How to Incubate Chicken Eggs

Hatching chicken eggs is an extremely rewarding experience, which requires good planning, dedication, flexibility and observational skills. Eggs have an incubation period of about 21 days and can be incubated using a specialized poultry incubator under carefully monitored temperature and humidity conditions, or incubated by hens. Read the instructions below to learn how to incubate chicken eggs using both methods.

Table of Contents

Choosing Eggs and Incubation Methods

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Find a place where chicken eggs are available. Breeder eggs must be obtained from hatcheries or poultry farms, there must be a rooster in the flock to ensure that the eggs can hatch into chicks if you do not raise egg laying hens. You can buy seed eggs from chicken breeders on their farms. Be sure to make an appointment with a reputable egg seller to get the right breed and number of eggs you need. Your local agricultural extension association or extension specialist can give you suggestions on egg sources. ^{[1] X Research Source}

The chicken eggs you see at the grocery store are not breeder eggs and cannot be hatched into chicks.
For disease prevention and for health reasons, it’s best to buy eggs from a single source.
If you are looking for a precious or special breed of chicken, you will probably have to go to a specialized hatchery.

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Be careful with the egg delivery process. You should be careful if you buy eggs online and have them deliver them to your home, especially if this is your first time incubating chicken eggs. Eggs shipped from far away will be more difficult to hatch than eggs from chickens you raise or buy locally.

On average, eggs that are not transported far away will have about an 80% chance of hatching, while the hatching chance of eggs delivered remotely is only about 50%. ^{[1] X Research Source}
However, if the eggs are bumped or shaken vigorously during delivery, it is possible that all will not hatch even if you follow all the necessary procedures.

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Choose eggs wisely. If you can choose your own eggs to hatch, there’s a lot you should know. You should get eggs from hens that are well cared for, healthy and have laid several litters; they easily combine with roosters and produce eggs with a high hatching rate (about three). Laying hens also need to be fed a diet suitable for laying eggs.

Discard eggs that are too large or too small, or unusually shaped. Large eggs are more difficult to hatch, and small eggs produce very small chicks.
Discard eggs with thin or cracked shells. Such eggs are unlikely to provide the necessary moisture for the normal development of chicks. Thin or cracked eggshells also allow bacteria or pathogens to enter.

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You need to understand that you will also hatch roosters. One important thing you need to remember is that eggs will hatch in a 50:50 ratio of cocks and hens. If you live in the city, roosters can be a problem and keeping them can be against neighborhood rules (because they crow)! If you can’t keep roosters, be ready to find another place for them. Even if you keep them, you will have to consider housing them to avoid the roosters being so eager to kick the hens that they injure the hens. ^{[1] X Research Source}

You need to understand that there is no normal way to tell if an egg is a rooster or a hen until it has hatched chicks. Although the ratio of cocks to hens is usually 50:50, you can also unfortunately hatch 7 roosters out of 8 eggs, which will make it difficult to have a nice flock of chickens. ^{[1] X Research Source}
If you’re planning on keeping all your roosters, there are a few things you need to consider, for example you need to make sure there’s enough space in the coop so the hens won’t get injured by the roosters. . Such hens may have their head and back feathers stripped, their crests injured, or worse, can be punctured by a cock’s spur. In addition, if there are many roosters, they will fight for the hens.
It is generally advisable to keep a ratio of one rooster to about 10 hens. This is also a good ratio if you want your chickens to lay eggs.

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Decide whether to use an incubator or an incubator. You have two options when you want to incubate chicken eggs: use an incubator or let the hens incubate them. Both have advantages and disadvantages that you need to consider before proceeding. ^{[1] X Research Source}

Incubators are cages that are controlled for temperature, humidity and adequate ventilation. With the incubator, you are the only one responsible for the eggs. You are responsible for preparing the incubator, monitoring the temperature, humidity and ventilation in the incubator, and turning the eggs during incubation. Small incubators can be purchased, but you can also make your own. If you buy an oven, read the specifications and instructions that come with it.
The hen can be used to incubate eggs, although she does not lay those eggs. This is great, a natural choice for hatching eggs. Make sure you choose the right breed of brooder, brooding breeds include Fluffy Chicken, Trident, Yellow Rooster and Curry Chicken. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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Know the advantages and disadvantages of each method. Of course, both oven or hen incubator methods have advantages and disadvantages for the incubator. Knowing these things will help you make the final decision that is right for your situation.

Advantages of the incubator: Using an incubator is a good option if you do not have hens or this is your first time incubating eggs. The incubator allows you to control the incubation process. It is also the best choice for incubating a large number of eggs.
Disadvantages of Incubators: The main drawback of incubating eggs with an oven is that the incubation process must be completely dependent on a reliable power source. If you experience a sudden power cut or someone accidentally unplugs the incubator, it can adversely affect the eggs, even causing the chicks to die in the eggs. If you do not already have an incubator, you will have to purchase one which, depending on the size and quality, can be very expensive.
Advantages of incubating hens: Using hens to incubate eggs is a practical and natural choice. With a brooding hen, you won’t have to worry about a sudden power outage ruining your eggs. No need to worry about correct temperature or humidity. Once the eggs have hatched, the incubator will become the mother hen to take care of the chicks. A beautiful sight!
Cons of brooding hens: The hen you choose may not be ready to hatch when you need it and there’s no way to force it, so you may have to time it right. You will need to invest in additional “brooders” to protect the hens from overcrowding or possible damage to the eggs. This can add to the cost of incubation. In addition, a hen can only incubate a small number of eggs in a litter. Large chickens can incubate 10-12 eggs, depending on the size of eggs, while small chickens can only incubate 6-7 eggs. ^{[1] X Research Source}

Using the Incubator

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Choose where to place the incubator. To help the incubator maintain a stable temperature, place it in a place where the temperature fluctuations are as low as possible. Do not place it near a window because it will be exposed to direct sunlight. The heat of the sun can raise the temperature enough to kill the developing egg embryo. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Plug the incubator into a stable power source, and make sure that the plug will not easily fall out of the socket.
Keep the incubator out of reach of children and pets such as dogs and cats.
Usually, the best place to place the incubator is on a flat surface that cannot be knocked over or stepped on, and has a relatively stable temperature, away from ventilation and direct sunlight.

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Get familiar with how the incubator works. Before you start incubating eggs, be sure to read the incubator manual carefully. You must know how to operate fans, lights and other functions. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Use the included thermometer to check the temperature inside the incubator. You need to do this often during the 24 hours before you incubate the egg, to make sure it will keep the right temperature.

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Adjust conditions. In order to successfully hatch eggs, the internal conditions must be perfect. To prepare the incubator to accept chicken eggs, you must adjust the conditions inside the incubator to the optimum level.

Temperature: Eggs should be incubated between 37.2 and 38.8 degrees Celsius (37.5 is ideal). Avoid outside temperatures of 36–39 °C. If the temperature remains too high or too low for several days, the hatchability of the eggs can be severely reduced. ^{[2] X Research Source}
Humidity: Humidity in the incubator should be maintained at 50-65% (60% is ideal). Moisture is supplied from a tray of water below the egg tray. You can use a wet bulb thermometer or hygrometer to measure humidity. ^{[2] X Research Source}

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Place eggs in the oven. Once the conditions inside the incubator have been properly set and monitored for at least 24 hours to confirm stability, it’s time to put the eggs in the oven. Never incubate less than 6 eggs. If you have only hatched 2 or 3 eggs, especially if they have been transported, there is a chance that the incubation will not go well and you may end up with only one chick, or none at all. . ^{[2] X Research Source}

Warm the eggs to room temperature. Warmed eggs will reduce the amount of heat and the time it takes to heat up in the incubator after you put the eggs in.
Carefully place the eggs in the incubator. Be sure to lay the egg on its side, with the larger end of the egg slightly above the smaller end. This is important because if the small head is higher, the embryo can be misaligned or difficult to develop and when the chicks are about to hatch, it will be difficult to break the eggshell. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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Lower the temperature after putting the eggs in. The temperature will be temporarily lowered once you’ve placed the eggs in the oven, but it will be adjusted right away if you’ve calibrated the oven properly.

Do not increase the temperature to compensate for the temperature difference, or you may damage the egg embryo.

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Record the date. From the time the eggs are placed in the oven, you can estimate the hatching date of the eggs. Chicken eggs need about 21 days to hatch when incubated in ideal temperature conditions. Old eggs or eggs that have had temperature interruptions and those that have been incubated at too low a temperature can still hatch, but they will hatch later. If by day 21 the eggs have not yet hatched, wait a few more days!

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Turn eggs daily. The eggs need to be turned over and over at least 3 times a day, 5 times is best! Some people often mark an X on one side of the egg so they can easily keep track of which ones have been flipped. Otherwise it is very easy to lose track of the fruits that have been flipped, and whether they have been turned over or not. ^{[1] X Research Source}

When turning eggs by hand, your hands need to be washed and wiped clean before handling to avoid contaminating the surface of the egg with bacteria and oil.
Continue flipping the eggs until day 18, then stop to let the chicks position themselves for their hatching process.

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Adjust the humidity in the incubator. Humidity should be kept at 50 to 60% during incubation, except for the last 3 days you will have to increase it to 65%. You may need a higher or lower humidity level depending on the type of eggs you want to hatch. Consult hatcheries or literature to learn more about incubation. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Add water in the water tray regularly to prevent the humidity from getting too low. Always add warm water.
Put a sponge in the water tray if you want to add more moisture.
Measure the humidity in the incubator with a wet bulb thermometer. Read and simultaneously record the temperature in the incubator at that time. Consult a chart in a book or online to find the moisture relationship between wet and dry bulb.

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Ensure that the incubator is adequately ventilated. There are small slits on the side and lid of the oven to allow air flow, be sure to at least partially open. You will need to increase air circulation as the chicks begin to hatch. ^{[2] X Research Source}

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Check eggs after 7-10 days. Ovoscopy is when you use a light source to shine through an egg to see how much space the embryo occupies inside the egg. After 7-10 days, you can see the development of the embryo. Egg screening helps you to remove embryos that cannot become chicks. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Get an aluminum can or box that can fit a light bulb.
Cut a small hole in the top of the can (box) so that the hole diameter is smaller than the egg.
Light on.
Take a hatching egg and bring it to the front of the hole. If the light through the egg is clear, the embryo may not have developed or the egg is not fertilized. You will see a dark spot if the embryo is developing. The closer to the hatching date, the larger the embryo will be.
Remove eggs that do not have a normally developing embryo from the incubator.

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Ready for the eggs to hatch. Stop turning eggs and turning eggs 3 days before the expected date of hatching. Most normally developing eggs will hatch within 24 hours.

Line a cloth under the egg tray before the eggs hatch. The fabric will help pick up the falling eggshells and other things that fall off when the eggs hatch.
Increase the humidity in the incubator by adding water or placing a sponge in the tray.
Close the incubator until the chicks have hatched.

Using Hatching Hens

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Choose the right breed of chicken. If you decide to use hens to incubate your eggs, you need to know how to choose the right type of hen to incubate. Some types of chickens never incubate eggs, or if you wait until your hen wants to incubate it can be very time consuming. The best breeds of brooding chickens are the Fluffy Chicken, Triangle Chicken, Yellow Chicken and Curry Chicken.

There are many other breeds of chickens that also incubate eggs, but remember that if a chicken can incubate eggs, it certainly knows how to raise chicks. For example, some chicken breeds have incubators but do not stay in the nest regularly, so only a few eggs hatch.
Some hens are startled when the eggs hatch, and she may peck the chicks or abandon them. If you find a chicken that can both incubate and raise children, you are the winner!

READ More: How to Overcome Adversity

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It is important to know the signs of a chicken wanting to hatch eggs. To find out which hens are trying to incubate, watch for those that lie dormant in the nest and stay there all night. You can also see a patch of hairless skin under its belly. And when you get close, it will scream or peck at your hand to warn. Those are signs that it is a hen that can incubate eggs.

If you don’t trust your chicken yet, before you put the breeding eggs in the nest, try to see if it stays near the nest all day. You can order golf balls or unfertilized eggs – eggs you are willing to throw away. You will not be able to use a chicken that leaves the nest while incubating.

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Prepare an incubator. Place the hens in a separate coop that can be used for both the incubation of the eggs and the rearing of the chicks. Place a comfortable nest close to the ground in that room, filled with soft cushioning material, such as shavings or straw.

The incubator should be at least a quiet, dark, low litter and isolated spot from the flock, free of bugs or lice, and away from potential predators.
Leave space for the hens to leave the nest to eat, drink and walk.

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Place the eggs in the nest. Once you’re sure the hen will be able to incubate the eggs well and you’ve prepared the hatching area, place the eggs in the nest. Place all the eggs at once so that when they hatch they will hatch together within 24 hours.

Place eggs in the nest in the evening to avoid agitating the hen and to avoid causing the hen to abandon the nest.
You don’t need to worry about which way the eggs are arranged. The mother hen will turn them over many times during incubation.

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Have food and water ready at all times. Make sure the mother hen can eat and drink whenever she wants, even though she usually only leaves the nest to eat once a day. Keep the water far enough away that the hen accidentally spills it without affecting the nest and eggs.

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Try not to disturb the hen and the nest. The hen will do all the necessary work like flipping and adjusting the position of the eggs, and the eggs will be kept moist and warm by the hen’s body. If you want to check your eggs, try to avoid doing it too often.

However, you will not want to have health and safety problems if a cancerous egg breaks. Ideally, you should screen all eggs at once on the 7th and 10th day of incubation. If you find a cancerous or embryoless egg, discard it immediately.
During the last week of incubation, the hen will probably stay in the nest at all times without turning or turning the eggs. This is completely natural, so just ignore it.

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Take preventive measures. It can be frustrating if a hen is dedicated to incubating the eggs for the first 2 weeks and then quits, but don’t despair. If you have another brooding hen or have an incubator, you can still save the nest.

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Let things happen naturally. When the chicks begin to hatch, don’t look at them curiously or remove the eggs from the nest to get a better look. The egg needs to be in its right place. Don’t worry if all the eggs haven’t hatched yet, hens are very good at both continuing to incubate eggs and taking care of the chicks that have hatched. The mother hen will usually stay around the nest for 36 hours or so to incubate all the eggs while keeping the newly hatched chicks under her wings.

Advice

Make sure the watering tray is high enough that the chicks won’t fall in and low enough that the chicks can drink the water.
When turning eggs by hand every day be careful. Egg shells are very brittle and break easily.
Have water and feed ready when the chicks hatch.
If the chicks haven’t eaten in 2-3 days after hatching, that’s okay; they get their energy stored from the yolks they eat in their eggs.

Things you need

Incubator
Eggs have been fertilized
Universal thermometer
Moisture meter
or
Brooder
Incubation area

Steps

Choosing Eggs and Incubation Methods

Using the Incubator

Using Hatching Hens

Advice

Things you need

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