Contents
Length of incubation for eggs produced by “Brown Nick” parent stock and stored from one to five days require the following incubation periods:
Length of incubation for eggs produced by “White Egg” parent stock and stored from one to five days require the following incubation periods:
If the hatching eggs are to be held for more than five days, add 1 hour incubation time per storage day exceeding five days.
Quality in a product has been defined as the inherent properties which determine the product’s degree of excellence. A day old chick is considered to be of good quality if it is able, given good management, to grow quickly and achieve its maximum genetic potential.
Fortunately for the hatchery manager, there are several characteristics which separate prime quality chicks from second quality chicks. The chick should have a body well developed in both length and in the abdomen. The abdomen should appear filled or plump. The down must shine and stand out well in all directions. The down should not be sticky to the touch. The chicks must have good color according to their breed. The legs must appear relatively stout, and have straight extended toes. The chick must also show an erect stance with clear eyes and act lively when not asleep. The navel must be well closed, dry and smooth, with a slight indentation. Chicks which do not meet these standards are less than prime quality, and are subject to higher mortalityMore than a 0.1 weekly mortality. The relationship between chick abnormalities and breeder flock and/or incubation problems appears in the following table.
Examining the chicks after hatch can indicate whether anything went wrong during incubation and how well they will perform in the future. Chicks which appear weak or show serious abnormalities should be culled. Culling improves the average quality of the layer chicks that will be shipped to your customers, and decreases disease susceptibility. (Copied from University of Georgia Poultry Tips.)
Observation | Possible Cause |
Clear Eggs | |
Bloodring (embryonic death 2 – 4 days) |
|
Dead embryos 2nd week of incubation |
|
Hatch late |
|
Hatch early |
|
Air cell too small |
|
Air cell too large |
|
Fully developed embryo dead with beakThe birds use the beak for eating but also for exploring not in air cell |
|
Fully developed embryo dead with beakThe birds use the beak for eating but also for exploring not in air cell |
|
Chicks pipping early |
|
Chicks dead after pipping shell |
|
Trays not uniform in hatch or chick quality |
|
Sticky chicks (shell, down sticking to chicks) |
|
Sticky chicks (albumen sticking to chick down) |
|
Chicks too large |
|
Chicks too small |
|
Crippled chicks |
|
Mushy chicks |
|
Unhealed navel, dry |
|
Chicks cannot stand |
|
Unhealed navel, wet and odorous (mushy chicks) Soft chicks (abdomen). |
|
Closed eyes |
|
Chicks dehydrated |
|
Malpositions |
Accurate hatchery records are essential in order to evaluate overall performance and for use in analysis of hatchability and chick quality problems. The following information should be monitored continuously and recorded regularly.
Welcome! Your admission is granted, please allow for 2 seconds as the door to our VIP room is opening for you right now! Please come in!
Don't have an account? Sign up now