Detailed Explanation of Key Points in Broiler Chicken Feeding and Management Techniques

There are many breeds of chickens on the market now, so is their feeding and management all the same? Below, the editor will join everyone in learning about broiler chicken feeding and management techniques.

Broiler Chicken Feeding and Management Techniques

Broiler chickens are raised in two stages: 0 to 3 weeks is the brooding stage, and around 4 to 9 weeks is the fattening stage. Whether broiler chicken rearing is successful depends on brooding.

I. Feeding and Management of Chicks

Preparation Before Brooding

1. The choice of brooding time mainly considers two factors:

One is the effect of the season on the degree of chick development;

The other is changes in market demand for chicken meat.

2. Preparation of the chicken house and feeding equipment

① After the previous batch of chickens has been moved out, the manure in the house should be cleared away, and the chicken house should be comprehensively inspected and repaired to prevent rain leakage and block rat holes. The area around the chicken house should also be cleaned and sprayed with disinfectant.

② When using cage equipment for the brooding process, the cages should be checked well, and whether items such as far-infrared heat sources, bottom nets, trays, and hanging nets are available should also be checked. If damaged, they should be promptly completed and replaced.

③ Conduct a comprehensive inspection of the lines, pipes, switch boxes, switches, and other components of the lighting, ventilation, heating, water supply, and feed supply systems so that they are in good condition for use.

④ Clean the feed troughs, water cans, water troughs, and feed mixing utensils thoroughly, and place them inside the chicken house before fumigation and disinfection.

⑤ After disinfecting the chicken house and checking the cages, rinse with high-pressure tap water, washing from high to low the ceiling, walls, cages, and floor clean to ensure no dust, no feathers, and no manure, then let them dry naturally at a temperature of 21—25℃. In a sealed chicken house, spray tap water as mist so that humidity reaches 60%—80%, then use formalin solution at 20ml per cubic meter plus an equal amount of water, and heat for fumigation.

3. Feed preparation: Chick feed must conform to the nutritional standards of this chicken breed. Prepared complete feed should not be stored too long, preferably no more than two weeks, to prevent feed spoilage and oxidation of vitamin A, E, and others. Generally, 1.1—1.5 kg per chick is sufficient.

4. Preparation of other materials: fuel, vaccines, commonly used medicines, light bulbs, and so on should be prepared in sufficient quantities, and vaccines and medicines should be stored properly as required.

5. Preheat the chicken house and test the temperature. 12 days before receiving the chicks, the heating equipment should be put into trial operation to ensure there is enough temperature on the day the chicks arrive. When using coal stoves or hot-wall heating methods, special attention should be paid to checking whether there is any smoke leakage to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.

II. Receiving and Transporting Chicks and Points for Attention

1. Selecting chicks

① Ensure the chicks come from healthy flocks;

② Select robust chicks to ensure a low incidence rate and a high survival rate. The characteristics of healthy chicks are: lively and active, strong legs, bright and spirited eyes, clear chirping, neat and smooth down, a flat and soft abdomen, well-healed anal vent, and when held in the hand they feel full and struggle strongly.

2. The following points should be noted when transporting chicks:

① Chicken farmers had better escort the chicks themselves, and at the same time should master certain professional knowledge and chick transport experience.

② Prepare the chick transport tools in advance. The tools include vehicles, chick boxes, and rainproof and heat-preserving equipment. The vehicles should have relatively good sealing performance, such as van-type passenger vehicles. For short-distance transport, simple tools such as tricycles and tractors may also be used.

③ Pay attention to choosing a suitable time for transporting chicks. When transporting chicks in winter and early spring, the chicks should be started on the journey as close to noon as possible; when transporting chicks in summer, they should be started in the cool morning or evening.

④ During chick transport, observe the flock at all times and adjust temperature and ventilation. During long-distance transport, even more attention should be paid, when necessary, to reversing the chick boxes between inside and outside and between upper and lower layers to prevent accidental bumping and avoid crushing the chicks to death.

III. Chicks Entering the House

1. When the chicks arrive, they should be left to stand for about half an hour so that the chicks can buffer from the stress of transport and at the same time adapt to the brooding environment.

2. Place the chicks: after standing, place the chicks in groups according to plan. When grouping, separate the strong from the weak, and place weak chicks closest to the heat source.

3. First drinking: (1) Time of first drinking: within 1 hour after the chicks are placed, the chicks should be given water;

(2) Drinking water preparation: 8% warm sucrose (white sugar) water or 5% warm glucose water may be used for 1—2 days;

(3) Drinking water temperature: should not be lower than 18℃;

(4) Placement of drinkers: place drinkers in bright light and stagger them with feed trays, with a distance of no more than 1 meter being best.

IV. Chick Feeding Techniques

① Time of first feeding: the chicks' first feeding should be 2 to 3 hours after first drinking

② First feed: use fresh millet, corn troughs, and other granular feed. Never use overly fine powder feed. After the second day, use complete feed. The first feed may use dry feed or wet feed. In wet feed, the ratio of feed to water is 5:1.

③ First feeding method: use shallow flat feed trays, or plastic sheets, newspapers, and so on placed in bright light, and scatter the feed repeatedly several times to entice the chicks to peck. As long as a small number of chickens in the flock begin pecking at the feed, the rest of the chicks will quickly learn.

④ Recommended daily feeding times for broilers: 1 to 3 days, feed 8 to 10 times; 4 to 7 days, feed 6 to 8 times; 8 to 14 days, feed 4 to 6 times; after 15 days of age, feed 2 to 3 times.

V. Beak Trimming

1. Beak trimming time may be at birth or at 7 to 10 days of age. When trimming at birth, the beak tip of the chick can be directly seared with the beak trimming blade without needing to remove it. When trimming at 6 to 9 days of age, about 1/3 of the beak tip can be removed.

2. Management measures before and after beak trimming:

① Do not let the chickens eat too full before beak trimming;

② During beak trimming, the cut surface of the beak can be seared on the beak trimmer blade, which has a good hemostatic effect. At the same time, vitamin K can be added to the daily ration for 2 days before and after beak trimming at 5—8 grams per ton of feed to avoid bleeding.

③ After beak trimming, appropriately increase the feed in the feed buckets to avoid refusal to eat due to pain from the bottom of the trough after beak trimming.

⑤ After beak trimming, the chickens' feed intake is relatively low, and the dietary protein can be increased by 1% to maintain their growth and development. A suitable beak trimming hole for beak trimming at 6—9 days of age is 0.44cm.

VI. Flock Expansion

1. The first flock expansion should be around 8 days of age. For floor-raised flocks, the enclosure can be removed;

2. The second flock expansion should be between 12—18 days of age, and the flock can gradually be dispersed into vacant areas;

3. The third flock expansion is about 22 days of age, and the flock can be expanded to fill the entire chicken house. In summer, this flock expansion can be appropriately advanced.

VII. Comprehensive Sanitation and Epidemic Prevention Measures

Everyone knows the importance of comprehensive sanitation and epidemic prevention measures to broiler feeding and management. But in reality, many people in the industry do not attach much importance to this work. They hope to rely on vaccines and drugs to prevent and control infectious diseases, thinking that if the flock has been immunized against a certain specific disease, the flock has complete protection against that disease. They even fantasize that by giving the flock some medicine, the flock will not become ill or can be cured of disease.

The reports and continued fermentation of the 2012 broiler industry's “fast-growing chicken” and “drug chicken” incidents warn people that broiler chicken farming must be standardized. Scientific drug use and control of drug residues are the key to the survival of broiler enterprises in the future.

Therefore, in view of today's severe disease situation in broilers and considerations of food safety, implementing comprehensive sanitation and epidemic prevention measures is an important guarantee for healthy broiler farming. Modern broiler farms must adopt a closed all-in-all-out feeding management model and ensure the health of broilers through comprehensive measures such as doing a good job in chicken house washing preparation, isolation of disease sources, disinfection of items and vehicles, management measures for personnel entering and leaving the farm, implementation of flock immunization plans, scientific drug use for the flock, and health monitoring.

With feeding and management techniques, as long as you are attentive in raising them, there are no chickens that cannot be raised well!