Several ways to pluck a broiler quickly and efficiently


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A ventilation system should be installed in the hen house, which is designed to replace the air flows in the room. It is equally important to control the temperature regime for broilers, without which the livestock may die.

Temperature range for broilers

Growing broilers is a profitable business. Already in the third month of life of individuals, the weight of a chicken can exceed 2.5 kg. The active growth of birds is impossible without proper care from the owner. The more comfortable the conditions for keeping them, the greater the weight of the carcass. Chicken cages should be equipped with everything you need: feeders, drinkers, bedding.

How does temperature and humidity affect the growth and productivity of poultry?

When breeding chickens of beef breeds, one of the main success factors is the correct temperature regime for broilers and maintaining the recommended humidity, which ensures the normal development of chicks and quick weight gain. Too low temperature, as well as too high, provokes diseases, delayed development and mortality of the bird. The minimum temperature at which broiler chicks can be kept is 20 ° C, the minimum humidity is 60%, therefore, in the cold season, heating must be organized in the chicken coop.

Important! Overcooling of a bird in 50% of cases ends in death, therefore, in the first days after hatching, the temperature should not be allowed to drop below 24 ° C.

With a critical drop in ambient temperature, broiler chicks will cuddle closer to each other, eat and drink less, and gain weight poorly. If the chicks are too hot, they will become lethargic, keep their beak open constantly, drink a lot of water and eat poorly. In such conditions, bacteria will actively develop in the chicken coop due to the rapid decomposition of food.

Chicken cutting procedure

After the giblets are removed, the question arises of how to cut the chicken quickly and competently. If you plan to cook a whole carcass, then on gutting its preparation for cooking ends.

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This is not economical, and therefore housewives most often divide the chicken into pieces for cooking several dishes from one carcass.

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No waste

This method is the most profitable. Cutting is carried out in the following sequence:

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  • Separation of legs - carried out by putting the carcass on the back and pulling the leg to the side. The junction of the leg with the body is notched. The leg is turned out of the joint and then finally separated from the body with a knife.
  • Separation of the wings - the shoulder joint is incised and then the wing is completely separated, pulling it slightly to the side.
  • Halves along the spine and in the middle of the breast.
  • Separation of the breast and back at the junction of the ribs.

If it is necessary to cut the carcass of a large chicken, each half of the breast is additionally cut into 2 parts.

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The meat processing plant chops the carcass automatically, which is why it is impossible to exclude the presence of bone fragments in the meat. With home cutting, this does not happen.

Chicken pieces are stored in the freezer. To get quality meat, it is important to know exactly how to cut a chicken carcass.

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Why is it important to control the temperature in the chicken coop?

Temperature control in a hen house is one of the main tasks of a breeder. As the birds grow older, the conditions of detention change, so it is important to equip the room where the birds are located with a thermometer and a hygrometer. It is advisable to check the readings in the morning and in the evening, since the heaters installed in the room may fail, which will inevitably lead to illness and death of broilers.

With a decrease in the ambient temperature, chickens of meat breeds can consume the usual amount of feed, but at the same time gain little weight, since all the energy obtained from food will be spent on "heating" the body. Thus, the breeder will receive a high feed consumption with low weight gain.

Heating the chicken coop

Major causes of death

When chickens are born and the hen does not take care of them, then with insufficient care, the death of the feathered livestock is possible.

This happens for the following reasons:

  1. With improper care of chicks.
  2. If the diet is wrong, then it is just as dangerous for them.
  3. The internal organs of the chicken are very delicate. At the slightest damage, they are in danger of life. One of the possible dangers is stomach blockage. For example, this will happen if a pebble is swallowed.
  4. Due to weak immunity, infectious diseases can be fatal. Usually at this age, treatment is ineffective. Only preventive measures are usually applied here.
  5. Pullorosis infection occurs at the stage of development when the egg matures. Then a sick chick is born. Almost everyone infected with this disease does not survive.
  6. Sometimes, with insufficient care, the chickens begin to peck at each other. First, the chicks pull out each other's feathers, then they hurt with bites, pinching off pieces of the body. After this, infection usually occurs and the chicks die.
  7. Foods in the diet may contain pesticides that are harmful to chickens. If an inexperienced farmer fed the birds with greens, on which pesticides remained, then this threatens them with death. Symptoms of poisoning include the following: body parts turn blue, wings drop, birds die from suffocation.
  8. If the diet lacks vitamins A and B, there is no calcium and phosphorus in the required amount, then the chickens develop toxic gastric dyspepsia. In the initial stage, the temperature rises, the chicks go sleepy and lower their wings. Death occurs as a result of muscle cramps.
  9. If chickens eat only soft food and do not receive solids in their food, this will lead to stomach atrophy. This is expressed in the following symptoms: the birds have a strong thirst, the chicks walk crumpled, lose weight. If you do not take any measures, then death comes.

Chickens have a very weak body. To help them survive, you need to take good care of them, providing them with everything they need.

Conditions for successful broiler rearing

The optimal conditions for keeping broiler chickens depend on the age of the bird. To create favorable conditions in the hen house, the breeder can use heaters, a special bedding, and cage insulation. In the industrial economy, chicken coops are equipped with ventilation and air conditioning systems that can automatically maintain a given operating mode.

Optimal temperature regime in the chicken coop

Newborn chicks require warmth, therefore, during the first 5 days of life, it is recommended to maintain a temperature of about 33–34 ° C near a heating device. In the most remote parts of the cage, the thermometer should not fall below 24 ° C. In the future, the temperature regime for broilers is maintained as follows:

  • on the 6-10th day of life, chickens are kept at least at 22 ° C, and near the heating device the temperature should reach 30 ° C so that the weakest birds can warm up;
  • in the period from 11 to 15 days chickens reduce the temperature of the heater to 29 ° C at a minimum temperature in the cage at 21 ° C;
  • by the 20th day of life, the temperature in the cage can be reduced to 25 ° C, and during the 21-30th day it should drop to 22 ° C.

Monthly broiler chicks no longer need a heater. It is enough to keep the temperature in the hen house at least 20 ° C. During the period of active weight gain of young animals from 31 to 63 days, it is allowed to lower the temperature to 15-19 ° С. If the birds feel uncomfortable (they will behave restlessly, huddle together), then the room needs to be additionally heated.

Lighting

Chickens of beef breeds need an increased light day, so artificial lighting is always used in the cages.

Coop lighting

In addition, bulbs provide additional heat to help maintain the required temperature regime. To illuminate the chicken coop with chicks, red or green lamps are used, which do not give too bright light. The first 2 weeks after hatching of the chicks, the lighting should work around the clock. After that, the daylight hours are shortened to the chicks to 16 hours. This mode helps to keep the boilers active: they move and eat a lot, which contributes to their normal development and strengthening of the immune system.

Humidity level

The optimum humidity in a broiler coop is 65–70%. Due to the included heating in winter, the humidity can drop to 40%, which is an acceptable minimum level.

Important! An increase in humidity must not be allowed, for which it is necessary to organize good ventilation in the room, provide the birds with dry bedding, and promptly remove the remnants of wet food.

Evisceration

The first thing to do with the chicken after it has been plucked is to gut it. The more offal remains in the carcass, the more likely it is that the meat will start to rot.

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Before slaughter, the chicken should not be fed for 12 hours so that its intestines are completely cleansed and it is as easy as possible to gut it.

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It is best to familiarize yourself with how to carve a chicken in stages. Step-by-step instructions help you avoid mistakes.

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Evisceration is carried out in the following sequence:

Features of bird walking

Regular walking poultry strengthens the immune system due to fresh air and "sunbathing". Already on the 6th day of life, the chicks are released outside for 2 hours. After that, every day the walking time may increase by 20 minutes. In the cold season, it is enough for chicks to be outdoors for 1 hour to avoid hypothermia.

Basic recommendations for organizing walking:

  • the place where chickens are walking must be regularly cleaned from debris;
  • for the safety of young animals, it is advisable to organize a special aviary, which will not be accessible to other animals;
  • in the summer, the grown chicks can be on the walk all day;
  • during the first walks in the aviary, heating pads are installed so that the chickens do not get overcooled and gradually adapt.

Ideally, the walking chicken enclosure is mobile. It can be placed in different parts of the garden, where there are areas overgrown with grass. So chickens will be able to get their own food and strengthen their immunity.

Walking chicken enclosure

Favorable temperature conditions during walking

The first walking of broilers is organized at an air temperature of at least 20 ° C. After reaching 20 days of age, chicks can be walked at a temperature of 15 ° C and above. Monthly broilers can be outdoors for a short time and in colder weather.

Important! In the first 2 weeks of chickens' life, walking should be abandoned in frosts, during precipitation and in strong winds. Fledgling birds are not allowed to walk.

Before walking, you must carefully examine the chicks. Weakened and inactive individuals are recommended to be deposited in a separate box, in which additional heating is organized (with containers with warm water or heating pads). After that, the box can be taken out into the street, reducing the walking time by 20-30%.

Protecting chicks from overheating outside

In order to avoid overheating of chicks, they must be protected from direct sunlight. To do this, a canopy is installed over the aviary, which can also protect the birds from rain and snow. In hot weather, chicks should have access to clean water, which should be changed several times a day to avoid the growth of harmful bacteria.

How to make a do-it-yourself brooder?

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Making a brooder doesn't take long. This is a fairly simple construction.

  1. The frame is not an obligatory item, but it is desirable to make it easier to fasten the parts together. To make the frame, a wooden block (not thick) is taken and a base is made from it. 4 pieces need to be made 50 cm each and 4 pieces 100 cm each. They are fastened together so that a parallelepiped-shaped frame is obtained.
  2. A sheet of plywood 1.5x1.5 meters and 1 cm thick is taken.A piece 50x150 cm in size is sawn off from it.
  3. Now the piece that remains (100x150 cm) needs to be divided into 3 identical parts (100x50 cm). This is the future pallet (or floor), back side and top of the brooder. They can already be safely attached to the frame (in place).
  4. From the piece that was made at the beginning (50x150 cm), two pieces of 50x50 cm are sawed off. These two pieces are the side walls, which are also attached to the frame.
  5. In the foreground (the entrance to the brooder), you need to make a frame of thin wooden beams - slats. It is needed to hang the doors on it and close them from the outside. The frame is made of 2 long (100 cm) and 3 short (50 cm) bars. Long beams are attached to the ceiling and floor, 2 are short on the sides and one is placed across the long ones in the middle. Thus, there are 2 windows (entrances) to the brooder. A latch is attached to a short crossbar in the middle so that the doors can only be opened from the outside.
  6. Doors are made from crossbars and mesh. A base or a frame is made of the crossbeam according to the size of one of the entrance (window). Each door should be approximately 45x31 cm. A mesh is inserted into the door frame on one side, and glass or plastic with holes on the other (so that you can see what is happening in the brooder). When the two doors are ready, you can hinge them to the frame and check how they open and close.
  7. A hole is made on the side or top for a light bulb. Wires and equipment for heating, humidity measurements are carried inside. But they need to be positioned so that the chickens do not reach them. Usually devices are placed outside, and only sensors and a lamp (light) inside.
  8. Now it remains to place the drinker and the feeder inside.

The brooder is checked for safety before use. All electrical appliances should work well.

Recommendations for warming the premises for the winter

When growing broilers in the cold season, the place where the poultry is kept should be insulated. For this, the walls of the cages are sheathed with wooden slats, and a dry warm bedding is placed on the floor. As the latter, it is recommended to use:

  • sunflower husk;
  • shavings or sawdust;
  • hay and straw;
  • dry moss;
  • sphagnum;
  • dry foliage.

Sunflower husk

In some farms, the floor of the cages is covered with shredded corn stalks. The thickness of the litter in winter increases to 12 centimeters, and in summer it can be 7 centimeters. As the litter becomes dirty, it is replaced and fresh is added.

Useful Tips

Plucking chicken is not the only important point in preparing delicious meals.You need to know how to properly kill a chicken and gut it.

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While you are plucking the chicken, you should open the windows if this happens indoors, or turn on the hood, as you may not like the smell at all. Do not put water in a bucket in order to dip the chicken to the very top, otherwise the boiling water will fall on your feet.

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It is necessary to properly kill the chicken and gut it.

Prepare a deep cup first so that after you dip the chicken in the water, you have a place to put it. If your plans do not include further use of bird fluff, then put all the feathers in a trash bag. The best option for plucking chickens is the street.

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Inexperienced housewives, for the convenience of working after hot water, dip the chicken into cold water; this cannot be done, since the plucking process will be accompanied by difficulties in pulling out feathers. But a completely cleaned carcass can be washed in running water.

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Methods for heating a chicken coop in the cold season

In the cold season, the chicken coop must be additionally heated. The heating method depends on the size of the cage. For example, if you are raising 10 chicks in one box, an infrared lamp is fine. For heating large rooms, you can use stove or steam heating, fan heaters and oil heaters. Electric heating pads should not be used to heat the cages, as birds quickly break the integrity of the insulation and die from electric shock. Heating can be organized with the help of infrared heaters, which are fixed to the ceiling of the chicken coop, laying a wire out of the reach of birds.

Growing modern broiler breeds is easy. On the part of the breeder, it is only required to organize good conditions of keeping, in which the birds will be dry and warm. If the temperature is right for the broilers, with quality feed, the weight gain of the broilers will be very fast and all the efforts will quickly pay off with the high performance of the farm.

What needs to be prepared from the inventory for work

For the convenience of plucking and cutting chickens, prepare in advance:

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  • enamelled bucket for hot water,
  • a sharp knife of short length, designed for eviscerating the carcass,
  • a nozzle for a gas cartridge with flame control,
  • a can of liquefied gas for the existing temperature conditions of operation,
  • tweezers, pliers or forceps to remove the "hemp" left after pulling out the feather,
  • package for feathers and unused parts of the carcass,
  • oilcloth and thin latex gloves.

Lighting

A well-lit house is a prerequisite for growing broiler breeds. With a lack of light, they are passive, do not fit the feeders, begin to lose weight and wither. Small crumbs need lighting for 24 hours. Adults have enough natural light. But if the chicken coop does not have windows, turn on the lighting lamp, simulating the day. The lighting device is suspended at such a height that it completely covers the entire surface of the area. To maintain the productive growth of the beef population, lighting rules must not be neglected.

Using red heating lamps

Red heating lamps are effective if they are safe to use.

It is important to do the following:

  1. The lamp must have reliable protection against moisture penetration.
  2. It is important during operation that this device is not subject to shock.
  3. Birds should not be able to exert any physical influence on the heater.
  4. The risk of fire must be excluded.

Such devices must have a reliable and robust design that meets the specified requirements.

The red lamp installed in the house should be covered with a metal mesh protective cover.

It is hung and fixed on the wall.

Several variants of such a device can be seen on sale.

Available in red or clear. The second option is more versatile due to the fact that it provides not only heating, but also the supply of light. The red lamp has not only high power, but also a long service life (usually it reaches 5 thousand hours). Such characteristics allow you to be sure that the lamp will conduct, heating properly and will not fail at the wrong time.

You can use a ruby ​​dome lamp to maintain the desired temperature. They heat up almost instantly. Since this device has high reflective characteristics, it is able to save one third of the incoming electrical energy.

When installing, you need to carefully choose the attachment location. The fact is that the thermal and light conditions created for the chickens will significantly depend on the height..

It is customary to adhere to the following rules in this case:

  1. From the moment the chicks are born until they are one week old, the recommended setting height is 50 centimeters.
  2. For the next two weeks, it is recommended to use a height of 75 centimeters.
  3. The rest of the time, a lamp attached at a meter height will provide the chicks with sufficient heat.

When lifting, the heating force will decrease, and the area on which the impact is carried out will become larger.

When using these lamps, chickens receive light that is close to the sun in its characteristics, including the presence of infrared radiation. It stimulates chicks to grow and be active.

Preparation of materials and tools

Since a brooder can be made from many materials at hand, there is no exact list of them. For manufacturing, you will need multilayer sheets of cardboard, wooden beams. Plastic containers, barrels, bedside tables, wooden boxes and so on can come in handy.

From the tools you should prepare:

  • roulette;
  • pencil;
  • nippers;
  • pliers;
  • screwdriver;
  • a hammer;
  • jigsaw or hand saw.

Before starting the assembly, you need to decide on the dimensions for which the drawing is made. After that, according to the drawing, the necessary materials are selected.

Temperature regime

Both chicks and adults need an optimal temperature regime. The temperature for broilers in the hen house changes with age. This is due to their growth. Temperature readings decrease as the birds mature.

Temperature regulation table.

Age, daysAir temperature around the heaterIndoor air temperature
1 to 533–3424–26
6 to 1030–3222–23
13 to 2025–2921–22
21 to 3022–2320–21
31 to 6311–19

Such indicators of temperature in the hen house provide a rapid increase in the weight of broilers and preserve their health. For information on weight gain, see broiler weight by day: table.

There is a certain mode of maintaining optimal performance:

  1. Chickens up to 5 days old are advised to maintain the temperature at 33 degrees near the heating equipment. In the hen house, the indicators do not fall below 24 degrees.
  2. By 6-10 days, the temperature near the heater is set at 30, and in the chicken coop itself - 22 degrees.
  3. On the 13th day, the heater is set at a temperature of at least 29 degrees. At the same time, the indicator of 21 degrees is maintained in the hen house.

The temperature in the hen house is also changed in the process of growing up individuals:

  1. Until broilers reach 20 days of age, set the temperature to 25 degrees directly at the heating equipment and 22 degrees in the chicken coop.
  2. From 21 to 30 days, the indicator on the thermometer is maintained within 22 degrees.Make sure that it does not drop below 20 degrees.
  3. From 31 to 63 days, a heater is no longer installed in the chicken coop. The room temperature is kept at 11-19 degrees.

To raise chickens with a stock of meat, they must not freeze. To do this, a thermometer is installed in the chicken coop. Broilers are uncomfortable when uncomfortable. They move less and constantly clump together.

Such consequences affect the health of birds. Weak broilers get sick more and the chick may die. Since during cold weather birds spend a lot of energy on heating their own body, their growth slows down.

Is it possible to eat chicken meat for diseases?

The most common disease in chickens and broilers is coccidiosis. At the same time, the skin of the bird becomes cyanotic and loses any presentation. Such a carcass is no longer suitable for sale.

The answer to the question whether it is possible to eat meat with coccidiosis in broilers will be negative. Such a disease is not dangerous to humans. However, meat loses its useful qualities, and it is not recommended to eat it.

Another common disease of birds is dropsy. Often the death of the bird is the result of this disease. At the same time, the answer to the question, dropsy in broilers - can it be eaten, is quite simple. You can eat such meat. The main condition for its use is good heat treatment. If it is observed, the meat will not pose a danger to humans.

Read also: Breed of chickens Ukrainian ushanka: photo and description

Output

In order to raise full-fledged chickens, experts recommend following the instructions for caring for offspring. Healthy food, equipped housing are mandatory conditions of detention. But no less important point is the correct heating. Observe the behavior of the charges more often. Their well-being is negatively affected by both excessive heat and cold. Monitor the air temperature in the house, distribute it according to the age of the chicks. This is the only way you can achieve 100% survival of an individual, grow a wonderful meat breed. Please yourself and your customers.

For information on what temperature should be for keeping broilers, see the next video.

When growing broilers, it is required to strictly adhere to the recommended feeding rates, housing conditions and walking time, since all these factors directly affect the weight gain of the bird. For 2 months, she should gain about 1.5 kg of mass, while the broiler meat remains juicy and soft. Broiler growing technology is aimed primarily at economic efficiency, so compliance with it guarantees high profitability of household and commercial farming.

Using red lamps to heat chicks


Infrared sources used in poultry houses must be of a safe, reliable design, protected from moisture penetration, possible shock, shock and curiosity of growing birds. We must not forget about the risk of fire, which will inevitably lead to dire consequences.

The infrared chick lamp is covered with a protective grille and suspended at a safe height. Today, poultry farmers are offered several options for such equipment.

The mirrored red chick heating lamp can be produced with a transparent or red bulb. In the first case, the source gives not only heat, but also a luminous flux, in the second - almost all the energy consumed is used to generate heat. Such lamps have a sufficiently high power and a service life of up to 5 thousand hours. This allows you to reliably and uninterruptedly heat small chicks, without fear that the lamp will fail at the most inopportune moment.

Ruby-domed lamps heat up instantly and, thanks to their reflectivity, save up to a third of your incoming electricity.The light from such lamps for chickens is not an irritating factor; under it they grow beautifully from the first days until the moment they are transferred to an adult bird.


When installing lamps for heating chickens, you should pay attention to the fact that the parameters of the heat flux directly depend on the height of the mounting of the radiation source:

  1. From birth to one week of age, the lamp is fixed above the chickens at a height of 50 cm.
  2. In the second and third weeks, it is transferred higher, approximately 75 cm from the litter.
  3. Then the radiation sources are installed at a meter height.

As a result of this transfer, the temperature of the chicks is lowered, and the area of ​​\ u200b \ u200blighting and heating increases significantly.

The use of red lamps to heat the chicks stimulates rapid growth of the birds. Chicks eat more actively, gain weight better, they have good immunity and stable positive dynamics.

This effect is not accidental, since infrared radiation is as close as possible to what a bird would receive from the sun and free-range. In addition to the already proven red lamps, there are also combined devices that give an ultraviolet spectrum, which allows them to be used for disinfection.

Keeping chickens in a brooder - video

Small chicks are very vulnerable and require special care. If the laying hen takes care of the chicks hatched from the eggs hatched by the hen, the responsibility for keeping the hatching chicks falls on the shoulders of the poultry owners. At the same time, caring for broilers is no different from caring for chicks of egg-bearing breeds.

Major causes of death

In the first days and weeks of their life, chicks die very easily - they catch colds from any draft and pick up various diseases. Therefore, in the absence of proper care for day old chicks, their mortality rate approaches one hundred percent.

Note! Newborn chickens are vaccinated in the first days of their life. Before getting vaccinated, you should consult with your veterinarian to find the right drugs.

The reasons for the high mortality of chickens:

  • infectious and parasitic diseases (in particular, coccidiosis);
  • larger animals (both predators and, for example, domestic cats);
  • colds caused by temperature changes;
  • digestive problems and subsequent diseases.

In the first month of life, hens and males are given special attention to them - this is necessary to avoid possible health problems.

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