28 POtJLTRY LABORATORY GUIDE 



by the end of the eighteenth day, before there is 

 any chance of the chicks starting to pip. 



The temperature of the incubator may range 

 from 101 to 104 degrees. During the first week 

 it should' be kept at 101 to 102 degrees on the fer- 

 tile egg, which means 102 to 103 degrees above. 

 The temperature should gradually rise until the 

 end of the hatch, when it should read 104 de- 

 grees. Never let the incubator run over 106 

 degrees, a high temperature during the first week 

 of the hatch being more fatal than during the 

 latter part. 



The amount of ventilation and moisture de- 

 pends largely on the kind of incubator used and 

 on the relative humidity of the incubator room. 

 Enough fresh air should always be admitted to 

 supply fresh oxygen to the eggs, but it should not 

 be admitted in sufficient quantity to cause a too 

 rapid evaporation of their contents. Moisture 

 is supplied in different ways and amounts in the 

 various makes of incubators. 



Study carefully the different systems of ven- 

 tilation and the various methods of supplying 

 moisture. Which is the simplest, which gives 

 the best results, and why ? 



Keep a careful record of all the work done. 

 Plot the temperature and moisture curve, and 

 compare with the ideal. 



