Internal pipping usually occurs 24 to 48 hours before hatching. Hatcher temperatures are usually 1 to 2 degrees lower than incubation temperatures and the humidity slightly higher. Percent hatchability, or the number of chicks hatched divided by the number eggs set, is around 70 percent. Again, it is very important to keep good records because specific problems are often associated with embryonic death at various points in incubation. Hatched chicks are removed from the hatcher when dry.
Some producers give each chick a dose of beneficial bacterial flora at hatch.
Chicks are unable to thermoregulate at hatch and must have an external source of heat. The temperature can be dropped 5 degrees every 2 weeks and supplemental heat removed at 16 to 24 weeks. The heat source should be large enough for all the chicks to get around it. Also, the pen area should be large enough that the chicks can get away from the heat to avoid overheating. Most commercial feed companies are producing starter, grower and breeder rations.