AUSTRALIAN POULTRY FORUM™ :: View topic - Dumb question re chicks hatched in an incubator

Hi All,

As you all know I have received my eggs and they are merrily sitting and turning in the incubator set at 37.5 deg temp and 60% humidity. I know that at day 16 I turn off the auto egg turner and up the humidity to 70%-75%.

This is where I need help:-

Now what happens when the chicks hatch.

1. Do I leave them in the incubator for two or three days with the temp at 37.5deg? :-?

I just put them straight into the brooder box once they hatch
2. Do I leave the humidity at 70% or reduce it? If reduce to what %? :-?

leave the humidity in the incubator, but you can just put them in the brooder and it matter about the humidity.
3. Do I take out the egg tray and put paper towel down for them to walk on so they don't fall over on the slippery surface? :-?

4. Do I then transfer them to the brooder with water and chick starter and of course warmth from a light globe. (I have a home made brooder that I change the wattage of the light globe as they get older.) yes transfer them into the brooder when once they hatch. They don't need food or water on the first day because they still have a full tank of yolk [smilie=a_withstupid.gif]
5. Do I have to do anything else that I may have forgotten. [smilie=eek2.gif]

Mother hen has always done this bit before i got my incubator. This is the first expected hatching.
[smilie=thanks.gif]

Author:	County Lodge [ Wed Mar 12, 2008 2:42 pm ]
Post subject:	Dumb question re chicks hatched in an incubator
Hi All, As you all know I have received my eggs and they are merrily sitting and turning in the incubator set at 37.5 deg temp and 60% humidity. I know that at day 16 I turn off the auto egg turner and up the humidity to 70%-75%. This is where I need help:- Now what happens when the chicks hatch. 1. Do I leave them in the incubator for two or three days with the temp at 37.5deg? 2. Do I leave the humidity at 70% or reduce it? If reduce to what %? 3. Do I take out the egg tray and put paper towel down for them to walk on so they don't fall over on the slippery surface? 4. Do I then transfer them to the brooder with water and chick starter and of course warmth from a light globe. (I have a home made brooder that I change the wattage of the light globe as they get older.) 5. Do I have to do anything else that I may have forgotten. Mother hen has always done this bit before i got my incubator. This is the first expected hatching.

Author:	Tahir [ Wed Mar 12, 2008 2:54 pm ]
Post subject:	Re: Dumb question re chicks hatched in an incubator
County Lodge wrote: Hi All, As you all know I have received my eggs and they are merrily sitting and turning in the incubator set at 37.5 deg temp and 60% humidity. I know that at day 16 I turn off the auto egg turner and up the humidity to 70%-75%. This is where I need help:- Now what happens when the chicks hatch. 1. Do I leave them in the incubator for two or three days with the temp at 37.5deg? I just put them straight into the brooder box once they hatch 2. Do I leave the humidity at 70% or reduce it? If reduce to what %? leave the humidity in the incubator, but you can just put them in the brooder and it matter about the humidity. 3. Do I take out the egg tray and put paper towel down for them to walk on so they don't fall over on the slippery surface? 4. Do I then transfer them to the brooder with water and chick starter and of course warmth from a light globe. (I have a home made brooder that I change the wattage of the light globe as they get older.) yes transfer them into the brooder when once they hatch. They don't need food or water on the first day because they still have a full tank of yolk [smilie=a_withstupid.gif] 5. Do I have to do anything else that I may have forgotten. Mother hen has always done this bit before i got my incubator. This is the first expected hatching.

Author:	pjh [ Thu Mar 13, 2008 5:03 am ]
Post subject:
you can safely leave a chick in the bator for the first 24 hours , they do not need feed or water , just make sure they don't have any access to the water trays-----they drown, lesson learnt no need for any adjustments the less you open the bator the better for the still hatching chicks------cheers pam

Author:	debbieo4914 [ Thu Mar 13, 2008 6:57 am ]
Post subject:
Hi CL - when I stop the turner I cover the tray in the incubator with a piece of clean bath towel, cut to fit. I think you need something with a bit more grip than paper towel to try to stop them suffering from splayed legs. The towel has a nice rough (but soft) surface and you can just throw it out when you take them out and put them in the brooder - however I've also found that towel is a good flooring for the first couple of days in the brooder, too, while the chicks are learning to eat and until their poo starts to get too messy and wood shavings or something similar are required. I agree with Pam as far as leaving the chicks in the incubator for the first 24 hours, or at least until the rest of the eggs hatch. Good luck with them. Very exciting! Deb

Author:	County Lodge [ Thu Mar 13, 2008 10:16 am ]
Post subject:
Thanks guys for your advice. I will do both. Leave them in until all hatched and put down the towelling. I felt they would slip and slid on the hard plastic. They don't have accress to the water as the incubator is RCOM 20 and the insides are very well insulated from all thing nasty.

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Author:	pjh [ Fri Mar 14, 2008 9:53 am ]
Post subject:
debbieo4914 wrote: Hi CL - when I stop the turner I cover the tray in the incubator with a piece of clean bath towel, cut to fit. I think you need something with a bit more grip than paper towel to try to stop them suffering from splayed legs. Deb I use the non slip matting that you buy in cheap shops for 2 bucks a small roll, it is cheap, non slip, washable, easy to cut to size and easily replaced cheers pam

Author:	County Lodge [ Fri Mar 14, 2008 9:56 am ]
Post subject:
another great idea thanks pjh

Author:	debbieo4914 [ Fri Mar 14, 2008 10:10 am ]
Post subject:
Good idea, Pam. I keep forgetting to look for the non-slip matting when I go shopping - would save some bath towels, however I do find the towelling good for absorbing moisture from those first poos. Deb

Author:	County Lodge [ Fri Mar 14, 2008 2:09 pm ]
Post subject:
Well I went shopping this morning and I bought some of those non slip mats and only $2 each. I figured I would sue some on the tray when carting things in and out the house to the gazebo to save things slipping as well as use it in the incubator. If I find they poo too much I will out them in the brooder on the mat over sawdust for the first 2 days after they dry out and get their footing. All I need now are babies from the incubator.

Author:	pjh [ Fri Mar 14, 2008 2:27 pm ]
Post subject:
County Lodge wrote: If I find they poo too much I will out them in the brooder on the mat over sawdust for the first 2 days after they dry out and get their footing. All I need now are babies from the incubator. sawdust works or layers of newspaper, or shedded paper with the non slip mat over the top, the moisture goes down into the paper but they still have the non-slip surface and then waste paper goes into the compost too cheers pam ps mine are hatching , 3 so far 2 whites and a blue cheers pam

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