Egg Incubation PPT

EGG INCUBATION
(EXERCISE NO. 3)
Brief history …
• Aristotle (384-322 B.C) told Egyptians
incubating eggs by the hotbed method in
which decomposing manure furnished the
heat.
• The ancient Egyptians constructed large
bricks incubators heated with fires
• The Chinese developed artificial
incubations as early as 246 B.C. They
burned charcoal or used dung heaps for
heating
• The Smith incubator was the forerunner of
today’s efficient, large-scale incubators used
for the hatching of chickens, turkeys, ducks,
and other eggs
• Incubation – is the act of bringing an egg to

hatching.
- process of setting the eggs in the
incubator or under the hen in
order to hatch.
Incubation Period, Percent Fertility, Percent
Hatchability
Species Incubation Eggs/year Fertility Hatchability Age of

Period % % Sexual
maturity
(days) (mos)
Chicken 21 240 90 90 4-5
Turkey 28 105 90 90 6
Goose 28-32 15-60 85 65-70 24
Duck 28 110-175 85 65-70 7-8
Quail 23-24 150-200 85 80 8-10
Pigeon 18 12-15 90 85 6
Guinea 27 40-60 90 80 10-12
fowl
Computing Percent Fertility and Hatchability
% Fertility = No. of Fertile Eggs x100

No. of Eggs Set
% Hatchability = No. of Eggs Hatched x100

No. of Fertile Eggs
% Hatchability= No. of Eggs Hatched x100
No. of Eggs Set
Note:
• Hatchability – refers to the percentage of eggs hatched. It may reported as
either the percentage of fertile eggs hatched, or the percentage of chicks
hatched from all eggs placed in incubation.
• Fertility – refers to capacity to reproduce. It is the factor that determines
the number of offspring that may be obtained from a given number of
eggs.
Factors influences the hatchability of eggs
• Fertility
• Genetics
• Nutrition
• Diseases
• Egg selection
• Handling of hatching eggs and incubation conditions
Genetics
• Hatchability is an inherited trait and is selected for by the breeders

• Inbreeding – close breeding, without rigid selection for hatchability, has
been shown to lower hatchability rate in chickens
• Crossbreeding – results of crossing pure breeds will depend upon the
character
• Age factor – hatchability tends to be highest during the first laying year
for both chickens and turkeys.
Nutrition
• For high hatchability and good development of young, breeder hens

require greater amounts of vitamins A,D,E,B12, riboflavin, pantothenic
acid, niacin and of mineral manganese
Diseases
• Pullorum disease – caused by S. pulorum

- transmission of this
disease is chiefly by the egg
• Mycoplasma spp. related diseases which responsible for various
respiratory diseases in chickens
Incubator Operation
• There are seven factors of major importance in incubating eggs

artificially:
- Temperature; optimum temp range from
37.2-39.4°C
- Humidity; optimum RH range from 60-
70%
- Ventilation; as embryo develops, it uses
oxygen and give off carbon dioxide.
• The best hatching results are obtained with 21% oxygen in the air. The
embryo will tolerate a carbon dioxide of 0.5%, but it will die if this level
reaches 5%.
• Position of eggs and turning; the embryo head must occupy a position
in the large end of the egg for proper hatching.
- egg must be incubated large end up as gravity orients the
embryo with its head uppermost.
• Eggs should be turned from 3-5 times a day between 2nd and 18th day.
• Purpose: to prevent the germ spot from migrating through the albumen.
• Proper turning consists of rotating the eggs back and forth, not in one
direction only.
• Testing (candling) – used to check egg fertility or embryo mortality.

Using 75-watt blue bulb.
- infertile eggs may be detected after 15-18 hours of incubation.
Second test may be done 14-16 days after incubation.
Infertile egg
• Setters and hatchers
• Incubation time – the incubation period varies for different species of
birds. Generally speaking, the larger the eggs, the longer the incubation
period.
Chick embryo development
Where chick life begins?
• The development of the chick begins in the single cell formed by the union
of two parental cells, ovum and spermatozoon.
How about their development during incubation?
• As soon as the egg is heated again (incubate), the cluster of cells in the
blastoderm begins to multiply by successive divisions.
Blastoderm
Determining the viability of the embryo
Candling
- is the process of holding a strong light on the large end of the egg to
observe the embryo.
- Healthy embryos will respond to the light by moving. Sometimes the
movement is very sluggish and it can take 30 to 40 seconds for the embryo to
move when held under the candling lamp. This indicates the embryo is not
healthy and the egg should be discarded.
Infertile eggs
• Easy to detect, as the egg is clear. Discard
Early death
• The embryo has developed for several days and
then died. Candling will reveal a small dark
area and disrupted blood vessels. Often
deteriorating blood vessels will appear as a dark
ring around the egg. Discard.
• Embryo is small and does not move. Blood
vessels have broken down
Late death
• These are often difficult to tell apart from a viable
embryo at the same stage of development. Look for
the absence of movement and the breakdown of the
blood vessels. Discard
Viable embryos
• These move in response to the light and have
well defined blood vessels.
• Strong healthy blood vessels. Embryo moves.
Embryonic development
• Day 1 and 2
- appearance of blood
island
• Day 3
- heart and vertebral
column is visible
• Day 4 and 5
- Embryo is completely
separate from yolk sac
• Day 6
- Voluntary movement
begins
- Everything is present
– Organs
– Main division of
limbs
– Beak starts
• Day 7 to 9
- Abdomen more prominent
because of viscera development
- Feathers begin to form
- Mouth opening appears
• Day 10 to 13
- Beak and bones begin to
harden
- Skin pores visible
- Digits completely
separated
- Egg very full and air cell is
larger
• Day 14 to 15
- Scales, claws, and feathers visible
- Small intestine taken into body
- Begins to prepare for hatching
• Day 16 to 17
- After 15 days, it is very hard to observe the embryo by
candling
• Day 18 to 19
- Growth complete
- Yolk sac is drawn into body cavity
- Embryo becomes a chick when it;
– Breaks the amnion
– Internal Pip (Into
air cell)
– Starts breathing
• Day 20
• Day 21
Reasons for Poor Hatches
1. Infertile eggs
2. Eggs too old when set
3. Parent stock weak, unhealthy, nutrient deficient
4. Improper care of eggs prior to incubation
5. Shell contamination
6. Eggs not turned enough
7. Temperature too high, too low, or too variable
8. Too little humidity or occasionally too much.
9. Improper ventilation
10. Oxygen starvation
Thank you for listening !
Lab Quiz No. 1
1. It is an act of bringing an egg to hatching.
2. This refers to the percentage of eggs hatched. It may reported as either the percentage of
fertile eggs hatched, or the percentage of chicks hatched from all eggs placed in incubation.
3. There are seven factors of major importance in incubating eggs
artificially and one of it is the temperature. What is the optimum temperature range for
setting eggs in incubation?
4. This is used to check egg fertility or embryo mortality. Using 75-watt blue bulb.
5. Give at least one factor influencing the hatchability of eggs.
6-10: What is the behavior of your chicks inside the brooder pen if temperature is too
high? Too low? Or if temperature is just right? You can include illustrations (5 points)
Management guide …
• Beginning at one day of age, the chick should be housed at a

temperature between 30 – 33° C, at a relative humidity between 40 –
60%.
• When the chick is one week of age the temperature can be reduced by
1-2° C.
• Continue reducing the temperature until housing temperature of 21° C
is reached.
• Lighting for 1 day old birds should begin at 20 – 22 hours per day for
the first five days.
• Reduce day length weekly to reach approximately 12 hours of light at 8
weeks of age.
• Fresh water should be present when chicks are placed in the cage.
• Water consumption will increase from 10 ml/chick/day at one week of
age to 30 ml/chick/day at 4 weeks of age.
• Feed for one day old birds should be withheld for the first two hours to
allow chicks to find the water prior to consumption of dry feeds.
• After the first two hours of housing, feed can be made freely available.
• The feed should be a high protein starter ration with at least 20% protein.
• Consumption will increase from approximately 13 grams of feed/chick/day
at one week of age to approximately 29 grams/chick/day at four weeks of
age.

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EGG INCUBATION

• Incubation – is the act of bringing an egg to

Species Incubation Eggs/year Fertility Hatchability Age of

% Fertility = No. of Fertile Eggs x100

% Hatchability = No. of Eggs Hatched x100

• Hatchability is an inherited trait and is selected for by the breeders

• For high hatchability and good development of young, breeder hens

• Pullorum disease – caused by S. pulorum

• There are seven factors of major importance in incubating eggs

• Testing (candling) – used to check egg fertility or embryo mortality.

• Beginning at one day of age, the chick should be housed at a

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