A few years ago, my grandma purchased a GQC Miracle of life incubator from the back of a boyscouts magazine. It never hatched. Years later, now I'm seventeen and I just got the urge to try again. So I did, I purchased the same kit, it came with 4 courtnix eggs.
Incubation took only 15 days before I began to see many cracks on all four of the eggshells. But the birds never emerged. I assumed they were dying inside the egg. So I rushed to this site and explained my problem. Very helpful members here quickly informed me that my humidity was too low. I had filled up the bottom of the plastic still air incubator as instructed, but the humidity was only at 40%.
Finally, I resorted to spraying the eggs directly with a spray of fresh warm water every 20 minutes. Humidity shot up to eighty percent and three eggs hatched, the fourth one died before it could break the shell. Now as I understand it, 3 out of 4 from a still air incubator with no temperature or humidity control, (the temperature fluxated 5 to even 10 degrees reguarily, but I watched it like a hawk and adjusted as nessacary) with handturning is pretty good.
Unfortunetly the third one to hatch had splayed leg and a dislocated hip, after an attempt to fix the problem failed, I hadn't noticed the hip untill after, and I had him put down. The other two have grown up fine inside a aquarium with bedding. I hand fed them generic liquid baby food from the store, since I couldn't locate ANY Game feed starter (small bags) in my area. I have since switched them to bird seed high in protein and other dietary requirements.
They've begun to fly and no longer need the brooder lamp anymore since Michigan has been heating up recently. The diet seems to have worked, they look very plump, active and energetic. One of them had a run in with my dog and bled a little bit, seems fine now.
I've also noticed unusual digging behavior, they LOVE to bury objects and dig for food, so I now mix the feed in with the bedding to entertain them. I've been unable to sex them at three weeks old. Maybe you can tell from the photos? My next project? Button Quail.
Now for the pictures!!
Sorry the pictures are kind of blurry, the chicks were too small for the camera to focus on. hehe.
The Incubator
http://www.deranged.net/~jetman877/Pictures/Picture05.jpgNewly Hatched and UGLY
http://www.deranged.net/~jetman877/Pictures/Picture01.jpgA few days older
http://www.deranged.net/~jetman877/Pictures/Picture20.jpgTwo weeks old
Quality Time with my cat
(Yes, they actually sleep together, the cat is 11 years old and dosen't have a killer's instrinct anymore)
http://www.deranged.net/~jetman877/Pictures/Picture21.jpgThree weeks old
Sleeping time
http://www.deranged.net/~jetman877/Pictures/Picture28.jpgDitto
http://www.deranged.net/~jetman877/Pictures/Picture29.jpg