999 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 87 



QUESTION Can incubators be run with gas for heat instead of 

 oil? 



ANSWER Yes. Gas furnishes a more steady, even heat and 

 is preferable. Most any machine can be easily changed to allow 

 heating by gas. 



QUESTION If the temperature in the incubator is just right 

 before the eggs are placed in the machine, will it drop after the eggs 

 are put in? 



ANSWER Yes. If the machine is in good running order the 

 temperature will rise again in due time without any additional regu- 

 lating. 



QUESTION What causes chicks to die in the shell just at the 

 time they are ready to come out? 



ANSWER Oftentimes it is because the chick comes from weak 

 and debilitated parent stock, or from a weakly fertilized egg and it 

 has not sufficient strength to break the shell and survive the effort. 

 The trouble may also be the result of too much heat in the incubator 

 during the last few days of the hatch, or too little moisture at the 

 time of hatching. Either of these conditions may cause the skin 

 O'f the shell to dry too quickly and harden on the chick, which binds 

 it too strongly for it to escape. 



QUESTION At what temperature will the germ in an egg com- 

 mence to develop? 



ANSWER Slight changes will take place at a temperature of 80 

 degrees. 



QUESTION If an unhatched egg is decayed after incubation, is 

 it an indication of unquestioned fertility ? 



ANSWER Yes. An unfertile egg will remain clear, and, while 

 somewhat stale, it may be used as food. 



QUESTION Is there any reason why eggs of different breeds 

 should not be placed together under the hen or in the incubator ? 



ANSWER It may be done more or less satisfactorily if there 

 is no way to avoid it, but better results will be obtained if some 

 attention is paid to the selection of eggs having shells of about the 

 same thickness. For instance, the eggs of all the American breeds 

 are about the same, but in the Mediterranean and Asiatic breeds 

 there is a wide difference in the thickness of the shells. The shell 

 of the Leghorn egg is thinner than that of the Brahma egg, and 

 there will be a difference of several hours usually in the period of 

 incubation of the eggs from these two breeds. The best results 

 will be secured by selecting eggs of one breed and of uniform size, 



