Backyard chicken-keeping is now a way of life for thousands of people who'â„¢ve come to love the fresh eggs and whimsical ways of these birds. Many passionate poultry owners who have mastered the art of raising chicks purchased from a hatchery are now eager to expand their experience by incubating, hatching, and brooding chicks at home, beginning with the egg. The magic of watching chicks hatch is also a favorite classroom and family activity. With Hatching & Brooding Your Own Chicks, poultry authority Gail Damerow offers the definitive guide to hatching healthy baby chickens, as well as ducklings, goslings, turkey poults, and guinea keets. Damerow addresses every possible challenge of the process: selecting a breed, finding the best incubator, ensuring proper set-up and sanitary conditions, understanding embryo development, and feeding and caring for newborn chicks in a brooder. Full-color photographs and illustrations make the information as accessible as it is edifying. Whether a poultry lover wants to hatch as few as three eggs, or as many as a hundred, they'â„¢ll find all they need in this book. It'â„¢s an indispensable reference for small-scale farmers, as well as for families, homeschoolers, and classroom teachers who are ready to start hatching!