(For those who use a GQF Sportsman, ours runs about 99.6 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit and 30 to 40 percent humidity during incubation. When we stop turning the eggs, we add a humidity sponge which brings the humidity near the 60 to 70 percent range.) Our hatch rates are about 90 percent year after year.
Natural Versus Artificial Incubation
We use both natural and artificial incubation and have found that each has advantages and disadvantages. Two of the biggest advantages of natural incubation are that the poults hatched by a turkey hen will be more inclined to sit and raise poults themselves, and we think the hen-raised poults are overall stronger. They will also tend to integrate into the flock quicker as they have learned the skills from the hen. The biggest disadvantages are that you’ll loose some poults — the hen may step on them or they may get chilled. Of course, some hens are better mothers than others, but it’s best to be prepared. Another disadvantage is that the turkey hens will lay fewer eggs; when a hen goes broody she stops laying eggs. You can control the number of eggs you set and when they will hatch when incubating eggs in a machine. This is a big advantage if you have limited brooder space or want to keep the poults from different matings separated.
It’s best to have your hen sit in a secure area. Many times the hens will seek a quiet place to make a nest, such as a bush or brush pile, which makes them easy targets for predators, especially at night. After the hen hatches her brood, we move them all to a “maternity” pen for at least the first two months. The maternity area is covered to keep out the rain, plus it keeps the hen and her poults in a smaller area and closer together. We always put a fresh layer of sand down for each group to help prevent soil-borne diseases. Coccidiosis can be a major problem for poults raised on the ground if other poultry has occupied the area before.