Poultry Farming Basics

Poultry Brooding Guidelines for 1st 7 Days: ================================ 1. Early placement of chicks in the house, access to fresh clean water and feed after arrival is important . The time of transport from the hatchery to the farm should be as quick as possible. There is no need for further delay once you have collected your birds from the hatchery/sales point. On placement, provide an hour of clean water mixed with glucose or Vitastress, and wait to give feed until the one hour period of water is done. This helps to avoid constipation issues in chicks! Once again, make sure good feed and fresh clean drinking water is readily available and easily accessible to reduce time for searching for feed and water by the newly arrived chicks. Please note that putting water/drinkers near pots or any other heat source is not good, when water is hot birds do not drink it. Four hours after placement, randomly pick some of the chicks and check the crop fill .The target crop fill should be 85%. After 12hrs , it should be above 95%, and after 24hrs, the target crop fill should be above 98 to 100%. 2. Use of digestible raw materials in making feed for the chicks is necessary as their digestive system is not mature or always use chicks feed from reputable commercial feed manufacturer Don't try to produce your own feed if you are not an expertise in that field, instead purchase good an approved feed supplier within your locality to avoid stories that touch. 3. Place highly hygienic materials that have been adequately sanitized and disinfected in the brooding house. You should know that the chicks' immune response is not fully developed any health compromise might be more devastating for young chicks compared to older ones. Biosecurity measures like foot baths, disinfection of premises and disinfection of equipment should be done using a struat and trusted disinfectant. A designated Uniform/clothings for the purpose of caring for your birds should be worn by the person/stockman caring for the birds. 4 . Provide breed specific diet of high quality as this will enable the chicks to consume the amount needed for adequate growth. 5 . Avoid overcrowding as this leads to competition for feed and water And causes pecking in chicks. Moreover, this will lead ultimately to a high number of lighter birds that will end up being at a disadvantaged when it is time for scrambling for feed in the midst of other heavier birds in the flock. Over crowding leads to poor growth and low production percentage when birds grow! 6. Ventilation: Much as we advise that you keep the brooder sealed off from draught, we do not mean that you deny the birds air exchange. Now, do not just seal off everywhere! Leave enough breathing space in the brooder! Note: Try to achieve good uniformity. i.e birds falling within similar average body weight. In layers, lighter and heavier birds are difficult to design feed programme for.

Chicks require specific environmental conditions and careful management during the crucial 7- to 10-day brooding period to ensure appetite, behavior, and future performance. Key factors include maintaining a litter temperature of 28-30°C (82-86°F), providing easy access to fresh feed and water, ensuring correct air speed and humidity, offering adequate light, and preheating the entire house before chick placement. Monitoring crop fill and bird behavior is essential to confirm chicks are comfortable and have access to what they need. Environmental Conditions Temperature: Litter temperature should be 28-30°C (82-86°F). Humidity: Relative humidity should be 60-70%. Air Speed: Air speed should be a maximum of 0.15 m/sec (30 ft/min). Preheating: Houses must be preheated and all equipment checked before the chicks arrive. Chicks Access & Feed Access: Chicks need easy and immediate access to water and feed. Feeders: Use appropriate feeder trays and ensure feeding areas occupy at least 90% of the brooding area. Feed: Provide fresh, dust-free crumble or mini-pellet feed frequently in small amounts. Water: Water temperature should be between 18-21°C (64-70°F). Monitoring and Behavior Crop Fill: Monitor crop fill in the first 48 hours to confirm chicks are eating and drinking. Bird Behavior: Constantly observe bird behavior to ensure they are comfortable and not experiencing temperature extremes. Light Intensity: For broilers, aim for 30-40 lux (2.8-3.7 fc) in the brooding area. House Preparation Insulation: Consider improving house insulation, especially the roof. Drafts: Ensure the brooding area is draft-free. Ventilation: Ensure proper ventilation rates are correct.

Mastering Crop Fill Evaluation 1. Ensure Optimal Early Intake: - Management priority post-placement: Maximize water and feed intake in chicks. - Vital for flock performance: Poor intake leads to growth, conversion, and uniformity issues. 2. Yolk Nutrient Importance: - Yolk composition: 2/3 fat, 1/3 protein—for energy and growth respectively. - Consequence of delayed feed intake: Depletion of yolk nutrients, hindering growth. 3. Chicks's Crop Monitoring and Evaluation: - Sample 100 chicks per area. - 8 hours post-placement: Aim for 85% with both feed and water. - 24 hours post-placement: Target 95% with filled crops. 4. Troubleshooting Guidelines: - Hard crops (>15%): Immediate water assessment—availability, temperature, flow rate and etc., to determine why chicks may not be accessing water in the brood area. - Soft crops (>15%): Immediate feed evaluation—immediately evaluate feed availability, feed location, feed presentation (uniformity and smell), and verify that the correct feed was delivered to the farm. Check ambient and floor temperatures. Low temperatures will result in poor activity and limited access to feed and water. #PoultryIndustry #Broiler #FarmOptimization

The Golden 10 advice to ensure the best poultry management application in farms : 1- Temperature , Relative Humidity , and Ventilation provide the necessary factors for the bird's comfort during the rearing and production periods as by controlling and providing clean air free of dust and harmful gases to help carry out the vital processes necessary for healthy growth and optimum breeds genetic performance in broiler , Layer , Breeders and Grand Parents. 2- Some problems may appear as the problem of high Ammonia at early days or CO2 gas appears clearly in cold weather with limited ventilation. 3- Bad ventilation lead to less O2 Inc NH3 & CO2 levels causing asities, due to the stress of the heart muscle due to its accelerated work to absorb oxygen from the blood and pump it into the air sacs at rapid rates to confront the deficiency, and this stress leads to the enlargement of the arteries and the enlargement of the heart muscle, which leads to the explosion of blood capillaries and the exit of plasma to the periphery of the abdominal cavity in the form of the yellow straw fluid. 4- We should not neglect ventilation at the expense of providing heat or neglect heat at the expense of ventilation. 5 - When the temp is low the bird will increase the feed consumed to use the energy released from the digestion process to warm its body, and compensate for the lack of heat, not growth, and thus the body weight dec. and Egg production drops. 6- In broiler the chicks will tend to produce feathers at the expense of weight to warm its body ( The early growth of feathers is a sign of the bird's coldness especially in the first 14 days of the bird's life affects growth rate and production ). 7- Temperature required for birds changes according to the growth stages as it ranges from 34 -24°C and humidity of 50-70% from DOC to cycle end, If the RH is outside this range less or more the temperature is adjusted according to the humidity ( Chicks 32 to 39 gm needs 2 °C more ) 8- Ventilation is what can control the relationship between temp. and humidity, as it is what can get rid of excess humidity, At early ages we need ventilation to get rid of the moisture of the bedding and get rid of ammonia and harmful gases resulting from burning processes during the operation of the heater, as well as getting rid of the percentage of Co2 resulting from the breathing of birds. 9- Ammonia in particular represents a big problem if its percentage increases, as the moisture of the bedding increases the percentage of ammonia in the atmosphere of the house which in turn increases health problems in terms of destroying the bird's respiratory system cilia, lungs, air sacs, eye infections leading to viral (IBV -AI ) and bacterial infections ( E.coli – MG ) with severe respiratory signs appears. 10- Ventilation is not only required in hot weather but also in cold weather , that is heating doesn't come by reducing air flow from its natural inlets (Minimum Ventilation).

🚨 Most poultry farmers focus on feed and weight. But are you ignoring the one thing that controls both? 👉 Gut health is the silent engine behind growth, immunity, feed conversion, and even flock survival. I work with thousands of birds every week—and I’ve seen it firsthand: when gut health is weak, nothing else works. It starts with poor early weight, continues with leg issues, pasty vents, poor absorption, and ends in economic loss. 📌 Here’s what many still miss: The chick's gut develops 4x faster than any other organ during brooding. Villi growth in the first 7 days defines the bird’s efficiency for life. Even a small problem like biofilm in the water lines can destroy gut balance. Feed passage and wet droppings are not normal—your birds are trying to tell you something. 💡 My top tips: ✔ Use probiotics or organic acids early, especially during brooding or after antibiotics ✔ Keep water lines clean and acidified—biofilm forms fast ✔ Feed quality matters—but form and timing matter even more ✔ Don’t ignore poop—droppings tell you everything ✔ If you don’t see clear gut structure within 20 minutes post-mortem, you’re already too late I read the full Gut Health on the Farm guide from Aviagen, and honestly—it’s one of the best practical tools I’ve seen. If you care about performance and want to stop guessing, read it. I work with broilers, but I’m happy to share this guide with anyone. 📩 Message me or comment below, I’ll send it to you. 🧠 Let’s stop treating symptoms and start managing systems—from the gut out. #Poultry #Broilers #GutHealth #FarmManagement #AnimalHealth #PoultryWelfare #FeedEfficiency #Biosecurity #Probiotics #WaterSanitation

🌧️ Why Intestinal Scoring Matters Most During the Rainy Season in Poultry 🐔 The rainy season brings much-needed relief from the summer heat—but for poultry farmers, it also brings a host of intestinal health challenges. As a veterinarian who routinely performs intestinal scoring in field flocks, I’ve seen firsthand how this simple yet powerful diagnostic tool can make a big difference in maintaining flock performance and profitability, especially during this season. 🌾 Why Rainy Season Demands Extra Vigilance In India, the monsoon season is closely linked with higher humidity, wet litter, and fluctuating temperatures—the perfect environment for coccidial oocyst sporulation and toxin-producing fungal growth in feed ingredients. This combination often leads to: Increased coccidiosis incidence Mycotoxin-related gut damage (especially from aflatoxins and ochratoxins) Reduced gut integrity, nutrient absorption, and poor FCR 🔍 Intestinal Scoring – The Window to Gut Health Intestinal scoring is not just a post-mortem exercise; it’s a preventive health management tool. By examining the gut at different segments—duodenum, jejunum, ileum, and caeca—we can identify: Coccidial lesions (E. acervulina, E. maxima, E. tenella, etc.) Toxin-induced thinning or inflammation of mucosa Bile staining, gas formation, or digesta consistency changes Early signs of dysbacteriosis or enteritis before mortality spikes Regular scoring helps correlate field performance with actual intestinal health—allowing timely correction of anticoccidial programs, toxin binders, or enzyme supplementation. 🧫 Coccidiosis: The Silent Performer Even a mild subclinical coccidial infection during rainy days can reduce weight gain by 5–10%. Wet litter conditions favor rapid recycling of oocysts, and poor ventilation accelerates spread. Rotating or shuttling anticoccidials, along with regular lesion scoring (0–4 scale), helps in assessing the effectiveness of control programs. ☣️ Mycotoxins: The Invisible Enemy During storage and transportation in humid conditions, feed ingredients such as maize and groundnut cake often carry fungal contamination. These mycotoxins damage the gut villi and liver, worsening coccidiosis impact. By correlating intestinal scores with feed and liver conditions, one can identify toxin-related enteritis and adjust toxin binder dosages effectively. 🩺 Field Experience Speaks From my regular farm visits, I’ve learned that flocks with consistent intestinal scoring routines during monsoon months: Maintain better uniformity Show fewer culling and wet litter issues Respond faster to medication changes It’s not about performing scoring only when mortality rises—it’s about routine monitoring as part of gut health management. 🌱 Final Thoughts In this rainy season, let’s not just look at performance charts; let’s look inside the bird. Healthy gut = Healthy bird = More profit

The air in your broiler house contains up to 100 times more particles than outdoor air. You and your birds are both paying the price. Most producers don't realize how serious this problem is. Research shows that 72% of particulate matter comes from manure, 21% from feathers, and 6% from bedding. Birds' unique lung structure makes them especially vulnerable to these particles. The result? Slower growth, higher mortality, and worse feed conversion. Money walking out your door. Fortunately, there are lots of ways to solve these issues, like installing humidifiers, changing bedding, and upgrading ventilation. But at the end of the day you still need a reliable way to measure whether those changes are actually making a difference. This is exactly why we developed our BAT2 Connect automatic scales. When you adjust your ventilation program to reduce dust, the real-time weight data shows you immediately if birds are responding. Smart producers combine targeted dust reduction with continuous monitoring. Better filtration and optimized environmental controls work best when you can track their effectiveness in real-time. Your bottom line depends on the air your birds breathe. Make sure you're tracking whether your improvements actually work. Cited sources: Wicklin, G. & Czarick, M. (1997). Particulate Emissions from Poultry Housing. ASAE Annual International Meeting. Winkel, A., et al. (2016). Evaluation of oil spraying systems and air ionisation systems for abatement of particulate matter emission in commercial poultry houses. Biosystems Engineering, 150, 104-122.

Dear Poultry Farmer, Lack of infrastructural development on a broiler farm can lead to poor productivity, high mortality rates, and reduced profitability, negatively impact birds health, growth, and overall productivity. Here are some key areas where infrastructure is essential and how to improve them: 🐓. Housing & Ventilation; *Challenge: Poorly designed houses lead to heat stress, overcrowding, and disease outbreaks. *Solution: Invest in well-ventilated poultry houses with proper spacing, curtains, or automated fans. Ensure good roofing to protect against extreme weather. 🐓. Water Supply; *Challenge: Unreliable or contaminated water sources affect bird growth and health. *Solution: Install water reservoirs, use nipple drinkers to prevent water contamination, and test water quality regularly. 🐓. Feeding Systems; *Challenge: Poor feeding systems cause wastage and uneven growth among birds. *Solution: Use automatic feeders or properly spaced manual feeders to ensure all birds access feed. 🐓. Electricity & Lighting; *Challenge: Lack of electricity affects heating for chicks and lighting for proper feeding cycles. *Solution: Invest in solar power or backup generators to ensure constant electricity supply. 🐓. Waste Management; *Challenge: Poor waste disposal leads to disease outbreaks and environmental pollution. *Solution: Set up composting or biogas systems to manage poultry manure and prevent odors. 🐓. Security & Biosecurity; *Challenge: Uncontrolled farm access can lead to disease spread and theft. *Solution: Fence the farm, install footbaths at entry points, and limit farm visits to essential personnel only. 🐓. Poor Drainage; *Problem: Waterlogged areas and poor waste disposal lead to disease outbreaks. *Solution: Create proper drainage channels, elevate the poultry house, and set up compost. https://lnkd.in/dFJbfGGW #broiler #sustainability #poultrybuilding #agribusiness #agriculture #poultryvaluechain #SDGs #biosecurity Your Favorite Poultry Farmer 🐓🐓🐓.