Tips for Raising Green-Shell Laying Hens to Increase Egg Production

1. Use scientific lighting. During the first month of laying, change the daily cycle to 28 hours, alternating 12 hours of light and 16 hours of darkness; average egg weight can increase by 10%, and the eggshells are firm, with very few small eggs.     

2. Clip the combs of chicks at the right time. Within 24 hours after hatching, before the chicks start eating, clip off the combs, or when the chicks can be sexed, select the female chicks and clip off their combs. This not only saves feed but also prevents various comb injuries in adult chickens, and the egg production rate of the hens after they start laying can also be increased.     

3. Daily feeding frequency. Modern research shows that the yolk and albumen of eggs form during the day, while the eggshell forms in the afternoon or at night. Laying hens should be fed 2 times a day. The evening meal should have increased calcium content. Each kilogram of the morning feed should contain 19%-19.5% crude protein and 5.5%-6% calcium. This not only regulates the laying cycle and increases egg production but also saves feed.     

4. Cull low-producing hens. When the chickens are 34-38 weeks of age, 50 weeks and 65 weeks of age, culling low-producing hens helps improve the production environment of the flock. The characteristics of low-producing hens are: dry, shrunken, pale combs, and the head, beak and neck showing a distinct yellow color.    

5. Supplement phosphorus and trace elements. Adding 4-10 kg of calcium hydrogen phosphate per ton of feed can reduce the mortality rate from green-shell laying hen fatigue syndrome. Under heat stress conditions, phosphorus is essential for maintaining a higher survival rate, growth rate and egg production rate. During the peak laying period of caged hens, the available phosphorus content in the diet is 0.45%-0.5% (total phosphorus 0.65%-0.75%); in the diet of older hens, available phosphorus gradually drops to 0.4% (total phosphorus 0.75%); and in the diet of growing pullets, the available phosphorus content is maintained at 0.5% throughout the entire growth period. Supplementing an appropriate amount of zinc in the dry feed of laying hens can increase various enzymes in the chicken's liver and raise the egg production rate. If an appropriate amount of manganese is supplemented in the feed, it can significantly reduce the number of soft-shelled eggs laid by the hens.     

6. Beak trimming at the right time. There are 3 optimal periods for beak trimming: 6-9 weeks of age, 10-14 weeks of age, and 18-20 weeks of age. Combine it with flock transfer and caging for beak trimming, or perform beak repair on flocks that were previously beak-trimmed, that is, re-trim or reshape those with missed cuts, long beaks, sharp beak tips or deformed beaks.