General recommendations for profitable poultry farming
HYGIENE
DAILY CONTROL
Check at least once daily.
When assessing the state of health, do not just go by the general impression and mortality rate, but also take mote of feed and water consumption as well as the texture of droppings.
WATER SUPPLY
Learn MoreClean water is equally as important as good feed for top performance. Therefore fresh, clean, potable water must be available at all times for the layers and an adequate consumption must be always assured. A water meter is a very useful too to inspect water consumption.
The optimum water temperature is about 20°C.
Furthermore feed and water intake are closely correlated. If the birds don’t drink enough water for any reason, the feed intake reduces consequently.
The water to feed ratio at comfort temperature is around 1.8 – 2:1, but this relation increases up to 5:1 at high ambient temperatures above 30°C. During exposure to high temperatures, birds consume less feed but more water in an effort to cool their body down.
Check the water quality regularly, especially if you use your own water supply like well water.
For example excessive salt levels in drinking water can cause persistent damage to Shell quality and hard water with high TDS*levels may cause kidney damage.
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GRIT
Feeding grit is not a must but is recommended when rations are supplemented by grains. This stimulates the development of the crop and the gizzard during the rearing period, which in turn has a positive effect on feed intake capacity.
LITTER (Non Cage Housing)
Only use shavings from untreated wood in order to avoid poisoning and residues in the egg.
Provide sufficient ventilation to ensure good litter condition and remove wet litter, if necessary.
EGG QUALITY AND EGG COLLECTION
LOHMANN TRADITION layers produce egg of excellent quality. To preserve the quality, the following points should be observed:
Storing at higher temperature and lower humidity leads to rapid loss of weights and impairs the quality of the egg write due to an increase in gas exchange.
NESTS (Non Cage Housing)
The quality of nests is also a factor which affects egg quality. Renew the litter in litter – type nests regularly and keep them clean. Provide individual nest at a rate of one nest for 4 hens. Collect floor eggs frequently to keep their rate as low as possible.
In addition to sufficient nesting space in family type nests, the following factors are important for a low rate of floor eggs.
For optimum egg quality, rollaway nests in combination with slats are better than litter – type nests or family type nests.
STOCKING DENSITY
The optimal bird density/m² depends on management conditions and to which extent climate can be controlled 6 – 8 birds/ m² can be taken as a general guide for non – cage housing.
For cage systems, an area of 475 – 540 cm²/ bird is recommended. Take note of deviating regulations for stocking density and declaration of eggs.
EQUIPMENT REQUIREMENTS
In general, the more closely the growing house and facilities resemble the future production system, the easier it will be for the pullets to settle down in their new environment after transfer to the laying house.
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