Growing and feeding broilers at home

Broilers: care and feeding

The success of a home garden depends on various factors. It is necessary to create a favorable atmosphere in which broiler chickens will live and grow. Care and feeding of birds should be carried out according to a certain scheme. Together with food, they must receive vitamins and minerals. Factory-made mixtures are considered most suitable. However, if it is not possible to purchase them, it is possible to organize feeding of broilers at home based on local products. At the same time, it is important to take into account the differences in the adaptability of breeds to certain products. So, for example, feeding broilers for meat, egg and meat directions should be based on bulky, mainly protein mixtures. When keeping birds in a backyard, it is better to give them mill, grain, fish waste, scrap meat, fresh herbs, root crops.

Influence of changes in temperature and humidity on the growth and productivity of birds

The need to use insulated flooring depends on the change in ambient temperature during the life of a bird from its first days of existence until the moment when it is hacked to death. Keeping temperatures within normal limits can be challenging, especially during winter. From the beginning of frost until spring, poultry farmers equip chicken coops with electric heaters, but for safety reasons, they are not recommended to be installed on the floor.The most suitable height is 1 m from the floor covering.

The temperature regime for domestic chickens of different ages has its own characteristics. For convenience, each farmer can use reference materials. The temperature-humidity table helps poultry farmers to maintain the productivity of birds, and therefore their health.

Thus, the minimum air temperature safe for the health of birds is 20 ° C. Humidity of 60% is no less important. At such a low temperature for keeping chickens, some individuals may freeze or overheat. Even from the first days of its existence, it is not difficult to notice discomfort. If the chickens rub against each other in small clusters, they are cold. If the chicks are thirsty and keep their beaks open, they feel hot.

The temperature regime also affects the egg production of chickens. At low temperatures, they rush weakly, but as soon as the climate becomes comfortable, the process is restored. Incubation will not be superfluous. The proper temperature level will save future chicks from death. Also, high temperatures negatively affect the brood hen. The productivity of birds can decrease by 30-40%, but also recover when the temperature regime is adjusted.

Broilers: growing at home

Feeding is key to the correct development of the young from the first days of life. The sooner the birds begin to receive food, the better their growth will be. Feeding broilers at home is done in two ways:

1. Dry mix combined with protein and mineral. The first includes coarsely ground grain (oats, wheat, barley, corn). Protein mixtures contain meat and bone meal and fish meal. Mineral compositions include table salt, shell, chalk.
2. Flour dry mixture combined with wet mash.

Most poultry hobbyists use the second option.

Important features

Many novice owners are wondering: how much food should broilers receive? Growing at home - feeding and creating favorable conditions for birds - has its own specifics. You should be aware that young animals should receive as much food as they can eat. Regardless of how broilers are fed, they should always have food. Wet mash should be given 3-4 r / day. During the first 2-3 days, the chicken diet includes finely crushed wheat, corn or barley (without films). It is also advisable to add wheat bran well mashed with hard-boiled peeled eggs or cottage cheese. For 50 heads, 2 eggs each. The more varied the food mixture is, the better the development of the young. Thus, there is no specific feed rate for broilers in the first few weeks.

How to choose chicks?

Breeds

Broilers are the result of purposeful selection work to breed a hybrid to quickly obtain high-quality dietary meat products.

The most popular among Russian poultry farmers are broilers of the KOBB-500, ROSS-38, 708, Gibro-6, Broilers-61, M. Krossy Smena and Hubbard F 15 crosses.

Manufacturers

It is safer to buy broiler chickens from private farms and specialized hatcheries that have proven themselves on the market.

As a rule, chicks purchased from such producers are viable, active and already vaccinated against major diseases.

The price for broilers offered by large poultry farms is lower, but there is a vicious practice of factories selling culled weak chicks.

The cost of chickens varies depending on age, breed, region, season from 35 to 95 rubles per head.

Age

Cheaper day-old chicks are preferred by experienced poultry farmers who know the intricacies of keeping and have equipped areas for growing.

It is recommended for beginners to purchase young animals at the age of 5-10 days, since it is easier to care for them.

Viability

Healthy, viable broiler chicks are selected for the following criteria:

• Chickens are active, mobile, respond to sounds, with good appetite;
• Clear eyes with shine;
• Soft tummies;
• The wings are tightly pressed to the body;
• Feathers on the wings of cockerels of the same length;
• Absence of a sea otter plumage;
• Smooth pubescence, without "patches".

Important! In crosses ROSS 308, KOBB 500, the tummies are slightly enlarged, rounded. The beak and legs may have a bluish tint.

Rooster or hen

For meat broilers, this does not really matter, but if you want to choose, then you can find out the gender at chick age by the wings. Spread out your wing.

A rooster will have feathers of the same size, while a hen will have different lengths. Regardless of gender, it is necessary to choose chickens that are mobile, active, with shiny, unclouded eyes.

If the chick is weak, sits all the time, and his eyes are cloudy, he is sick and will not live long. A healthy chicken has a soft tummy, not swollen, tucked up.

The down is uniform, the wings in a calm state are not spread out, but tightly pressed to the body. Healthy chicks respond well to sound. If you knock on the box or box in which they are housed, they will rush to the source of the noise.

Diet

How broiler chickens are raised and fed will determine their meat mass. During the first week, it is important that the young are fed at least every two hours. If a dry mix is ​​used, then it can be given after 3-4 hours. To shorten the night gap, broilers should be fed in the morning as early as possible. Moreover, in the evening they should receive food as late as possible. From the fifth day, fish oil should be given to young animals once a day, including it in the flour mixture at a rate of 0.1-0.2 g / head / day. The transition from one feed to another must be done gradually. A sharp change in products has an extremely negative effect on growth and development. Along with this, it is necessary to observe the technology for preparing mixtures and the daily regimen. For example, cereals are introduced into the diet without films in a finely crushed form. Starting from the 20-25th day, it is allowed to replace some of these products with boiled potatoes, which the birds eat in mash.

Why broilers are bred

Hybrid breeds of meat chickens that differ from others in their high growth rates, vigorous development and rapid accumulation of meat are called broilers. The main benefit of keeping them, in addition to rapid growth and weight gain, is the low cost of feed per kilogram of growth, in comparison with the young stock of other poultry.

The name "broiler" is a tracing paper from the English "broil", which means - to cook over a fire by frying. Immediately there are associations with tender juicy chicken fried on a spit. Broilers are called all young roosters and chickens, which are raised specifically for slaughter for meat.

Broiler breeding contains two fundamentally important points:

1. meat ripeness;
2. egg production rate.

With meat, everything is clear - it is taken from young animals. High egg production is necessary for the reproduction of broiler breeds. Those chickens that will reproduce offspring are raised to adulthood. They are not suitable for slaughter for meat, but must be well laid so that new meat broilers can hatch from the eggs.

Raising broiler chickens in cages

Who are crosses and what are they for?

Cross is a line of chickens bred specifically for certain inherent properties.Until the active selection of domestic chickens, carried out by specialists, began, no one conducted a special selection of chickens in terms of productivity or an increase in meat mass. Today, pure breeds of chickens are bred only in private farms. In large factories, cross-hybrids with the highest productivity are grown.

Crosses are a multi-breed cross, adapted specifically for growing in artificial conditions and a controlled environment. Therefore, they are grown in poultry farms and large farms, in poultry houses, under certain preset conditions.

Poultry farms mainly breed crosses

To obtain good meat broilers in the household, meat breeds of crosses are suitable.

General characteristics of broilers

• Body size is larger than that of regular chickens
• The weight is high - up to 4.5 kg in an adult chicken and up to 5.5 kg in an adult rooster.
• The body is tightly knit, compact, horizontal.
• Egg production is low, but the incubation instinct is well developed.
• Temperament is calm.
• Short wings and legs.
• Rapid build-up of muscle and meat mass.

How to prevent diseases?

Many are of the opinion that it is impossible to grow large poultry using only natural mixtures and vitamin supplements. Therefore, active growth and high weight are often provided with hormonal drugs, and treatment is carried out using antibiotics. However, in fact, it is quite possible to do with natural mixtures, as well as rich in vitamin supplements and trace elements. You can, of course, use expensive compound feed. It is manufactured at the factory, taking into account all the necessary sanitary standards. However, as the poultry farmers themselves note, such a waste of money is usually unjustified. It is more economical to use ordinary grain by adding mineral and vitamin preparations to it. Feeding broilers at home in this way will be as effective as using expensive formula. In any case, a balanced diet will be the main condition.

Keeping in specialized cages

In this version, 20 individuals can grow on the area of ​​one standard cell. When using such modules, you can significantly save free space on the farm by installing structures on top of each other, in several tiers.

As in the previous case of the service area, proper ventilation and temperature conditions are required. In this case, the degree of the thermometer should be equal to 35 ° C, since the birds are deprived of the opportunity to move and choose a place convenient for themselves.

The cage does not need to be littered. Instead, the structure must be systematically cleaned and disinfected.

Attention! Sanitary and Epidemiological stations welcome the keeping of chickens in the cage as the safest option for the health of the consumer.

Types of mixtures

There are two types of food:

1. Starting. It is used as a primary feed for chickens. It includes a large amount of protein components. They participate in the development of young animals, ensure their active growth and mass. Feeding broilers with this mixture is carried out until they reach 1-1.5 months.
2. Finishing. This feed can be fed to birds from the sixth week. The final mix has a much lower protein content than the starting mix. It is included in the diet before poultry slaughter.

   

Feeding broilers at a young age is not difficult. The most important thing, as mentioned above, is the constant availability of food. During the first days of life, birds require a large amount of chopped carbohydrate and protein products.Such food should make up more than 50% of the diet. When chicks reach 20 days of age, dairy products can be added. They are the most important source of calcium. In addition, vegetable protein is added to the diet. It is present in large quantities in sunflower and peanut cake.

Temperature regime when keeping broiler chickens

Immediately after birth, chickens lack a thermoregulatory mechanism due to imperfect functioning of all organs. The muscle mass is still too weak to provide the body with sufficient heat during movement. Therefore, the optimal temperature regime for keeping broilers is vital for them.

To maintain the desired temperature in the chicken coop room, household floor heaters or infrared lamps are used. Pets should not be allowed to move a great distance from the heat source. The best conditions for broiler chicks are in the brooder, which is a box with a controlled climate and lighting. Temperature range for broilers:

• from 1 to 5 days of life - 32-35 ° С;
• from 6 to 10 - 30-32 ° C;
• from 11 to 20 - 26-28 ° C;
• after the 21st day - 20-24 ° С.

Important! In addition to the temperature for broilers in the chicken coop, a constant relative humidity of 60-70% should be maintained, the house should be actively ventilated and the youngsters should be provided with a sufficient degree of illumination of the space.

Diet from 30 days of age

Feeding broilers per month will be slightly different from the previous one. However, in any case, the food must be exclusively natural. The bird's stomach is not yet strong enough, so it is preferable to include fresh herbs and sprouted crops in the diet. During cold weather, it is important to give herbal flour. In addition, from the age of one month, it is recommended to add dry vitamin mixtures to food. The growth of the bird is quite active, therefore, during this period it is necessary to ensure a constant supply of trace elements. In the summer, it is quite simple to solve this problem. But in the winter, feeding broilers can be difficult. In the cold period, dried herbs, mixtures with a complex of minerals and natural trace elements from shells and shells should be added to the diet. For better absorption of mineral supplements, the birds are given vitamin D. The daily allowance will depend on the stage of development of the chicken and the number of heads. For young animals, on average, 1 kg is consumed per day. For an adult chicken, the amount of feed increases to 5-6 kg / day.

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.

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.

Arrangement of a chicken coop

Adult broilers are much larger than normal breeds, so they must be raised in a specially prepared room. It should be warm. Chicks develop normally at a temperature of about 30 degrees. To maintain this level, you will have to equip the room with an artificial heating system. Lighting is also important. It should be around the clock. Broiler chickens need attention and special care. To make it easier to look after the young, it is advisable to install partitions in the room.This will greatly facilitate control and prevent the chicks from scattering in different directions. In the first week of life, temperature and nutrition will be of particular importance in development and growth, as well as in the prevention of diseases.

Why you should control the temperature in the chicken coop

Newborn chicks need warmth from the very first days of their lives. Their weak immunity perceives any external influence as a threat. Lack of heat often leads to illness and even death of the livestock. Birds do not lose their attachment to warmth at a more mature age. In addition, the modern development of farming has undergone a number of revolutionary changes. The advent of incubators and brooders helped replace the incubation of eggs. There is also no need to raise newborn broilers next to the mother. It is better to keep laying hens separately from the brood.

The main goal in broiler farming is to get tasty meat or eggs. The task of the farmer is to contribute to this as efficiently as possible, therefore, even before the birth of the chickens, eggs are incubated, and from the first days of their life - aging in a brooder. It is the climatic conditions that affect how the broiler will develop and what its state of health will be, so you need to know how to create the correct temperature regime for the chickens.

Summer period

Broilers enjoy grazing. In addition to being environmentally friendly, it contributes to the saturation of the bird's body with a large number of essential nutrient compounds. In this regard, feeding broilers in the summer is greatly simplified. Birds need to be given freedom, to release them onto the grass. It is advisable to include fruit and vegetable waste in the diet. In addition, it is imperative to give calcium to chickens. Chalk acts as one of its sources. It is often used as a filler for an aviary. Egg shell powder is also rich in calcium. Sand additives are often used in feeding. The fact is that chickens do not have chewing muscles and teeth, so the food comes in whole pieces. It is only slightly crushed directly in the stomach due to its contractions. If sand is present at this time, then it will contribute to a more active grinding of the incoming products. Which, in turn, will facilitate subsequent digestion. However, for young stock, it is better to replace sand with fine gravel. It should not be added directly to food. The birds themselves will find it in a separate container.

DIY broiler cage

Nowadays, it is quite problematic to find a master who can make high-quality cages for broilers. And the prices for the services of these masters are quite high. Making cells is not that hard. The main thing is to clearly lean on the drawings.

Materials for the cages: Mesh, bars, screws, etc.

Video Lesson: DIY broiler cage

Broiler cage drawings

Storage of mixtures

Broiler feed is made from high-quality grains with the addition of a mineral and vitamin complex. But if stored improperly, significant damage can be caused to the health of birds. Often rodents and other wild animals like to feast on mixtures for chickens. In addition to the fact that they can destroy large quantities of food, they can introduce parasites and viruses into it. This will undoubtedly have a negative impact on the health of the livestock. To avoid such problems, feed mixtures should be stored in a tight, sealed container. In addition, it is necessary to monitor the humidity level in the room where the mixtures are located. The appearance of dampness and mold will also negatively affect the quality of the feed and, accordingly, the health of the birds. Particular attention must also be paid to the shelf life of the mixtures. The feed must always be fresh. When buying, you should take into account its consumption by the number of heads and diet.