Many seek to maintain poultry in their subsidiary plots. Chickens, turkeys, ducks are needed to get eggs and meat. In order to update the stock, poultry farmers do not always use the traditional way, when the bird itself hatches the chicks. Currently, preference is increasingly given to home incubators.
Benefits
The artificial conclusion of chickens allows you to update the population at any time of the year and in any quantity. There is one more factor. Chicken as a hen has a very limited performance. Breeding chickens in an incubator allows you to get a lot more young animals at a time. Here everything will depend on the number of eggs available.
Breeding chickens in a home incubator greatly facilitates the work of the poultry farmer. Factory-made instruments provide for automatic temperature control, tray rotation, and so on. If the youngsters hatch the brood hen, then constant monitoring of its behavior, as well as the presence of water and feed, is required. A large amount of time is spent on this by an amateur poultry breeder.
Natural incubators
A large dense pile of raw leaves begins to warm over time. The same thing happens with manure. The temperature in such heaps reaches seventy degrees. This phenomenon is caused by bacteria. They decompose rotting leaves or dung. In this case, a large amount of heat is released. In nature, the species of large-legged hens takes advantage of this. These birds do not hatch eggs. They simply bury them in piles of rotting leaves. The heat generated is sufficient for embryo development.
Turtles do the same. They bury their eggs in the coastal sand, which is heated by the sun. After some time, small turtles appear.
Invention of the incubator
All these examples that exist in nature have led people to the idea of hatching without chickens. The first incubators appeared in Egypt 2-3 thousand years ago. They were huge ovens, in the chambers of which up to seven thousand eggs were laid. These incubators did not have any appliances. A man applied an egg to the eyelid, thus determining its temperature.
In some countries, there was a special profession - a human incubator. Such people heated eggs with the heat of their bodies, placing them in bags from old fishing nets.
The first incubator in Europe was invented by the physicist Port in the 18th century. However, the church in those days was against the discovery of the secrets of nature. An incubator at the direction of the clergy was burned.
In pre-revolutionary Russia, incubators used a few amateur poultry farmers. Devices, as a rule, were discharged from abroad.
Modern incubators for artificial hatching of chicks have a mechanized process of regulating humidity and temperature. They are convenient to use and are used by all poultry farms. Small appliances are indispensable in the farm.
Preparation for work
How to raise chickens at home in an incubator? First of all, the device should be prepared for work. Before switching on, you must carefully read the attached instructions. It will give a sufficiently detailed user manual, describes the controls and modes of incubation.
The appliance must be installed horizontally on the floor. At the same time, he should stand without swinging, tightly. For the incubator, you need to allocate such a place in the room so that it is far from heating appliances, windows and doors. This is necessary so that the flows of cold or warm air do not affect the temperature inside the incubator. This will harm the process of withdrawing the young.
Before operation, the internal equipment of the device should be wiped from dirt and dust. Rinse the trays with hot water, and then dry them in the sun or in a warm room. After that, to moisten the air, it is necessary to place the bathtubs filled with water on the bottom of the incubator. Only then can the device be turned on by setting the necessary temperature in it.
Egg loading
How are chickens hatched in an incubator? After turning on the device, a day should pass. Only after this time will it be possible to load eggs. This operation should be taken with full responsibility. The fact is that the conclusion of young birds directly depends on the quality of the eggs laid. They should be only fresh (no more than six to seven days of storage), have one size, the correct shape and have a strong shell.
Before laying in the device, the selected eggs must be marked with a simple pencil. Put zero (0) on one side and a cross on the other. These signs will help in following the reversal order. The top side of the laid eggs must be with one sign. A thermometer should be fixed at a distance of one centimeter from the surface of the shell. Having done all this, how are the chickens hatched in the incubator? The tray is pushed into the appliance and the door is tightly closed.
Device control
How to properly breed chickens in an incubator? Of paramount importance is the control of the instrument. Even the smallest (0.5-1 degrees) temperature deviations from the norm have a negative effect on the viability of the chicks. How are chickens hatched in an incubator? After laying eggs, control over the operation of the device must be carried out every hour. At the very beginning of incubation, rapid warming has a great influence on the development of the embryo. The device should increase the temperature of the eggs in just three to four hours.
During the hatching period, air humidity should be especially controlled . At this time, it is of particular importance for the development of the embryo. How to raise chickens at home in an incubator? Before the period of shelling, the humidity should be small, only fifty to fifty-four percent. Further it should be increased. At a time when chicks hatch and hatch , humidity should reach eighty percent.
The final stage
How are chickens hatched in an incubator? In the process of output, the device does not open. It is forbidden to take chicks from the incubator, change operating modes, turn on lighting, etc.
Young growth from the device is removed in one go. The chickens in a home incubator should dry completely. Then they are placed in a heater or under a hen.
Do it yourself incubator
Chicks can be raised at home using a device that is easy to make on your own. This will greatly facilitate the task of replenishing the poultry farm with young animals. The case of the incubator should be wooden, insulated with felt or foam. Several holes should be drilled in the bottom. A small viewing window is specially arranged on the lid (it should be opened from time to time to provide ventilation). In order for the eggs to be turned over during the incubation period , a door must be provided in the side wall of the casing. The device is installed on small legs (3-5 cm in height). This will allow air to enter through openings in the bottom. Inside the home incubator, egg trays with a slatted bottom are provided for egg placement. The gap between them and the walls of the incubator should be at least five centimeters.