ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 65 



It pays to get the best, and by inquiring at the large poultry 

 plants in the neighborhood, information can easily be obtained 

 as to the most popular machine in use in that locality. 



It is wiser to buy a machine than to attempt to make one. Good 

 incubators are now sold at so low a price that it does not pay to 

 risk the loss of eggs in experimenting on a home-made machine. 

 Location of Incubator 



The incubator should be located in a well-ventilated room or 

 cellar that is dry and not subject to great variations of temperature. 



Preparing to Hatch 



The first thing to do is to set the machine perfectly level, using a 

 spirit level to make sure of this, for if the machine is not level the 

 heat will go to the higher side, the temperature will be uneven and 

 although it may be correct where the thermometer hangs, in the 

 middle, the upper side will be too hot and the lower too cold. It 

 is most important to have the incubator stand perfectly level. 



Let the incubator run for thirty-six hours before putting in the 

 eggs. This is to make sure that the machine is thoroughly warmed 

 and that it is running steadily at the proper heat. It may take 

 twelve hours before the eggs gradually warm through, and the 

 thermometer again shows the desired temperature. During this 

 time the regulator must not be altered. Touching the screw may 

 prove fatal to the whole hatch. So wait patiently until the desired 

 heat is again present. 



Selecting the Eggs 



Eggs for hatching should always be carefully selected. The 

 fresher they are the better. Eggs hatch after being kept a month, 

 but the little germ or seed of life gradually grows weaker and 

 weaker, and at last has not the strength to develop into a fine, 

 healthy chick, and may die in the shell, if the egg is kept too long. 

 Ten days or two weeks is better than any older. 



The eggs should come from vigorous, healthy and well-fed 

 stock. Much depends upon the feeding of the breeders, especially 

 the male bird. They should have plenty of vegetables and green 

 food, as well as animal food and those grains which contain the 

 bone and muscle-forming elements. Eggs with imperfect shells 

 should be rejected; also those with rough or chalky shells, and with 

 thin spots. The eggs should be of medium size, neither too large 

 nor too small, as the large eggs may have double yolks, which 

 rarely hatch. Small eggs denote inferiority and are either pullet 

 eggs or eggs from fat hens, or hens exhausted from having layed a 

 long time. 



Eggs of One Class 



The eggs should be of one breed or class. It takes twenty-one 

 days to hatch all hen eggs, but if the eggs from Leghorns are 

 placed in the same tray as the Brahmas, the Leghorns will be the 

 first hatched, sometimes as much as two days sooner, to the great 

 detriment and loss of the others, which are slower in hatching. 

 This is probably caused by the change in the atmosphere and 



