I have a question about hatching chickens?

Question

I am wanting to raise some chickens I checked on ebay and I can purchase eggs, just wondering if it is possible to hatch the eggs without having to purchase an incubator. Maybe a box and a light?

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

Yes, you're better off buying baby chicks from a feed store or a hatchery (McMurray is an excellent one). Save a lot of guessing and grief. I've hatched hundreds of eggs, but I have an incubator and live chicken stock to produce eggs. But to get started, start with live chicks.

Answer 2

you can build your own incubator. the only really important thing id to keep the eggs at 101 degrees F.

Answer 3

WHY NOT GO TO A FEED STORE AND BUY CHICKS. WHEN YOU RAISE YOUR OWN THEY NEED A MOIST ATMOSPHERE AND HAVE TO BE ROLLED ALL THE TIME, DAY AND NIGHT, IF YOU DO IT WRONG THE CHICKS DON'T HATCH OR CAN'T STAND UP AND IT IS VERY SAD TO HAVE TO KILL THEM. I DID IT WITH INCUBATORS FOR YEARS AND SOME WERE GREAT, OTHERS SAD. THERE ARE SEVERAL PLACES ON THE NET WHERE YOU CAN BUY POULTRY CHICKS. THEY WILL SHOW YOU PHOTOS. I HAD EXOTICS AND OLD TYPES---MY BEST LAYERS WERE RHODE ISLAND REDS, OLD TYPE BIG EGGS.

Answer 4

Raise chickens? You'll never manage it! Leave it to Mother hen, she knows what she is doing!

Answer 5

Ok, you CAN do it, ---if you have fertilzed eggs, and you have to control the temperature VERY carefully, about 100 degrees, and you have to turn the eggs over carefully every DAY twice. It is VERY important to "mist" the eggs with a very fine fog of water, NOT too much. They should NOT be WET.

If you do it carefully enough and the eggs are fertile, they will hatch in about 21 days.
A small incubator is not that expensive, or you could buy chicks 'ready-made' and sexed also.

Answer 6

just go to the feed store and buy one. ours cost less than $50, hatches 48 eggs at a time, and has a rack that turns the eggs for us....as far as buying eggs, get them locally. I just cant figure out how a person can ship viable fertile eggs across the country