Incubation qualities of abnormal turkey eggs

Abstract

Goal. To study the incubation properties of turkey eggs, not standard in shape and quality of the shell. Methods. The research was carried out on the basis of farms in the Kharkiv region during March–June 2025 on two parent herds of turkeys of foreign breeding — hybrids of crosses B.U.T.8/BIG6 and BIG6/Hybrid Converter (1st and 2nd year of productivity) using biological control methods. Incubation was carried out in industrial modernized incubators Universal-55 and UIP-F-45 under the appropriate type of bird and temperature and humidity regimes. Statistical analysis of the data obtained was performed using the licensed program Statistica 10.0 (StatSoft) for the Windows operating system. Student’s t-criterion was used to compare the differences between the groups. Results. A direct correlation was established between the age of the parent herd and the deviation of eggs from the norm. Data were obtained on the negative impact of deviations from the norm on the incubation qualities of eggs at all stages of embryogenesis and early ontogenesis. It was found that in the case of using standard eggs, the output of conditioned turkeys was 5-10% higher than for using eggs with defects. Conclusions. With the growth of the age of the breeding herd of turkeys, the number of eggs of non-standard shape and with a problem shell increases, because of which air exchange is disturbed in them and, as a result, the number of abandoned embryos and substandard young animals increases, as well as the proportion of broken eggs and the percentage of eggs, the content of which is affected by bacterial flora. Taking into account the high cost of incubation turkey eggs, it is advisable to use eggs with minor deviations from the norm in the conditions of a turkey farm. When determining the expected percentage of brood, one should take into account the age of the parent herd, the period of the breeding season, the type of productivity of turkeys, and, on this basis, predict the brood rates from such eggs.