With the knowledge of your “why” you now have a poultry house considered effective for your farm. You have also brought in the birds (layers for eggs and broilers for meat). However, this is not the end, it is the beginning of a long journey in poultry farming.
WALFT Guidelines for your poultry
Just as some factors were important to building an effective housing system, the following are also very important for the care of the birds (I refer to this as my WALFT guide) –
- Water – Supply your birds with adequate water. Providing adequate water helps to regulate the birds’ body temperature, food digestion and proper elimination of body waste. All these contributes to the healthy living of the birds and productivity.
- Ventilation (air) – Ensuring that the air within the poultry house is fresh and not stale is very important for the welfare of the birds. Availability of clean fresh air for the birds helps to control the outbreak of disease among the birds.
- Light – It is important to get the lighting process of your poultry house right because the quality of light available impacts on the activities and growth of the birds. Appropriate lighting helps the birds develop a routine of typical activities such as the birds’ immune function, growth rate and secretion of reproductive
hormones. These activities improve the immune system of the birds and consequently their health condition and productive capacity. - Feed – It is important to give to your birds a feed with the right nutrient mix that will help the birds to achieve its productive potential. Deficiency in the energy or nutrient requirement of the birds can result to nutritional stress for the birds. The stress on the birds if not curtained can leads to more grievous health hazards.
Note: The different birds you may have in your farm require different nutrient mix, thus, you need to know the right mash for the feed of each bird
- Temperature – The temperature requirement for your birds (broiler/layers) is greatly dependent on the age of the birds. The birds’ temperature is regulated by a part of the birds’ brain (i.e hypophyse), however, this regulation process don’t start immediately in newborn birds (which is why the newborn requires a higher temperature in their cage than the older birds). Please, note that when the temperature in the poultry house is too high for the birds, the birds begin to consume less which impacts adversely on the productivity of the bird(s).
I can assure you, if you get these right for your birds you will be a happy farmer.
You agree with me? Let me know your thoughts.
Cheers.
