moisture meter | no no no | no |
Bookmark quail eggs: how much time is needed for
breeding eggs for incubation, take that no more than 7 days. The longer the storage period is, the less chance of a normal and viable chick being taken out of it.
Bookmark is strictly upright, the sharp end is located to the bottom of the tray. After they have been laid, they should be disinfected. To do this, use the outside emitter at a distance of 0.4-0.45 m( 6-7 minutes).
To increase the shelf life of eggs, you should put the eggs just laid, in boxes with cells, and pack them in a bag, completely closed. They can be stored for 15 days at a temperature of about 17 degrees. To increase the shelf life to 20 days, you can put the eggs in the incubator every day for 30 minutes.
The appearance of quails, their care in the first days of life Conditions for domestic incubation of quails
Many factors affect the quality of hatching of chicks, including the type of feeding, the density of birds, the age of quails, and the sex ratio.
The most optimal number of quails: 1 male for 4-5 females. Some manufacturers prefer to separate each pair for mating. This significantly increases the percentage of fertilized eggs than with free mating.
Eggs are taken from females aged 2-8 months. In younger females, they are used as food. If a quail is older than 9 months, its egg production does not change, however, the percentage of fertilized eggs decreases.
Males are used as producers, a little longer.
Features and Temperature Regimes of Incubation
And now let's consider how long chicks hatch and what needs to be done to do this. Poultry farmers use different modes of incubation.
The first 15 days are required to maintain an optimal mode of 37-38 degrees. Many poultry farmers adhere to other parameters of 36.8-37.6 degrees. For hatching, the temperature varies between 37-37.4 degrees.
Every day should be spraying( 2 times / day). Also do not forget to air the incubator for 10 minutes. This will help the shell soften, with the result that the chick will be able to easily peck the shell during the hatching. There is an increase in the hatchability percentage to 95%.
Egg inversion per day occurs 4-8 times. There are automatic flip incubators, but some require manual egg rotation. If we neglect the procedure, the chick will stick to one of the inner walls, the chance to survive such an embryo is 0.
It is advisable to change the trays in places in a circle once a day. That will allow the eggs to warm up evenly and bring out the chicks at the same time, and not with a difference of two days.
If you follow these simple rules, withdrawal of chicks will occur for 17 days and will last for 6-9 hours.
Organization of the content of chicks Causes of unsuccessful withdrawal of quails
There are a lot of factors that cause a small percentage of hatching of chicks. Main reasons.
- Feeding quail. If the diet of birds does not contain vitamins and minerals, and the diet is unbalanced, as a result, preterm or weak embryos with pathologies and defects are born. These chicks cannot pierce the shell with their beak. Such quails die within 1-2 months.
- Disruption of incubation. This is a common cause of failure. By the end of the incubation, the embryos need enough oxygen and constant airing of the room from carbon dioxide. As a result, the embryos die from asphyxiation.
- Disruption of gas exchange. In this case, the head of the embryo is located in the direction of the sharp end. The reason for the violation lies in overheating. You should carefully observe the temperature in the incubator and sometimes cool the eggs.
- Egg flipping. Deficiency or incorrect turning is also a common cause. Protein is used in an incomplete amount, due to which the embryo develops unevenly, or dies after hatching.
Each poultry farmer must familiarize himself with a number of rules for the proper breeding of quails. Initially, an incubator should be selected based on the technical characteristics and additional functions of ( operation modes, egg turning, availability of a box for keeping chicks in the first weeks of life, humidity control, etc.).
Buy eggs better from a trusted manufacturer, , which has long established itself in the market. However, everyone will be able to try their hand at breeding their own broodstock. This will help save money and gain experience.
As you can see, quailing in an incubator at home is a painstaking procedure that requires patience and perseverance.
