INCUBATION 85 



is finished and will then go forth and care for her brood 

 is the kind to be depended on both for raising utility 

 fowls and fowls for exhibition. 



The most unsatisfactory hen for hatching is the 

 nervous hen that fusses and fights all who move about 

 her; that will spring quickly from the nest when any 

 one approaches hef, thus breaking her eggs and dis- 

 turbing those left in the nest. A good motherly hen 

 that will rear two broods in one season is the kind to 

 be depended on. 



Nests for Sitting Hens. Nests for sitting hens must 

 be large enough to prevent the eggs from being crowded 

 or piled on one another. Nests carelessly made assure 

 bad results; the eggs roll out and are broken or chilled. 

 The depth of a poorly made nest is not sufficient to 

 protect the eggs from below nor will it aid the hen 

 by holding the warmth about the eggs. A comfortable 

 nest can be made in a box laid on its side and filled 

 with fine hay or soft straw. A nest of this kind will do 

 when the hen is by herself and is safely shielded 

 from other hens that might disturb her while sitting. 

 Nests in which hens are sitting must be protected 

 against intrusion from other hens, for the sitting hens 

 must have quiet and must be undisturbed while on the 

 eggs. If the hens are disturbed they become nervous, 

 move about, and break the eggs. 



Number and Arrangement of Eggs. A setting of eggs 

 should consist of an odd number, because an odd number 

 fits better in the nest than does an even number. 

 Thirteen eggs are generally considered as a setting. 

 The eggs should be uniform in size, for if some are small 

 and others large the body of the hen will not come 

 close to the smaller ones and the temperature of the 

 eggs will not be uniform. Eggs of irregular size are 

 unfit for incubation. Eggs of this kind seldom, if ever, 

 produce perfect chicks. Eggs set under hens gain 

 a smooth gloss from contact with the body of the hen. 

 By this means, as the process of incubation advances, 

 the pores of the eggshell are closed. 



