Hatching and Brooding Your Own Chicks (Chickens, Turkeys, Ducks, Geese, Guinea Fowl)

Gail Damerow shows you how to incubate, hatch, and brood baby chickens, ducklings, goslings, turkey poults, and guinea keets. With advice on everything from selecting a breed and choosing the best incubator to feeding and caring for newborn chicks in a brooder, this comprehensive guide also covers issues like embryo development, panting chicks, and a variety of common birth defects. Whether you want to hatch three eggs or one hundred, you'll find all the information you need to make your poultry-raising operation a success.

From the Back Cover:

From Fertilized Egg to Baby Chick and Beyond

Whether you're an experienced poultry owner or an intrigued beginner, chicken expert Gail Damerow offers everything you need to know about acquiring and brooding hatchlings and what to expect from your young charges as they grow. When you've gained experience brooding and are eager for the next challenge, Damerow goes on to explain every step of the hatching process.

If you want your chickens to do the work for you, the chapter on broody hens will prepare you for their special care and feeding needs. If you choose to incubate the eggs, complete coverage of selecting and operating an incubator and understanding the structure and development of an egg will give you the confidence to act as mother hen yourself. And hatching and brooding information on turkeys, ducks, geese, and guinea fowl is also featured.

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