Basic information
Management is the process of dealing with or controlling things or people with the aim of getting substantial results. Achieving good bird, barn and gut health requires operational excellence and attention to detail. A combination of quality nutrition, veterinary guidance, and increased consideration of barn and bird management will help to ensure birds have the best possible chance to perform at their maximum potentials
A broiler bird is defined as a domesticated birds that is rearing for the purpose of meat production either commercially or small scale in the countryside area. Now, it is being the most significant sector for employment throughout the world due to it is convenient, easy-doing, establish just beside the house & low investment for small scale farmers. Hence, it is being popular for rural people. But, it has the prerequisite before settling up the business, otherwise, it would become the face lots of loss in this business. Broiler is a bird of about 8 weeks of age of either sex (straight-run chicks) with an average body weight of 1.5 to 2.0 kg with a flexible breast bone cartilage, pliable and tender meat
Broiler developmental life
Chicks that arrive on the broiler farm have to come from somewhere, and the answer is the hatchery. But where does the hatchery get the eggs needed to hatch a chick? That’s where broiler breeder farms come in. Broiler breeder farms, which are operated by broiler hatching egg farmers, raise female (hens) and male (roosters) birds who are the parents of broiler chickens. These hens and roosters mate to produce fertilized eggs (not the same as the table eggs we eat), which are sold to broiler hatcheries for incubation
There are two stages in a broiler breeders’ life – rearing and breeding. Farmers have separate barns called pullet barns, where the chicks are raised until they are ready to be transferred to the breeding barns. A pullet is the technical term for a young female chicken before she starts to lay eggs. During the rearing stage, males and females are raised separately because of their different growth rates and nutritional requirements. Later on, the females and males will be moved into the breeding barn
Hens begin laying eggs at approximately 26 weeks of age. They will lay between 145 and 150 eggs before the end of their expected lay period approximately 35 to 40 weeks later. Broiler breeder farms have automated egg gathering systems where the eggs gently roll from the nest box onto a conveyor belt to an egg gathering station. Broiler hatching eggs are collected several times a day and only high quality ones are sent to the hatchery to be hatched into broiler chicks. The hatchery picks up the hatching eggs from the broiler breeder farm one or more times per week
When they arrive from the hatching egg farm, eggs are placed in incubators where they are kept warm and automatically turned gently at regular intervals Eggs hatch around the 21 day mark. The incubators, or hatchers, are then opened to reveal thousands of chicks who have pecked their way out of their shells. The remainder of the yolk sac, that fed the growing chick during incubation, has now been absorbed into the chick’s body and provides it with adequate nourishment for the first 72 hours of life
Fertilized eggs are not like the ones you get at the grocery store. The grocery store eggs are unfertilized and come from hens raised specifically to lay eggs for human consumption. Fertilized eggs that hatch into chicks raised for meat production are called broiler hatching eggs, and they are fertilized naturally with the male (rooster) mounting the female (hen). At the hatchery, the chicks can be vaccinated to protect them from common poultry diseases, just like we are vaccinated as babies against common human diseases. It is really important that the chicks are kept warm and protected from any drafts as they are readied for transport. They are carefully placed in clean and disinfected crates, free of any sharp edges that might injure them. Once in the crate and on the clean, climate-controlled transport truck, they are ready for the journey to their new home: a barn where they will be raised for about 35 days until they become broiler chickens ready for market
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Management processes
1. Biosecurity
Well-defined biosecurity practices throughout broiler production (pre-, during and post-placement) are crucial to successful poultry production. Effective biosecurity can aid hygiene, vermin and insect control on-farm and help to limit disease transmission within and between barns
2. Downtime between flocks
Adequate downtime of at least 14 days with appropriate cleaning and disinfection measures between flock placements helps to reduce transmission of disease between flocks and allows time to prepare for the next flock
3. Pre-placement preparation
Pre-placement preparation is needed before the new flock arrives to help prevent losses during brooding and the rest of grow out. Checkpoints to keep in mind: heaters, floor temperature, temperature and relative humidity probes, ventilation, drinkers, feeders, etc
4. Coccidiosis prevention
Coccidiosis is a disease caused by a microscopic intestinal parasite. This parasite can have an impact on intestinal integrity and may predispose birds to other intestinal problems
5. Brooding management
With today’s improved genetic capabilities and the fast growth of birds, more time is being spent during the critical brooding phase. As a result, ensuring a good start in poultry production can have a significant impact on the future health and performance of the birds. The brooding period is an important time for intestinal growth and the development of a balanced microflora
6. Water management
Drinking water accounts for 70–80 percent of the bird’s daily drinking needs Poultry will generally consume more water than feed. As a result, water is the most critical nutrient for poultry. An abundance of clean water will reduce challenges and maximize performance. Factors to consider when thinking about water management include: Quality, height, pressure, mineral content and accessibility. Cleanliness of drinker lines/regulators prior to flock placement and during production. Flushing water lines between flocks and during production
7. Feed management
Birds must have easy access to feed. Proper feeder line height corresponding to the height of the birds helps to reduce feed wastage and mixing feed with litter, and it ensures that all birds have access to feed. Adequate feed access is also achieved by following the feed line manufacturer’s recommendations for the number of birds per feed pan or line of trough feeder. Good feed quality that avoids contaminants like mycotoxins is important to ensure performance
8. Stocking density
A higher stocking density of poultry in addition to crowded housing conditions has been shown to have a negative impact on performance, causing stress to both the birds and intestinal microbiota. Lowering stocking density throughout the overall production of the birds may help to reduce challenges
9. Environmental management
General environmental management of the barn includes many components, such as temperature, relative humidity, ventilation and lighting. Understanding that these components work both separately and together can help to guide your management practices. Monitoring during times of transition: Increasing the frequency at which barns are walked and examining the activity of the flock can help with early disease detection. Daily monitoring of temperature, humidity and ventilation inside the barn as well as outside temperature is recommended. Monitoring transition times can help with understanding what is happening in the barn (e.g., from day to night, when birds are placed, during half-house brooding, feed changes, etc
10. Flock health management
Work with your veterinarian to design a program customized for your flock’s health
System of management
1. Housing systems
Broilers can be housed on deep-litter, slatted or wire floor or cages. However, cage, slat and wire floor rearing of broilers are not as popular as litter floor rearing, due to problems like breast blisters, leg weakness and higher initial investment
2. Rearing systems
The systems of rearing refer to either single batch at a time (all-in all-out system) or multiple batches of brooding and rearing of broilers
3. All-in all-out system
Under all-in all-out system, the farm will have only one batch of broilers, belonging to the same hatch at any time. Sufficient chicks will be purchased to accommodate the entire farm capacity, reared and marketed in a single lot. This system is more hygienic, lesser sub-clinical infections and horizontal spreading of diseases and thereby lesser mortality rate, better growth rate and improved feed efficiency. However, this system is not suitable for large scale farming and needs higher fixed and working capital per bird
4. Multiple batch system
The multiple batch system consists of rearing of more than one batch of chicks at any time, with a batch interval of 1 to 4 weeks. Here, the farmer is buying day-old chicks and selling grown up broilers at weekly, fortnightly, once in three weeks or at monthly intervals. The chicks are reared for five to six weeks of age, or until they attain the desired body weight and sold for table. The ideal system for India at present is having 5 to 6 batches of broilers at any time, with weekly interval between batches and “direct retail marketing”. Here, the birds will be marketed daily, from 40 to 54 days of age, based on their body weight, i.e. heavier birds will be sold earlier; giving a chance for weaker birds to have a compensatory growth
5. Floor space, feeder space and waterer space
The floor space requirement of broilers varies depending on their body weight at the time of marketing, housing systems, marketing age and ambient temperature. The feeder and waterer space also varies depending on the environmental temperature and health condition of the birds. The following is the approximate floor, feeder and waterer space requirement for broilers
6. Brooding and rearing of broilers
it is similar to that for egg-type chicks
7. Cage rearing of broilers
Broilers can also be reared on cages. Broiler cages are similar to that of grower cages. To prevent the breast blisters, the bottom of the cage may be coated with some plastic materials. The floor space requirement in cages is 50% of the floor space needed in deep-litter. The relative advantages and disadvantages of cage rearing of broilers are
Advantages
1. Higher density of rearing possible
2. Easy to catch the birds at market time and hence reduces bruising
3. No expenditure on litter
4. No incidences of coccidiosis
5. Reduced cannibalism
6. Cleaning and disinfection easier
6. Better growth and feed efficiency
Disadvantages
1. Higher incidences of breast-blisters which increases carcass condemnations
2. Higher incidences of crooked keel
3. Wing bones will be more brittle which will be a disadvantage for the processor also
4. Birds are not having access to the unidentified growth factors in deep-litter system
5. Cleaning fecal-trays is not labor friendly
6. High initial investment on cage
7. Birds will be uncomfortable especially during summer
Feeding
Generally, three types of feed are offered to broilers from day-old to marketing
0-2 Weeks – Broiler Pre-starter mash / crumble
3-4 Weeks – Broiler Starter mash
5-6 Weeks – Broiler Finisher mash
Lighting
In open sided broiler houses, the most commonly recommended lighting program is 24 hours light during brooding period, followed by 23 hours light and one hour darkness per day, until marketing. This one hour darkness is to train the birds to acclimatize for darkness, in case of power failure, which may cause panic and trampling
Vaccination schedule
Sex-separate rearing of broilers
The growth rate, floor space and the nutrient requirements of male and female broilers are not the same. Since the males grow faster than females, males need higher floor space and nutrients than female broilers. Due to these reasons, male and female broiler chicks are reared separately, in many countries, from day-old to disposal. Here, day-old broiler chicks are sexed by “feather sexing method” rather than by “vent-sexing”, as in the case of egg-type chicks. The sexed broiler chicks are brood and reared separately until marketing. Separate diets are provided for males and females. Male broilers require more protein, whereas the females require less energy and less protein
Advantages
1. More uniform body weight of flocks can be produced by separate rearing of sexes
2. Specialized market requirement can be met. The females can be reared, dressed and sold as whole chicken; whereas the male carcasses will be exclusively used for deboning and various cut-up parts
3. More accurate feeding to meet out the specific requirement of each sex will be possible. This will lead to better growth rate and feed efficiency
4. Due to flock uniformity, the automatic processing equipment can be adjusted more accurately for greater processing efficiency and minimum condemnations
5. Minimize the incidence of cannibalism and peck order, due to more flock uniformity
Disadvantages
1. Increased costs of sexing
2. Larger breeding flocks are necessary to meet the demand for male and female broiler chicks. In turn, hatcheries may require that their customers always purchase equal number of male and female chicks
Measures of performance efficiency in broilers
1. Livability
Normal value is 97 to 98%
2. Feed efficiency or feed conversion ratio
A value of 1.8 or lesser at 6 weeks of age is preferable.
3. Broiler performance efficiency factor (BPEF)
Higher the value better will be the index. A value of 100 or more is desirable.
4. Broiler farm economy index (BFEI)
Squab broilers
Very small broilers, weighing around 0.9 kg weight at around 28 days of age is called squab broilers. These are raised straight-run, processed, eviscerated and sold as fresh or frozen whole carcas
Preparation of poultry for show
1. Selection of birds
1. Select only healthy birds. This is important for two reasons
2. It increases the chances of winning the price since healthy birds will have good physical condition and bright appearance
3. It reduces the chances of spreading diseases to other birds present in the show
2. Training birds
The birds to be presented for show should confirm to the standard description for its breed and variety.
Select the bird early. At least one week before the show, place each show bird in a cage similar to the one used during poultry show. Handle each two to three times a day in a manner similar to that used during judging so that the birds get trained and do not get excited during the show. Do not expose the red coloured birds to direct sunlight for several hours because it will fade the plumage colour
3. Washing the birds
When the plumage is soiled and dirty, it does not look good in show cages. The birds are washed with detergent solution (avoid the detergents which makes the feather brittle). If external parasites are present, birds may de dipped in 0.25 to 0.50 % seven solution. A bird can be washed for 15 to 20 seconds and the bird should be placed in a drying cage and it gets dried in 20 to 30 minutes. The birds should be dried slowly for best results
4. After washing
1. A small piece of cloth is moistened with baby oil or vitamin E enriched oil and rubbed over the comb, wattles, beak and shank of the bird.
2. A mixture of equal parts of alcohol, glycerin and olive oil makes an excellent cleaning and polishing solution for shank, feet, comb and wattles
3. Check the nails and beak and see if any trimming is needed
4. Tooth pick is used to clean the bird’s nostrils
5. Transporting the birds
Transport the birds in a clean cage with straw or wood shavings as bedding material. Do not provide water since it will spill and spoil the bedding material. If the birds are to be transported to a long distance, water should be provided at intervals during transport
6. Care of birds during show
Make sure that the birds are provided with plenty of feed and water during the show
7. Care of birds after the show
After the show, the birds should be quarantined and should not be mixed with other birds in the farm immediately because it may transmit some diseases which has been acquired during the show from other birds. After 14 days of quarantine, they can be mixed with other farm bird
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Frequently ask questions
Q: What specie of bird is called broiler?
A: Broilers are birds basically raised for meat consumption
Q: What is the best method to rear broilers?
A: Battery cage is most preferable as it can be used to rear them from chicks to grown age
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