Once you’ve picked up your eggs, whether it’s from your local postal office or from a local farm, you’re going to want to allow your eggs a minimum of 12 hours, though ideally more like 24 hours, to settle. After 2-3 weeks, most of your eggs won’t be viable anymore. Getting your eggs set in the incubator within a week of being laid is vital. 7 days after a quail egg is laid, it begins to rapidly lose fertility. More on identifying defective eggs later in this article.īe aware of the rough age of the eggs as well. These eggs are likely not viable and will probably not hatch. Also be aware that eggs with a defective air cell should not be incubated. Never try to incubate an egg that’s cracked, dirty, too large, too small, misshapen, double yolked, or unusual in any way. This will reveal any cracks or imperfections inside of the egg. You may darken a room and candle your eggs by shining a flashlight into the egg. Be sure to wash your hands before and after handling the eggs every single time. When you have your eggs in hand, carefully examine each egg.

Shipped eggs are expensive, can arrive damaged, and have a reduced hatch rate built-in due to trauma sustained during shipping. Many hatcheries will gladly ship eggs to you, but it comes at a price. You may also purchase fertilized bobwhite quail eggs from the internet. This will ensure that you’re getting what you’re paying for and that the birds are treated well. Find a farm that will allow you to see the flock of bobwhites being bred for eggs. Instead, look for a local, trusted seller of fertilized eggs. It’s worth advising that you don’t try to incubate supermarket eggs – they probably won’t hatch. Fertilied quail eggs aren’t usually sold in markets, and the ones that are sold in the store are usually coturnix quail, not bobwhites. How do you select a quality bobwhite quail egg to hatch? Where do you get fertile bobwhite quail eggs? Picking the right eggs to hatch is the first and probably most important step in incubating eggs. You will need to pay special attention to the quality of the shell, the air space at the fat end of the egg, and the yolk suspended inside of the egg.

Quail egg hatching temperature