How to care for hatching Bobwhite Quail eggs?

[Lilyree]

(I’m new to this forum, so I’m sorry if posted to the wrong place.)
I just ordered 24 hatching Bobwhite quail eggs, (the Snowflake variation) and I wanted some tips from people with experience on how to care for them. This is my first time ordering hatching eggs, so excuse my “beginner” type questions:

1. Should they be incubated immediately upon arrival? I’ve heard that the incubator would be a shock to the eggs after going through shipment, so they need time to adjust. How true is this?
2. What temperature should they be kept at?
2. After hatching, how long should they be kept in the incubator?
3. When should food and water be introduced? Immediately?

What I’m asking overall is what should I do, when the eggs arrive, to ensure most of them will hatch and produce healthy chicks? Any extra tips would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

 

[MGG]

(I’m new to this forum, so I’m sorry if posted to the wrong place.)
I just ordered 24 hatching Bobwhite quail eggs, (the Snowflake variation) and I wanted some tips from people with experience on how to care for them. This is my first time ordering hatching eggs, so excuse my “beginner” type questions:

1. Should they be incubated immediately upon arrival? I’ve heard that the incubator would be a shock to the eggs after going through shipment, so they need time to adjust. How true is this?
2. What temperature should they be kept at?
2. After hatching, how long should they be kept in the incubator?
3. When should food and water be introduced? Immediately?

What I’m asking overall is what should I do, when the eggs arrive, to ensure most of them will hatch and produce healthy chicks? Any extra tips would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

Yes, you should let them settle at room temp in an egg carton. Pointy end down. It really does make a big difference, so it's very important to do.
Get a calibrated thermometer and put it in the incubator. The ones on top aren't very reliable. It's best to have at least one calibrated thermometer/hydrometer inside. The temp should be 99.5 Fahrenheit in a forced air incubator and 102 Fahrenheit in a still air. The humidity should be (this worked really well for me, but it can vary so watch your air cell growth) 45-50%.
I always remove the chicks as soon as they're dry. Just mist the eggs with some warm water right before you close the incubator. You can leave them in for up to 24 hours before they should be removed, but its generally best to take them out once they start to get rowdy and knock around the other eggs. Usually about 4 hours.
They can go 48 hours without any food and water, and don't start showing interest in food or water until their second day. Make sure they drink before you give any food. While on the topic of food, make sure you feed a good quality gamebird crumble. Also, the crumbles are too big for quail for the first week. You have to smash them up really good, into almost a powder.
Good luck with your quail! If you have any more questions, just ask. I have Northern Bobs, and they're such fun birds. So much personality in such a tiny animal. You'll love them. Have fun! Here's a few of mine.

 

[Lilyree]

Yes, you should let them settle at room temp in an egg carton. Pointy end down. It really does make a big difference, so it's very important to do.
Get a calibrated thermometer and put it in the incubator. The ones on top aren't very reliable. It's best to have at least one calibrated thermometer/hydrometer inside. The temp should be 99.5 Fahrenheit in a forced air incubator and 102 Fahrenheit in a still air. The humidity should be (this worked really well for me, but it can vary so watch your air cell growth) 45-50%.
I always remove the chicks as soon as they're dry. Just mist the eggs with some warm water right before you close the incubator. You can leave them in for up to 24 hours before they should be removed, but its generally best to take them out once they start to get rowdy and knock around the other eggs. Usually about 4 hours.
They can go 48 hours without any food and water, and don't start showing interest in food or water until their second day. Make sure they drink before you give any food. While on the topic of food, make sure you feed a good quality gamebird crumble. Also, the crumbles are too big for quail for the first week. You have to smash them up really good, into almost a powder.
Good luck with your quail! If you have any more questions, just ask. I have Northern Bobs, and they're such fun birds. So much personality in such a tiny animal. You'll love them. Have fun! Here's a few of mine. View attachment 2136470

Thank you for the helpful reply, very useful information! How long would you recommend letting the eggs adjust until putting them into an incubator?

 

[MGG]

Thank you for the helpful reply, very useful information! How long would you recommend letting the eggs adjust until putting them into an incubator?

Oh, I thought I added that! 24 hours.

 

[Lilyree]

Oh, I thought I added that! 24 hours.

Thank you! So, after that 24 hour time period, it’ll be safe to put them directly in the incubator at 99.5°? Lastly, as I ordered hatching eggs, will they need to be turned at all?

 

[MGG]

Thank you! So, after that 24 hour time period, it’ll be safe to put them directly in the incubator at 99.5°? Lastly, as I ordered hatching eggs, will they need to be turned at all?

Yep, put them right in. Depending on the air cells, you might need to incubate upright in an egg carton. Yes, you have to turn the eggs at least 3 times a day, until lockdown. I like to turn 5 times the first week and 3 after the first week until lockdown. Make sure you always turn an odd number of times per day.

 

[Lilyree]

Yep, put them right in. Depending on the air cells, you might need to incubate upright in an egg carton. Yes, you have to turn the eggs at least 3 times a day, until lockdown. I like to turn 5 times the first week and 3 after the first week until lockdown. Make sure you always turn an odd number of times per day.

These should be my last two questions (hopefully) lol! What should the humidity be kept at during lockdown? And what temperature should be kept under the heat lamp after they are taken out of the incubator?

 

[MGG]

These should be my last two questions (hopefully) lol! What should the humidity be kept at during lockdown? And what temperature should be kept under the heat lamp after they are taken out of the incubator?

I don't mind answering questions!
I had the humidity at 65-70%. It's different for everyone of course, but that's what worked for me. I think it should be at least 60%, probably keep it in the 60s. If your membranes start to turn yellow, up it some. If they're a nice white color, you're good. (You'll be able to see the membrane color when they externally pip).
I had one side of the brooder 95 degrees. (The hot side under the lamp)
and the cool side in the 80s. If they're clustered under the heat lamp they're too cold, if they're grouped away from the lamp they're too hot. If they're spread out across the brooder and look content they're just right.

 

[mdees88]

Looks like you already got some very good info from MGG.

One thing you'll notice if you do enough research is many people do things a little bit different and still have good results.

Humidity is one of those "things". I used to incubate at 50% humidity and had very good hatch rates but I always had a few splayed legs and curled toes. I now incubate at 32% humidity and don't have any splayed leg/curled toe issues. I calculated the weight loss of the eggs throughout incubation and 32% was the perfect humidity to achieve a 12% loss of weight which is what you are looking for (for coturnix anyway, bob's might be a little different). As for lockdown 60-75% is most recommended humidity. The higher the better IMO. I try to keep mine around 70 or above but mid 60's should work too.

Also I used to grind the crumble before feeding it to the chicks. But I quit doing that and the chicks have no problem eating the crumble from day 1. They peck at it and bite it into smaller pieces then eat the small pieces.

MGG had good advice about the brooder. The chicks will let you know if they're comfortable. If they're standing directly under the light, climbing on top of each other they are too cold. If they stay at the far end away from the light they're too hot. 95-100 is recommended for quail. I actually keep mine around 100-102 at the hot end. Too hot is better than too cold as along as the chicks have room to escape from the heat. Just watch the chicks, they'll let you know...

As far as resting the eggs, I've always heard that it is recommended to let them rest for 24 hours. But I've never let them rest over 6 hours and I've never had any issues.

Technically the chicks can stay in the incubator for around 72 hours. They are still feeding off the yolk they absorbed before they hatched (this is how hatcheries can ship day old chicks in the mail). That said, I always take mine out within 24 hours from the first hatch. If the chick is dry and you don't see any pips or zips you can snatch him out real quick and spraying a mist of water when you do is a good idea.

I have food and water in the brooder before I put the chicks in. I usually dip the chicks beak in the water when I first put them in but I don't really think that is necessary. As soon as 1 chick finds the water they'll all be drinking it. The best waterer is a quail waterer. It has a narrow trough so the chicks can't drown in it. If using a regular chick waterer you need to put rocks or marbles in the waterer to keep them from drowning.

Verifying the actual temp and humidity of the incubator with a trusted or calibrated thermometer/hygrometer is probably the best thing you can do to ensure a good hatch rate.....

 

[MGG]

Looks like you already got some very good info from MGG.

One thing you'll notice if you do enough research is many people do things a little bit different and still have good results.

Humidity is one of those "things". I used to incubate at 50% humidity and had very good hatch rates but I always had a few splayed legs and curled toes. I now incubate at 32% humidity and don't have any splayed leg/curled toe issues. I calculated the weight loss of the eggs throughout incubation and 32% was the perfect humidity to achieve a 12% loss of weight which is what you are looking for. As for lockdown 60-75% is most recommended humidity. The higher the better IMO. I try to keep mine around 70 or above but mid 60's should work too.

Also I used to grind the crumble before feeding it to the chicks. But I quit doing that and the chicks have no problem eating the crumble from day 1. They peck at it and bite it into smaller pieces then eat the small pieces.

MGG had good advice about the brooder. The chicks will let you know if they're comfortable. If they're standing directly under the light, climbing on top of each other they are too cold. If they stay at the far end away from the light they're too hot. 95-100 is recommended for quail. I actually keep mine around 100-102 at the hot end. Too hot is better than too cold as along as the chicks have room to escape from the heat.

As far as resting the eggs, I've always heard that it is recommended to let them rest for 24 hours. But I've never let them rest over 6 hours and I've never had any issues.

Technically the chicks can stay in the incubator for around 72 hours. They are still feeding off the yolk they absorbed before they hatched (this is how hatcheries can ship day old chicks in the mail). That said, I always take mine out within 24 hours from the first hatch. If the chick is dry and you don't see any pips or zips you can snatch him out real quick and spraying a mist of water when you do is a good idea.

I have food and water in the brooder before I put the chicks in. I usually dip the chicks beak in the water when I first put them in but I don't really think that is necessary. As soon as 1 chick finds they water they'll all be drinking it. The best waterer is a quail waterer. It has a narrow trough so the chicks can't drown in it. If using a regular chick waterer you need to put rocks or marbles in the waterer to keep them from drowning.

Verifying the actual temp and humidity of the incubator with a trusted or calibrated thermometer/hygrometer is probably the best thing you can do to ensure a good hatch rate.....

All very good info! I honestly never let my eggs rest more than 6 hours too, but I know everyone reccomends 24 hours. Again, really gpod advice!