Incubators are one of the most useful devices for successful egg incubation. Poultry and pet eggs will not hatch if they are not incubated properly. The best automatic egg incubators ensure that this does not happen and that the eggs are kept safe until hatching. The best incubator depends on the type of eggs to be incubated. Using an incubator can significantly reduce the time compared to traditional incubation methods.
In the past, it was not easy to acquire an incubator that would facilitate the poultry breeding process, so many farms and small businesses were forced to create homemade devices for the breeding of their poultry. These homemade incubators, although not very efficient, were able to solve the problem. Later on, different types of incubators appeared in the market, from the biggest ones for industrial broods to the smallest ones for domestic use.
This tool is in charge of replacing the hatching process carried out by birds and other animals to hatch eggs, thus optimizing the processes. The incubators maintain the humidity of the environment at the appropriate levels to achieve satisfactory results during the process. In addition, they have several mechanisms for temperature control and egg rotation that allow the user to meet their requirements and goals for mass rearing of their birds.
Egg incubators are fundamental tools for the breeding of many types of poultry, since they allow to incubate eggs with greater efficiency helping to control the environmental conditions in which they are found, feasibly marking the development of the eggs in order to have a greater production of chicks and hens in the case of a poultry farm or private chicken breeders.
Egg incubators were designed by agronomists and veterinarians, with the aim of improving the quality of life of the birds and thus obtain a higher production and profitability in the breeding processes of different species, including exotic ones, both from tropical areas, as well as from Africa, India and China.
We can find a great variety of egg incubators, which can be manual or automatic, although it is recommended to acquire automatic incubators because they can be programmed and are capable of incubating a greater number of eggs.
The process of hatching eggs depends very much on the species you are trying to incubate. Generally in poultry, it takes about 21 days for the egg to hatch. Relative humidity should be around 60% for the first 18 days of incubation and 70% for the last 3 days for optimum performance and maximum hatches at the end of the process. This subject will be dealt with later and in depth for each type of bird species, whether they are pets, farm or for ecological parks.
Automatic incubators are capable of incubating a larger number of eggs than manual incubators, in addition to having a thermometer and a hygrometer to measure temperature and humidity as the name suggests. These incubators are capable of being programmed to meet the specific needs of each breeding process.
Manual incubators do not have these elements; however, they are more economical.
Once the eggs are hatched, it is necessary to leave the chicks in the incubator for a period of 18 to 21 days (depending on the species). During this time it is important to provide them with the food and water necessary for their correct development.
Artificial incubation of poultry eggs is a very ancient practice. Aristotle wrote in 400 B.C. that the Egyptians spontaneously incubated eggs in dung piles. The Chinese developed artificial incubation at least by 246 BC. Often, these early incubation methods were practiced on a large scale, where a single site had the capacity for up to 36,000 eggs.
The construction, use and patenting of artificial incubators in the United States date back to about 1844. The Smith incubator was patented in 1918 and was virtually a large room with fans to force warm air. It was the forerunner of today's incubators, efficient and focused on large-scale production of all types of poultry eggs.
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