Monday, March 25, 2013

Incubators and Eggs

On Sunday March 17th I put 26 turkey eggs in the incubator.  22 of the eggs I purchased from someone who sells fertile turkey, chicken, quail, pheasant and peacock eggs and sells some of the same poultry.
The other 4 eggs were  from my turkey.  Then on Saturday the 23rd I filled the same incubator with 15 chicken eggs.  They all will hatch about the same time and the chickens will be the teachers to help teach the turkeys to eat and drink.  Chickens will do that automatically but turkeys will starve to death even if there was food and water sitting next to them.  I will keep them together for only a few days until I'm sure they know what to do and then separate them.  In incubator # 2 I have 39 chicken eggs which will hatch a couple days before the turkeys and the other chickens do.
Turkeys take 28 days and chickens 21 days.  I sure hope I have a good hatch rate.  You just never know it's a gamble and I hate gambling.
All of the chickens will be meat chickens but with the turkeys I will keep 1 tom and 2 or 3 hens so next year I won't have to purchase any turkey eggs and the rest will be meat turkeys.  I have 5 of Thelma's eggs in a cold place and will be putting them in the 3rd incubator on Tuesday.  I sure hope she lays an egg Monday and Tuesday so I will have more chances for turkeys.  You can only keep eggs that will go in an incubator for so many days before they loose their viability.  I hate to run the incubator with just a few eggs but then again I hate the chance of not getting more turkeys.
I will keep you posted on how things turn out.

Incubator # 1, 26 turkey and 15 chicken eggs.

Incubator #2 with 39 chicken eggs.

Incubator # 3 that I will put turkey eggs in on Tuesday.

The line up with printed calenders above each incubator that is in operation so far.  Directions are above the middle incubator.  

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