Top 10 Best Management Practice Tips for Better & Quality Broiler Production

 

Top 10 Best Management Practice Tips for Better & Quality Broiler Production

 

The best management practice for poultry production to check Feed, Litter/light, Air, Water, (bio)security, Sanitation, Space & Staffs. It is not only important during the brooding time but also throughout the life of the flock. To get better & quality broiler production, it is important to have quality day-old chicks. Some standard criteria of good quality chicks are:

Pathogen and or Salmonella free chicks

Standard BWT

Look alert & have bright & active eyes

Completely healed navels

Free from deformities

Top 10 crucial points for the Best Management Tips for Better & Quality Broiler Production as follows:

1. Daily Biosecurity Management:

Biosecurity is a crucial point to get successful poultry production. It is necessary to do robust biosecurity practices throughout broiler production. Managing step-to-step daily biosecurity program in the poultry farm reduces the risk of pathogen transmission between the flocks.

2. Turnaround time between flocks:

Turnaround time is a crucial part of poultry production because about 90% of the pathogen or risks reduce at that time. It is necessary to have a minimum of 14 days with appropriate dry & wet cleaning and disinfecting between flocks. The following tasks have to be taken after depopulation:

Clean the residual feed from the feed line

Clean feed pan & remove all the equipment’s from the shed

Litter is removed by approved contractors

Wash walls, ceilings, drinkers & feeders with clean water & detergent to reduce the pathogens load and also apply insecticide & sanitizer.

Allow to dry shed & then spread litter and fumigate the sheds

 

3. Pre & Post Placement Management:

Sheds set up for the placement of chicks

Ensure at least 90% of the floor area is covered in paper with feed on.

Ensure sheds are preheated (minimum 24hrs) with the appropriate temperature, recommended light hours & intensity, ventilation & RH% prior to chicks’ arrival

All chicks must be placed in the shed as soon as possible after arrival to minimize the stress of birds and record DOA (Death on Arrival).

Flushing water line to access fresh water for birds

Ensure chicks have unrestricted water & feed access

Make a couple of barriers in the shed to equal distribution of chicks

READ ALSO How to strategically use water for greater benefits in your poultry farming business 

4. Brooding & Rearing Management:

Brooding management is a vital part because growth & skeletal development happen during brooding which eventually achieves the flock uniformity & better production. The first 2 weeks are one of the most important times of a bird’s life. Regular flushing in the first week could be useful to increase water and feed intake as well as help to limit biofilm build-up in the waterline. The following task should be taken at brooding & rearing time:

 

The first 24hrs chicks must be observed at least four times to ensure that they are normal in appearance, behaviours, movement.

Ensure the shed is “Comfort Zone” for the chicks by adjusting air temp at chick height, litter temp, ventilation & RH%

A small amount of feed refill on paper frequently & heater checks regularly

Assess Crop Fill Assessment (CFA) to ensure that all chicks have found feed & water.

Ensure RSPCA approved lighting program: 23 hrs light with a minimum intensity of 20 Lux first 24 hrs period up to 7 days.

Adjust feeder & drinker height regularly according to bird height

7 & 14-day BWTs are excellent indicators of successful brooding management

5. Feed Management

Feed is the most vital nutrient for poultry production. It is necessary to have easy access to good quality & fresh feed for the potential performance of birds. However, moldy feed is not only unpalatable but also toxic as well. It consumes valuable nutrients from feed & produces mycotoxins. Mould can grow easily in empty silos during humid & warm climates. So, the silo must be inspected and cleaned regularly. Regularly adjusting of feeder line helps to reduce feed wastage as well as prevent feed mixing with litter.

 

6. Water Management:

Water management is another most crucial part of broiler health & profitable poultry production. Generally, poultry consumes more water (1.5 to 2 times) than feed. As a result, water is the most critical nutrient for poultry. Poultry should have access to plenty of cool & microbial contaminated free drinking water that will reduce the challenge & boost the production performance. The following factors should be considered about water management:

 

i. Quality of Water:

Quality of water will affect water intake by broiler. The pH, hardness, and TDS (total dissolved solids) can cause an effect on water consumption. The best practice water pH level in the shed is 6.5 to 7.8. Water outside maximum acceptable levels for both high and low pH can cause a negative impact on poultry production performance. In addition, water should have a low level of salt because salt is already provided in the feed. More Salt in water may cause an oversupply of minerals and lead to excessive water intake, watery droppings, and eventually reduce performance. It is necessary to test water for E. coli regularly for food safety and water mineral content for the quality of water.

 

ii. Water Temperature:

Water temperature is another point for best management practice. The ideal best practice water temperature would be less than shed temperature (about 18-21ºC). If water temperature is too clod (<5ºC) or too warm (>30ºC) that causes reduced water intake (Cobb, 2018).

 

iii. Drinker Line Height & Pressure:

Nipple drinker with drip cup required a maximum of 12 birds/nipple (20 birds/nipple in brooding). Drinker height & pressure also affect water intake. It is necessary to ensure that the drinker line is not leaky. The drinker height level needs to be examined & adjusted almost daily. At 0-7 days the drinker height should be just above the eye level & pressure should be 20 ml/min. At the age of 2-3 weeks, birds need to drink at above 60° angle with a water pressure of about 60-70 ml/min and after 3 weeks birds drink at 70-80° angle with the water flow rate of about 70-100 ml/min (Ross, 2018).

READ ALSO  4 Natural Ways to Deworm Chickens with Prevention Tips

7. Housing and Environmental Management:

Poultry welfare is influenced by the shed design & its environment. The following factors may consider for housing & its environmental management.

 

i. Stock Density:

Stock density is an important part of proficient broiler production as well as the welfare of birds. Optimum stock density allows sufficient space for exercise, exploration, and social behaviour. RSPCA approved stock density for natural & Tunnel ventilation are 28kg/m2 and 34 kg/m2 ( 32kg/m2, from 2023) respectively.

 

ii. Temperature, RH%, Ventilation management:

Recommended temp. RH% & ventilation are an important part of broiler production. Proper ventilation improves the air & litter quality which are led to reducing the risk of high ammonia, respiratory problems for the birds.

 

iii. Litter Management:

Good quality & water absorbing litter is essential for quality broiler production. Poultry litter acts not only as bedding for birds but also used as standing, resting, and opportunities to express other natural behaviour such as dust bathing, scratching, foraging. There is a good correlation between water & litter management. Suboptimal water management leads to wet litter conditions and produces more ammonia in the shed, high risk of health problems such as bumblefoot, NE, Coccidiosis, E. coli and other bacterial diseases. In addition, diseases that cause loose droppings e.g., Gumboro, IBD result in extremely wet litter. However, dry litter helps to control ammonia levels, provide a flock healthy environment and reduce the risk of hock & footpad burn and breast blisters in the flock. Too dry & dusty litter lead to respiratory problem in the flock and reduce water intake. The following factors should be considered for the best litter management:

Litter should be of good quality & water absorbing litter

Litter should be sprayed completely & evenly in the shed with to minimum 50mm depth

Litter condition must be monitored daily & maintained in dry & friable condition

The ideal litter contain <30% moisture

Proper ventilation, temperature & light management

iv. Light Management:

A lot of biological functions in the broiler body are regulated by light. Light initiates & regulates multiple hormones in the body that are essential for metabolic regulation & bone formation. The duration & intensity of the light are an important factors for poultry production. Proper Light intensity minimizes the effect on cannibalism & aggression, facilitates access to feed & water intake whilst the duration of the light influences of growth rate. So appropriate lighting program can significantly improve performance & consequently profitability. Continuous lighting & continuous darkness may not be the best way for the feed digestibility because birds consume overfeed during that time as a result increased feed rate passage with limited time interacts with digestive enzyme. On the other hand, “a lights-on, Lights-off” program helps birds to completely digest their feed while resting. As are result improves feed efficiency and reduces FCR. RSPCA approved 23h continuous lighting per day with the intensity of 20 Lux from 0-7days of age. After 7 days duration of light would be 18h/day with 6hrs darkness.

 

v. Environmental Enrichment:

Bird welfare is improved by providing perches, pecking objects & other manipulable materials in the sheds. RSPCA recommends 2.7m of perching/1000 birds and pecking objects should be provided evenly throughout the shed.

 

8. Mortality, Culling & Health & Welfare Management:

Mortality & culling are significant parts of the efficiency of broiler production. Culling unthrifty birds should be done at every stage of their life. If mortality increase by more than 2 days needs to contract with the broiler service person. Culling in proper time not only brings uniformity of the flock but also reduces the cost of production & increases the profit of the farmers. For the quality broiler production, ts it is necessary to do Dawkins gait-scoring to assess lameness, footpad & hook scoring for welfare-related issues.

 

9. Traceability:                                                                All inputs such as day-old chicks, feed, litter, vaccine & medicine should be documented in terms of origin, date & quantity. Similarly, all outputs such as poultry for processing, dead birds, used litter are documented in terms of date, quantity & destination.

 

10. Staff’s Hands on Training:

Footbath Preparation

Culling unthrifty birds by MCD (Manual cervical dislocation) methods

Weighing birds

Welfare of birds

Contamination

 

By Md. Forhad Hossain (MBA, MRurSc-Poultry, DVM), ProTen Pty Ltd, Australia