How to Hatch Pheasant Eggs
If you have ever thought about having pheasant eggs you probably wondered what you would do with them once you got them. How do you hatch them? How do you take care of them? This article is going to explain how to hatch these eggs and care for them properly. Reading this article is going to give you a better understanding about what is required with your pheasant eggs.
You will start by getting an incubator for your eggs. You will need to get this set up properly so that it will be 99.5 degrees consistently. You do not want it to fluctuate in any way. Therefore, you will plug it in and let it reach that temperature. Then you will keep an eye on it for a day or so to make sure that it is working properly and that it will stay at that temperature. This part is very important because if the temperature gets to warm the embryo’s may die.
Once you have the incubator set up with the proper temperature you are going to need to begin to measure the humidity. Pheasant eggs take approximately 21 days to hatch. You want the humidity to be at 50% for days 1 through 18 and you want it to be 70% to 80% for the last few days. You can measure the humidity with a hygrometer that can be purchased anywhere like radio shack or a store like Wal-Mart.
Now, your incubator is ready for the eggs. However, your pheasant eggs are not ready for the incubator. You need to prepare them as well. You will need to get a marker and make an X on one side of the egg and an O on the other side. Once you have done that you can place them into the incubator. You need to make sure that you are turning the eggs from one side to the other three times a day. You will need to make sure that you are turning them an odd number of times and that you are not forgetting to do this on the weekends as well. If you are going to be out of town, you will want to make sure that you have explained this to someone else who can come in and take care of the eggs. He or she is also going to need to know how to check the temperature and the humidity as well.
The positioning of the pheasant eggs in the incubator is also important. You want the egg to be on a flat surface with the larger end of the egg slightly higher than the pointed end of the egg. This helps the embryo lay flat in the egg. It also helps avoid the likelihood of the embryo drowning in the egg.
Once your pheasant eggs have hatched you are going to want to leave the pheasants in the incubator for a day or two before you feed and water them. They will survive but they will be curious with one another. If you watch them, they may examine the other pheasant’s toes and feet. This is normal and does not necessarily mean they are hungry. Let them stay in the warm environment as long as you can.
So, you can see that hatching pheasant eggs really is not that difficult if you have the proper equipment. This article did explain that there are a few things to keep in mind like the humidity and egg position. However, if you pay attention to these things and remember to turn the eggs, they should survive and be healthy little birds.
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