1. Beginning of Life 4-H School Enrichment Project

2. About the Project Science Based, Hands-on
Extension provides educational resources for the project
Leaders Manual
Suggested Activities
Youth Activity sheets

3. Scientific Investigation, Reasoning and Logic
About the Project
Helps teach SOL’s
Life Sciences, Physical Sciences, Biology
Grade
Scientific Investigation, Reasoning and Logic
Life Processes
Living Systems K Y 1 2 3 4 5 6
Revised in 2007

4. Project Expectations
Teach responsibility and caring for a living thing
Teach respect for life and the value of living things
Emphasize a “hands-on” experience with living things
Help youth grasp developmental processes and stages of growth
Introduce and explain the topic of reproduction to youth
Introduce youth to scientific process and other areas of science
Usually conducted around 4th grade. This supplies SOLs in science (plant and animal life cycles), math (measurements-thermometers) and english (reference materials).

5. Which came first? The chicken or The egg?

6. Five to six months

7. Why can’t I incubate eggs from the Grocery Store?
Most eggs from a grocery store come from hens that have never seen a rooster – they are unfertilized.

8. The Fertilization Process
A rooster is placed in an enclosed area with about 10 hens
Rooster will deposit sperm on the vent of the hen.
The sperm then travels through the oviduct
After fertilization occurs the egg albumen, shell membranes, and shell are added to complete the egg formation process.

9. Hen Reproductive Anatomy
The oviduct lies along the backbone of the hen. It is about 25 to 27 inches long. The yolk is completely formed in the ovary. When a yolk is fully developed, its follicle ruptures, releasing it from the ovary. It enters the infundibulum. After fertilization occurs the egg albumen, shell membranes, and shell are added to complete the egg formation process.

10. Egg Anatomy
Chalaza suspends the yolk in the albumen. Chalaza becomes the umbilical cord in humans.

11. Function of Embryonic Membranes
Yolk Sac
Food
Amnion
Protection
Chorion / Allantois
Respiration
Waste
Minerals from shell
Absorption of albumen
The amnion, chorion, and allantois identify the group of vertebrate animals – amniotes. Mammals, birds, and reptiles are amniotes. Chorion lines the inner membrane of the shell. Albumen also provides food (protein). Yolk sac provides more fat. The allantois has four functions. (1) It serves as an embryonic respiratory organ. (2) It receives the
excretions of the embryonic kidneys. (3) It absorbs
albumen, which serves as a nutrient (protein) for the
embryo. (4) It absorbs calcium from the shell for the
structural needs of the embryo

12. Hens will lay about one egg every other day until they have enough in their clutch to start brooding.
The hen’s body temperature is 106 degrees and when she sits on the clutch, she brings the temperature of the eggs up to 100 degrees.

13. Fertile vs. Not fertile Fertile Non-Fertile
On the surface of every egg yolk there can be seen a tiny whitish spot called the blastodisc. This contains a single female cell. If sperm is present when a yolk enters the infundibulum, a single sperm penetrates the blastodics, fertilizing it and the blastodisc becomes a blastoderm. Shortly after fertilization the blastoderm begins to divide into 2, 4, 8, and more cells. The first stages on embryonic development have begun and continue until the egg is laid. Development then subsides until the egg is incubated.
Fertile
Non-Fertile

14. What’s the Difference between White and Brown Eggs?
Eggs come in all different sizes and colors
Different colored eggs come from different breeds of chickens – the earlobe color will tell you the color of the egg
Older chickens lay bigger eggs
Araucanas lay green and blue eggs

15. What breed do we use? White Leghorn Made famous by foghorn leghorn
Pronounced leggern
Famous for egg production – practically an egg everyday

16. External Chicken Anatomy
Comb is the cooling system – chicken circulates blood throughout it’s comb and wattles. By observing the hackle and saddle feathers of an adult chicken you can determine its sex. Male hackle and saddle feathers come to a distinctly pointed tip and are more shinny. Female hackle and saddle feathers have rounded ends. takes four to six weeks for secondary sex characteristics such as the size and shape of the comb, to become visible enough to distinguish between the two sexes. However, sexing day-old chickens is not easy due to the location of the sex organs inside the body of the chicken. This method involves examining the baby chicken's vent, located under its tail, looking for a genital organ. If the genital organ is present in the vent, it will resemble a small pimple and the chicken is a rooster.

17. Feather Sexing
*Slow feathering is caused by a sex linked dominant gene. Rapid feathering is associated with the recessive allele.
*after chick fluffs up
*primary feathers of the rapid feathering females are longer than the slow feathering males

18. X Y
X X
X Y f F f f f f F F f f f f

19. Embryonic Development
Day 1
Beginning of formation of brain and nervous system, head and eyes
Appearance of vertebral column and blood island
Day 2
Embryo begins to turn to left side
Blood vessels appear in yolk sac
Heart begins to beat
First sign of amnion
Formation of throat
Blood islands are structures in the developing embryo which lead to many different parts of the circulatory system.

20. Embryonic Development
Day 3
Beginning of formation of nose, wings, legs, allantois
Amnion completely surrounds embryo
Day 4
Beginning of formation of tongue
Embryo separate from yolk sac

21. Embryonic Development
Day 5
Proventriculus and gizzard formed
reproductive organs formed
Day 6
Beak and egg-tooth begin formation
Main division of legs and wings
Voluntary movement begins
Day 7
Digits in legs and wings
Viscera development
Day 8
Feather formation
Day 9
Embryo begins to look like bird
Mouth opening appears
Proventriculus and gizzard are part of the chicken’s digestive system. The proventriculus is a glandular part of the stomach that stores and starts to digest food before it enters the gizzard. The gizzard is a specialized stomach constructed of thick, muscular walls is used for grinding up food; often rocks are also instrumental in this process. Something other than muscle power is needed. This "something else" is acquired when grain- eating birds pick up grit and small rocks as they peck seeds from the ground. Egg tooth develops in many birds and reptiles and is used to break through the shell and will fall off within a week of hatching.

22. Embryonic Development
Day 10
Beak starts to harden
Skin pores visible to naked eye
Digits completely separated
Day 12
Toes fully formed
First visible feathers
Day 13
Appearance of scales and claws
Body covered in feathers
Day 15
Intestines taken into body

23. Embryonic Development
Day 16
Scales, claws and beak become firm
Albumen gone and yolk increasingly important as nutrient
Day 17
Beak turns toward air cell
Amniotic fluid decreases
Embryo begins preparation for hatching

24. Embryonic Development
Day 19
Yolk sac draws into body cavity through umbilicus
Embryo occupies most of space in egg except air cell
Day 20
Embryo breaks amnion and starts breathing air in air cell (becomes chick)
Day 21
CHICK HATCHES!
The embryo knows to break the air cell when it is too big to absorb oxygen from the egg shell pores. The air in the air cell will give the chick enough air for the few hours necessary to break out of the egg.

25. Beginning of Life: Hatching

26. How do I Successfully Hatch Eggs?
Proper Preparation and Planning

27. Preparation and Planning
Equipment Needs
Calendar/record sheets
Incubator
Thermometers
Candler
Pencils
Cheesecloth
Brooder Box
Jar lid, tuna can, etc.
Egg cartons

30. Record Keeping Keep your calendar and record sheets together
Keep daily records
Mark when eggs are turned
Enter daily temperature
Incubator (each time eggs are turned)
Room
Write down daily observations

31. Preparation and Planning
Inform co-workers and custodial staff
Power outages?
Will you be notified?
Who will take care of eggs/incubator in the case of power outages or school cancellations?
Lower school temps on weekends?
Tampering

32. Preparation and Planning
What happens to the chicks after the project?
Chicks must be returned to our office on May 3, 3 – 6 PM
This means you should have four days with the chicks to discuss the brooding process
Chicks hatch on Tuesday, May 1.

33. Equipment: Incubator Secure in advance Types
Forced Air – air is circulated by a fan or fans
Still Air – air is not circulated manually
Secure incubator(s) at least a month before the start of the project and be sure it works.
Still-air incubators rely on hot air rising and leaving through the holes in the top of the incubator, in turn drawing fresh cooler air in.

34. Equipment: Incubator Cleaning
One week before start of project
Avoid strong contaminants
25% bleach solution
DO NOT touch or get heating element wet, brush gently with soft brush to remove dust
Test at least a week before project is to begin (24 hour period)
Placement
Avoid drafts, direct sunlight, heat & AC outlets
Set in room that stays above 65°F (70-80°F)
Make sure electrical outlet will be “on” 24 hours/day
On sturdy, level surface
6 inches away from edge of surface
Avoid laminate countertops – because incubator will melt plastic

35. Equipment: Candler
See Teacher’s Packet for information on constructing your own candler.
Why candle? You can dispose of any unfertilized or cracked eggs. Or fix cracks with clear nail polish. You can also observe the growth of the embryo without breaking the eggs open.
When to candle? You can candle every day if you like. Some good days to candle are day 3, 6, 9, 12, and 18. Best not to candle after day 18, as the embryo needs to be in the right position to pop the air cell.

36. How do I Successfully Hatch Eggs?
Proper Preparation and Planning
Quality Fertile Eggs
Start Up Day
The eggs that will fill this order are coming from our Brickland Two flocks, currently hatching at fertility rates of 90.9% and 88.4%.  This is based on candling done after the eggs are in the hatchers for 10 days, and actual results from these eggs.  While we aren’t able to tell you exactly what fertility rate your eggs will have, it will probably be at about the same rates. 

37. Start Up Day Have the incubator ready to go
Prepare eggs for incubating
Allow a couple of hours for eggs to come to room temperature – approx. 2 hrs
Candle eggs and discard any:
Cracked eggs
Double-yolked eggs
Start running incubator 48 hours before eggs are to arrive/be set.
Can try to repair cracked eggs with clear nail polish

38. large air cell dark yolk
Candling eggs prior to incubation
Cracked
Poor quality
large air cell dark yolk
Good quality
hatching egg
Two Yolks
You can try mending cracks with nail polish

39. Start Up Day Prepare eggs for incubating (cont.) Identify eggs
Put a number on large end of each egg
Mark eggs with “X” and “O” on opposite sides
Use a pencil or wax crayon
Set eggs in incubator with “X” sides up
Best to set fertile eggs in heated incubator within 24 hours of arrival
Washing – NOT UNLESS NECESSARY. Only wash eggs visibly dirty. Wipe the egg clean with a wet cloth warmer (at least 10 degrees warmer) than the temperature on the eggs. DO NOT set excessively dirty eggs.
Identifying – DO NOT use a permanent or toxic ink pen or marker.

40. How do I Successfully Hatch Eggs?
Proper Preparation and Planning
Start Up Day
Good Incubation Management

41. Incubation Management
4 Important Factors
Temperature
Humidity
Ventilation
Turning
Pay Attention to Temperature and Humidity!

42. Temperature Thermometer Varies by incubator type and turning technique
Same height as top of eggs
Keep away from the heat source
Two makes for a more accurate reading
Varies by incubator type and turning technique
Forced Air
Manual: °F
Still Air
Manual: °F

43. Temperature
Temperatures BELOW 96°F or ABOVE 103°F result in high mortality
DO NOT adjust incubator temp during first 48 hours
Half way through incubation process may see an increase in temp

44. Humidity Proper humidity is important for chick health
Prevents sticking to shell
Maintains amnion fluid
Provides for free embryo exercise
Prevents crippled chicks
Determine humidity using a wet-bulb thermometer
Wet-bulb and dry-bulb thermometers at same temp = 100% humidity
Wet-bulb temperature is measured using a thermometer that has its bulb wrapped in cloth—called a sock—that is kept wet with water via wicking action. Such an instrument is called, not surprisingly, a wet-bulb thermometer. At relative humidities below 100%, water evaporates from the bulb which cools the bulb below ambient temperature. To determine relative humidity, ambient temperature is measured using an ordinary thermometer, better known in this context as a dry-bulb thermometer. At any given ambient temperature, less relative humidity results in a greater difference between the dry-bulb and wet-bulb temperatures; the wet bulb is colder. If the wet and dry bulb read the same
temperature, you would have 100 percent humidity.
The more evaporation taking place, the lower the
temperature reading on the wet-bulb thermometer
and the larger the spread will be between the wet- and
dry-bulb reading.

45. Incubator Temperature (°F) Percent Relative Humidity
Wet Bulb Readings (°F)
100
81.3
83.3
85.3
87.3
89.0
90.7
101
82.2
84.2
86.2
88.2
90.0
91.7
102
83.0
85.0
87.0
91.0
92.7
Percent Relative Humidity
45%
50%
55%
60%
65%
70%

46. Maintaining Humidity First 18 days 19th – 21st days (hatching period)
60%
19th – 21st days (hatching period)
65-70%
Condensation indicates adequate moisture
Adding water
Should be about the same temperature as incubator
Add when opening incubator to turn eggs (wet sponges may help)
Make sure water is clean
Water temp when adding should be warm to touch. ALWAYS make sure water trays are full. Sponges can increase the evaporating surface.

47. Ventilation Normal atmospheric air Air movement past eggs Vent plugs
Oxygen Concentration – 21%
Carbon Dioxide Concentration – 0.5%
Air movement past eggs
Make sure ventilation holes are open
Vent plugs
Front plug is for regulating humidity (removed one week prior to hatch)
Back vent for excessive humidity (should be removed the day chicks start to hatch)
Best hatching results are obtained with normal atmospheric air.

48. Turning Why is turning necessary? How often should eggs be turned?
3-5x daily for 2nd-18th day of incubation
DO NOT turn during last 3 days!
What about weekends?
Turn once daily on weekends
It is okay to move incubator and eggs prior to 19th day of incubation
Turning prevents the blastoderm from migrating through the albumen and adhering to the shell membrane.

49. Candling Candle eggs every three days to check progress Day 7
Will be difficult to see embryo development after 17 days. Eggs shouldn’t be out of incubator for more than 5-10 minutes for candling or any other purposes.
Day 7

50. Hatching Out
Remove automatic turner (if used) and place eggs on cheese cloth over wire bottom on day 18
Never help the chicks from the shell
Remove the chicks from the incubator and place them in a warm brooder within 2 to 6 hours after they hatch
6-12 hours will be okay if they hatch when nobody is around
Remove and discard all remaining un-hatched eggs 60 hours after the first chick hatches

51. Clean Up Remove loose shells and dry matter Egg trays and water pans
Soak in warm water and scrub off adhering dirt
Wipe plastic clean with soft cloth and glass cleaner
Bottom of incubator
No chemical cleaners
Soak in 25% bleach/water solution and wipe with cloth
Heating elements and other electric units
DO NOT touch or get element wet
Brush gently with soft brush to remove dust

52. Brooding Make sure the brooder box is working 2-4 days prior to hatch
Maintain 92 to 95°F for the first week
Take temperature at one inch above the floor level
Supply a textured, absorbent litter to provide traction and prevent leg damage
Textured paper towels work well
Chicken starter feed
18 to 22 % protein
Will be provided with one pound
Use a jar lid, egg carton, small tuna can, etc. as a feeder
Water should be available at all times
Clean waterer and brooder daily
Make sure waterer is not too deep so chicks don’t drown. A tuna can works well.

54. Avoiding Disease
Emphasizing the importance of sanitation and good hygiene before and after handling any animal reduces risk associated with project to almost zero

55. Troubles Arise ...
The most common problems are associated with improper incubator management...

56. Low Humidity can cause . . .
Chicks fully formed, but dead without pipping.
Eggs pipped, but chicks dead in shell.
Dry sticks – shell sticking to chicks.
Short down on chicks or eyelids stuck closed with down.
Chicks with splayed legs or curled toes.

57. High Humidity can cause . . .
Sticky chicks – chicks smeared with egg contents
Large, soft-bodied chicks with bad odor.

58. Low Temperature can cause:
Eggs pipped, but chicks dead in shell.
Sticky chicks – chicks smeared with egg contents
Large, soft-bodied chicks with bad odor.
Delayed hatch – eggs not starting to pip until 21st day or later.

59. High Temperature can cause:
Embryos that stop developing after a certain point.
Chicks fully formed, but dead without pipping.
Chicks hatching too early with bloody navels.
Short down on chicks or eyelids stuck closed with down.

60. Problem: Chicks with splayed legs or curled toes.
Trouble Shooting
Problem: Chicks with splayed legs or curled toes.
Causes
Insufficient moisture
Corrections
Maintain proper temperature and humidity levels

61. Other Problems that may Occur
Sudden losses at any time
Causes:
Power or equipment failure or overheating
Corrections:
Check incubator temperature at least 2x daily

62. Even in the best of conditions . . .
A hatch rate above 50% is considered a success.
Separate unhealthy chicks from the healthy ones
In cases of chick death VA DEQ has approved the following methods of poultry carcass disposal:
Landfill off-site (this means that you could throw the carcass in a school dumpster)
Follow school dissection projects policies for biohazard waste
With life, comes death. You should not expect all of your eggs to hatch. In fact a hatch rate above 50% is considered a success. Unfortunately, not all chicks are born as healthy as we would like. It is not uncommon for chicks to be born deformed or close to death. If you have a chick born with some sort of weakness, the stronger chicks may peck at it and cause its ultimate demise. To avoid this, it is best to separate the weaker chicks into a separate box. I like to call this box the “hospital” and at chick drop-off day we will have accumulated about twenty of these chicks. They will be taken to the farm in hopes that they can nurse them back to health. In the cases in which a chick dies before chick drop off day, VA DEQ has approved the following methods of poultry carcass disposal:
Landfill off-site (this means that you could throw the carcass in a school dumpster)
Rendering (i.e., processing of animal materials into other products), incineration, or composting off-site
Burial on site under emergency permit – This is the least preferred method due to its adverse environmental impact.  Potential contamination of groundwater/public health issue
If your school does any sort of dissection project, you may want to follow their same process for biohazard waste. Of course you will want to dispose of any deceased chicks in a tactful way that is most appropriate for your group dynamic. If you find it appropriate to use a chick death as a teachable moment, you may want to consult grieving counselor.

63. Keeping Chicks Town of Herndon – 1 hen
Fairfax County – must have 2 acres or pay $910 fee up front

64. Predators
Raccoons have opposable thumbs and so can open latches. They usually just eat the head of the chicken or any eggs that are in the coop.
Coyotes usually tunnel underneath a coop. Usually kill every bird they can get to.
Opossums are just interested in baby chicks and eggs and will get in through any small hole in the coop.
Foxes can dig and climb. Usually kill every bird they can get to.
Hawks hunt during the day while birds are free ranging.

65. Please don’t forget to consult these resources...
Chick Calendar
Embryology Record
Tip Sheet
Teacher’s Packet
Beginning of Life Curriculum
Embryology Record Book

66. Send your Poultry Enthusiasts to Me for Poultry Judging!

67. Questions?