Training Methods and Techniques for Free-Range Ecological Chickens
Free-range ecological chickens can move about and forage freely, which brings certain difficulties to feeding and management. Therefore, free-range ecological chickens must be trained from a young age to develop good conditioned responses, so as to make management easier. Training refers to giving special commands or signals under specific circumstances, so that the chickens gradually form conditioned reflexes or develop habitual behaviors.
Training for feeding and drinking: Training for feeding and drinking should begin during brooding. Generally, a special sound is used as a signal; this sound should be soft yet loud, and blasting sounds or imitations of wild animal calls should not be used. The duration can be long or short. In production, whistling and striking metal objects are often used. Taking feeding as an example, before training, the chickens should have a period of hunger, and then, while giving the signal (such as whistling), feed them at the same time. The feeding action should be made as visible to the chickens as possible, so as to produce both auditory and visual responses and accelerate the formation of the conditioned reflex. The same signal should be repeated at every feeding, and generally a conditioned reflex can be established in about 3 days.
Training for ranging: In the afternoon or evening of the day before ranging, move the chicks all at once into the chicken house at the ranging site. Do not release the chickens immediately after dawn the next morning; let them stay in the chicken house for a relatively long period so they can become familiar with the new environment. Wait until after 9 a.m. before releasing them to feed. Place the feed trough 1-5 m away from the chicken house and let the chickens forage freely. In the first few days, the daily ranging time should be short, then increase the ranging time day by day, and set up fencing to limit the range of activity, then gradually expand the ranging area.
Training before laying: Chickens like to lay eggs in places with dimmer light, better concealment and greater quiet, as this gives them a sense of security and makes laying smoother. Before a hen lays her first egg, she often shows restlessness and looks for a suitable laying site. When a chicken sees that other chickens have already built a nest or that there are eggs in a nest box, she develops a sense of recognition, considers the nest suitable for laying, and readily treats it as her own nest and lays there. Chickens are nest-fixed in laying; generally, wherever a chicken lays her first egg, she will continue to lay in that place afterward. If that place is occupied by other chickens, she would rather wait at the nest entrance than enter an empty nest beside it. If she cannot wait, several chickens often crowd together into one nest box to lay, despite being vigorously rejected and driven away by the hen currently laying, and they do not care at all. Therefore, training before the start of laying is extremely important. About one week before the start of laying, nest boxes should be put in place so the chickens can become familiar with the environment inside the nest boxes. The nest boxes should be placed back-to-light or shaded dark, and the area around the nest boxes should be kept quiet and free from disturbance. There should be enough nest boxes; generally, one laying nest is provided for every 5 hens. Clean, dry bedding should be spread inside the nest boxes.