Brooding of chicks in poultry farm
Time : 2013-02-13

Basic information

Brooding of chicks is easy, with little or less pieces of equipment and a small place to put them, success in brooding and is virtually assured. During this period of the chicken's life, the most important needs are for warmth, protection, feed, and water. When growing chicks of any species like layers and broilers or almost any other bird production each of these aspects must be considered

In nature, chicks hatch after 2 to 4 weeks of incubation by the parents, most often the hen. The hatched chicks provide the stimulus to the hen to change her work from incubating eggs to brooding young. This form of brooding chicks is the easiest if only a few chicks are raised because the mother hen does all the work. Novice growers are not advised to try artificial brooding for artificial chicks; that is, chicks such as pigeons, doves, finches, and parrots that remain in the nest to be cared for and fed by the parents. Many of these chicks are naked, blind, and unable to walk for several weeks after hatching and require around-the-clock care and feeding

Chick brooders can be elaborate pieces of equipment such as tiered battery brooders or as simple as a card box in the house or garage. In both cases, the most important aspect is to maintain conditions that allow the birds to thrive. Chicks require a balanced diet if they are to grow and thrive. When starting chicks, always feed a starter diet that is formulated to give the birds the proper levels of nutrients

They should be fed free choice; that is, feed is available all the time. Supplement only minimally with other feeds. Because birds in battery brooders are kept in multiple layers, many chicks can be brooded in a relatively small amount of floor space. There are many designs. Most include an electric heat source at one end, usually in an area that is somewhat enclosed

Brooding of chicks in poultry farm


Features

1. Natural brooding

This natural brooding is a process is carried out with the help of broody hens after hatching, from up to 3 to 4 weeks of age

2. Artificial brooding

In artificial brooding large number of baby chicks are reared in the absence of broody hen.  Equipment used for brooding are called brooders.  Brooder comprises of three elements which are the heating source, reflectors and brooder guard. The heating source may be electrical or gases like natural gas, LPG or methane, liquid fuel like kerosene, solid fuel like coal, wood can be used as a heating material

3. Gas brooder

Natural gas, LPG or methane is connected to heating element which is hanged 3 to 5 feet above the chick to provide heat

4. Electrical brooder

It is also thermostatically controlled heating system that spread required amount of heat uniformly above large area, this avoid crowding of chicks under brooder directly.  One electrical brooder can be used for 300 to 400 chicks

5. Brooder guard or chick guard

They are used to prevent chicks from straying too far away from heat supply until they learn the source of heat.  We have to provide brooder guard with a diameter of 5 feet, height of the brooder should not exceed 1.5 feet.  For this purpose, we can use materials like cardboard sheet, GI sheet, wire mesh, and mat etc. Depending on the season of brooding such as during winter season, brooding is done for 5-6 days.  In summer season it is 2-3 weeks


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The brooding phases of a chick

1. Hatchery phase

During the beginning of the Hatchery Phase, the chick has a developing immune system and poor temperature regulation capacity. Chick processing and preparation in the hatchery can also cause stress, leading to a loss of uniformity if the birds are not handled properly. Damages caused in the first two weeks of life may not manifest until later in the chick’s life, so it is important to create a comfort zone for chicks in the rearing phase, where they are provided with an environment with an adequate temperature and freely available feed and water

2. Rearing phase

During the Breeding Phase, the required trough space for a feed chain is 20 cm (7.5”) and a plate for every 8 males from 5 weeks until thinning. It is essential that all males eat simultaneously to ensure the uniformity of the flock. The housing density should be at least 0.2 m2/male (2.5 ft2/male), with 1 teat/8 cockerels and 1 drinker/60 cockerels. If the recommended space cannot be provided, the males can still be reared and managed to achieve good fertility and hatching rate, although this is more difficult. There are many alternative methods that, if implemented correctly, can lead to good uniformity. To avoid any loss in the flock, it is important to focus on management ideas that contribute to good uniformity, especially when there is a limitation of floor space and feeders. During this phase, males should never lose weight from one week to the next, as stagnation or loss during the critical periods of this phase can result in a decrease in hatchability potential in young breeders

3. Production phase

The third and final phase of breeding process is the production phase. During this phase there are many points to consider regarding housing. It is important to remember that the day before transport should be a day for feeding, and a whole house should always be moved each day. Water should be freely available upon arrival and the change of equipment should be evaluated when moving from the rearing to the production house. A good practice for housing breeders is to have a male to female ratio of 7.5-10.0%, too high a ratio leads to a higher level of aggression between males, which lead to higher mortality and interference with copulation and when it is too low a ratio leads to male and female aggression, resulting in higher female mortality and less responsiveness, if the male ratio falls below 7.0%, the hatching rate will be affected. However, these male-female ratios should be adjusted based on the selected breeding male, as many new males may exhibit higher levels of aggression than their predecessors


Receiving of chicks

1 After culling the previous adult birds, clean and disinfect the poultry house

2. 3 to 4 week’s interval may be provided between 2 batches as down tome

3. Form a circle of about 5 feet diameter with brooder guard. The 5 feet diameter brooder can hold about 200 to 250 chicks

4. At the center of brooder guard, provide any one of heat source like IR bulb, ordinary incandescent bulb or gas brooders

5. Spread litter material about 2” height in a circle and then spread old newspaper over the litter material

6. Arrange feeders and water trough alternatively like cart-wheel fashion

7. Check the brooder for proper temperature 24 hours prior to arrival of chicks

8. Switch on the brooder heating source several hours before the arrival of the chicks in order to maintain required brooding temperature

9. Spread ground maize or fine mash and crumble feed on the old newspaper for 1 or 2 days.  Afterwards, they will learn to consume feed from the feeder

10. Provide electrolyte, glucose and vitamins in the drinking water for first 2 to 3 days to overcome stress.  After arrival of chicks, moist the beak and leave the chicks under heating source

11. Maintain a brooder temperature of 90 to 950F for the first week and then reduce 50F every week until it reaches the room temperature

12. Watch the behavior of chicks in order to find out whether temperature provided is correct or less or more.  In case of too much temperature, we can reduce the heat by reducing the power of the bulb or we can raise the heating element.  In case of too low temperature, we have to supplement more heating source or we can further down the heating element.  In case of chill weather or chill breeze, we can provide curtains towards the wind direction

13. Remove the old newspaper after 3 days and destroy it by burning.  If necessary, spread another set of newspaper

14. Remove brooder guard after 7 to 10 days depending upon the season.  While removing the brooder guard, see that the corners of the sheds are rounded in order to avoid mortality due to huddling

15. Change the feeders and water trough according to age and requirement

16. 24 hours lighting program may be adopted during 0-8 weeks of age.  One hour darkness may be provided to train the chicks in case of any power failure


Principles

1. Insufficient weight gain at an early age can be attributed to low food intake as a result of other causes. For a good initial growth of the chick, the absorption of the yolk and its nutrients (25% protein, 25% lipid and 50% water and antibodies) is essential

2. It is important to provide enough plates with enough feed in each one. If all the dishes are always full of chicks, this implies that the number of dishes is insufficient. An insufficient amount of feeder space and / or quantity of feed will have a negative impact on feed consumption, as well as on the weight and uniformity of the birds. It is recommended to supply at least 1.5 kg of balanced starter feed to males to achieve adequate development and weight gain

3. Chicks do not need scratch like heavy supplements of scratch such as table scraps or greens that can reduce chicks' nutrient intake and may result in poor growth or worse increased mortality

4. After about 6 weeks of age, they can be fed a grower diet; generally this diet is lower in protein because the chicks are growing more slowly. Do not feed adult diets to baby chicks, especially layer diets. These feeds are very high in calcium for egg shell formation and are not suitable for baby chicks

5. Water must be provided constantly and it should be room temperature, clean, and fresh. Supplemental vitamins added to the water are not necessary if the chicks are fed properly

6. When brooding, ensure that the water does not become too hot from the heat source because many birds will refuse to drink warm water. For the most part, chicks are quite hearty. For maximum survival rate and to minimize disease problems, buy chicks from a reputable source. Most commercial hatcheries vaccinate their chicks against their disease at hatch, so this should not be a problem. Most starter feeds contain a coccidiostat to reduce the potential for coccidiosis in the flock. Antibiotics are available at local feed stores but should be used only when absolutely necessary and then only according to the label instructions

7. Provide an adequate feeder space for 100 chicks per plate as recommended

8. Provide enough drinking space for 80 chicks per drinker as recommended

9. Allow both elements to fit easily within the comfort zone

10. There should be availability of clean water at room temperature as highly recommended


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Frequently ask questions

Q: During the brooding process, what are the things to be put in place?

A: When brooding, ensure that the water does not become too hot from the heat source because many birds will refuse to drink warm water

Q: How can reduce the spread of disease from my chicks?

A: You can reduce disease spread by getting feeds that contain a coccidiostat which can help in reducing the potential for coccidiosis among the flock

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