Hatching technique of ostrich eggs

Ostrich is an egg laying animal. Ostrich eggs are generally up to 15 cm long and 8 cm wide, and weigh up to 1.5 kg, equivalent to 30 eggs. It is the largest egg in the world. The hatching method is similar to that of eggs. Let's take a look at ostrich egg hatching techniques.

Selection of ostrich eggs

1. Egg collection: most female ostriches lay eggs at 3-6 o'clock in the afternoon, some in the morning or at night. Ostriches should pick up eggs in time after laying eggs to reduce damage and pollution. Male ostriches have the instinct to protect female ostriches and eggs. When picking up, two people need to cooperate, one person will drive the bird away, and one person will pick up the eggs. Wash hands or wear gloves when picking up eggs so as not to pollute the eggs. Clean the contaminated eggs with a sterilized wet towel. Eggs must be registered, marked with female and male bird numbers and egg laying dates, and weighed.

2. Selection of breeding eggs: qualified breeding eggs are required to be clean and there should be no soil, feces and other dirt on the surface. The second requirement is moderate size, too large or too small eggs will affect the hatching rate and the quality of nestlings, generally require that eggs weigh about 1.5 kg, more than 2 kg and less than 1 kg eggs should generally be eliminated. The third requirement is that the egg is oval in shape, with a vertical diameter of 16-17 cm and a horizontal diameter of 13-14 cm. The hatching rate of overlong, round, flat and deformed eggs is low. The color of eggs is usually milky white or beige. The hatching rate of white eggs is lower.

3. Preservation of breeding eggs: seed eggs should be placed vertically or tilted upward with big head during storage, and the appropriate time is 3-5 days. If the storage period is not more than 7 days, the eggs may not be turned over. If the eggs are not stored for more than 4 days, the suitable storage temperature is 16-18 ℃. More than 4 days should be about 13 ℃. The relative humidity is 60%.

Disinfection preparation before hatching

1. Disinfection of ostrich egg storage room: wipe the floor with disinfectant every 2 days, clean and disinfect all of them every 2 weeks, and fumigate with formalin solution.

2. Disinfection of breeding eggs: when ostriches lay eggs, the breeders should catch them with sterilized gauze and then send them to the hatchery for disinfection. The disinfection dose is 42 milliliters of formalin and 21 grams of potassium permanganate per square meter and fumigated for 30 minutes. If you don't catch it, wipe off the stolen goods from the surface with gauze soaked in disinfectant and send it to the hatchery immediately for disinfection. Before hatching, soak in disinfectant (temperature no more than 40 ℃) for 20 seconds, then dry the eggs with sterilized dry gauze to hatch.

3. Disinfection of the hatchery: the floor of the hatchery is wiped with disinfectant every 2 days, the walls and ceilings are sprayed with disinfectant every half a month, and thoroughly cleaned once a month.

4. Disinfection of the incubator: before each incubation, the inside and outside of the incubator and the surface are wiped with disinfectant and fumigated with formalin.

Management techniques during incubation period

1. Control of incubation temperature and humidity: the incubation period of ostrich is 42 days, the temperature in the middle and early stage of incubation is 36.8 ℃, and the embryo produces a lot of heat in 30-42 days after hatching, and the temperature needed is relatively low, so 36 ℃ is suitable.

2. According to eggs: the purpose of according to eggs is to observe the degree of embryonic development and abnormal situation, and to eliminate azoospermic eggs and dead eggs in time. The first time to light the eggs is when they are hatched, and check whether the air chamber is facing up when the eggs are put into the egg plate. The second irradiation of the egg was on the 12th day after hatching, when the ostrich's beak and beak tip began to form, the legs and wings roughly differentiated, the allantoic membrane extended to the inner surface of the eggshell membrane, the trunk of the embryo enlarged, and clear blood vessels could be seen when the egg was irradiated. Two small circles of head and trunk can be seen, called "double beads".

3. Turning the egg: the ostrich egg yolk contains a lot of fat and has a light specific gravity. It floats in the middle of the egg and is fastened by a tie. The embryo absorbs nutrients and removes waste. If you stay in a position for a long time, the yolk can not be maintained in the center of the egg and is easy to adhere to the intima of the eggshell. The purpose of turning eggs is to locate the outer space of the embryo, but also to prevent adhesion and promote the movement of amniotic membrane. Ostrich eggs are generally turned once every 2 hours during the incubation period, and stop turning after 40 days. In general, the egg turning angle designed by the incubator is 45 degrees forward and backward. According to research, if the egg turning angle is increased to 50-55 degrees, it will promote embryonic development and blood circulation, and improve the hatching rate.