How to raise broiler chickens at home?

Broiler is a hybrid of domestic animals, obtained by crossing different breeds. It is distinguished by its early maturity. Broilers are called not only poultry, but also other animals, such as rabbits.

In this article we will talk about broiler chicken, namely: where to start, how to choose eggs, what and how to feed according to growth periods, how to water, what vitamins to give, what should not be fed, diseases and what to treat. Let's talk about adult broilers: housing conditions, feeding and water, diseases and how to treat them.

In general, we will go through all the stages of cultivation - from eggs to the sale of the finished product.

How to choose eggs to grow

Broiler eggs

The choice of eggs for incubation is an important part of the broiler raising process, because it determines the percentage of chicks hatching, how healthy the offspring will turn out, how often they will get sick or not at all, how quickly they will gain weight, etc. Whether you will be left at a profit or at a loss will also depend on the right choice for laying eggs.

For selection of eggs, we select a healthy broiler chicken without signs of infectious diseases. It is recommended to leave your choice on a medium-sized hen.

The egg should be uniform in color. It is advisable to choose medium sizes, because the same offspring is obtained from small eggs.

Large ones have a thin shell. Therefore, the appearance of microscopic cracks, through which they penetrate into the embryo of infection, is not excluded. In addition, many eggs of this size simply will not hatch.

The weight of the egg is also selected, if possible, the same. Then the chicks are born with a slight difference in time.

We take eggs from the nests several times a day. Their overheating or cooling is unacceptable. It is advisable to store them in a warm, dry room, in which the permissible temperature differences do not exceed 5 degrees.

Setting eggs in the incubator

The maximum shelf life between removal from the nest and setting in the incubator is two or three days.If this period is exceeded, the likelihood of negative consequences for their healthy development in the future increases.

The correct, competent approach to the process of choosing eggs for laying them in an incubator is the key to a successful result.

The maximum age of a hen from which eggs are taken for an incubator is limited to 2 years.

What and how to feed

It is very important to feed broiler chicks correctly, starting from the first day of their life, because starting feeding sets the appropriate rate of growth and development of these poultry. In addition, the composition of the feed plays a decisive role in the quality of the final product - meat.

Broiler chicks from zero days

There is a widespread opinion that day-old broiler chickens should be immediately given chopped boiled eggs, cottage cheese, mixed feed, which help to strengthen the digestive system.

Broiler chicken

However, others caution against such a decision. They argue that this is precisely the reason for the death of the poultry population during the first 2 - 3 days of their life. And feeding broiler chickens with boiled eggs at one day of age not only does not strengthen their immunity, but also causes a disorder of the digestive system, causes a large number of deaths.

It is not recommended to give any wet food. It is useful at such an early age to give only millet and a small amount of egg powder. Chicks should have free access to feed and water. The size of the cage, box, and other place in which the brood was kept allowed each chicken to eat and drink freely. In water, we dilute potassium permanganate (potassium permanganate) in a very low concentration.

In this case, the color of the water should not be allowed to change to pink. It is also recommended to separately prepare an aqueous glucose solution. This will help avoid indigestion - a disease of the digestive tract.

The room in which the chickens are kept should be well ventilated but protected from drafts. Dampness is also detrimental to them, even if the optimum temperature is maintained.

Weekly chicks

You can gradually accustom kids to starting compound feed from the fifth day of their life. At the same time, they are soldered with a prominent solution of vitamins. It is not recommended to give them antibiotics until this age.

It is useful to drop "Trivitamin" into the beak of each chicken - a drug for the treatment and prevention of vitamin deficiency. Add "Baytril" to the water, which is intended against infections at the rate of 1 gram per 2 liters of water.

7 day old chicks

From one week of age, chickens are taught to eat cottage cheese. We vary the diet with crushed boiled egg. The feed can be slightly moistened with whey. The approximate daily consumption rate during this period reaches 15 - 20 grams. Indoor temperature - 30 - 32 degrees.

Important! Make sure the chickens do not get dirty or wet while eating. Otherwise, it is fraught with their death. The places where they are kept must be dry with the right temperature and humidity.

Chickens from 10 to 20 days

During this period, greens are added to the porridge (slightly moistened dry starter food), for example, finely chopped onions, at the rate of 1:20. It contains the necessary vitamins. Besides, green onions are used as an antiparasitic agent.

To avoid one of the most common diseases of poultry - coccidosis, which leads to disruption of the digestive process and dehydration of the body, at two weeks of age, the drug "Baycox" is added to the water at the rate of 1 gram per 2 liters of water.

During this period, they eat feed up to 30 grams per day. In order for babies to have a good growth, take care of an increased daylight from the first days. The ambient temperature is kept at a level not lower than 28 degrees. If young animals at this age are overcooled, they can get bronchopneumonia, which occurs precisely as a result of hypothermia.

Two week old young

You can add reverse, yogurt, buttermilk to the feed.After 15 days of feeding, protein feed of plant origin is mixed into the food. The proportion of greens can be gradually increased. It should now account for up to 10% of the total feed weight.

Stir in crushed eggshells, feed yeast, and grated carrots in small amounts. In no case should the chickens be given sand. Do not forget to make a very weak solution of potassium permanganate.

From day 10 for three or four days, broilers may begin to die. Therefore, during this period, we solder poultry with antibiotics. Add a couple of drops of iodine. After a short break, vitamins are given, vitamin D is especially important during this period for rickets.

Lack of vitamins leads to hypovitaminosis A, D, E, B. Chickens are given only high-quality feed. If you buy it ready-made in a package, keep an eye on the expiration dates.

Juveniles should be kept away from adults to avoid disease transmission. Chicks up to 20 days old require round-the-clock lighting.

How to raise monthly chicks

After 22-25 days, they switch from feeding with starting compound feed (cereals) to growing (in granules). The composition of the broiler feed should include mineral content, protein (fish meal), cereals (corn), amino acids and vitamins. You can also continue to add green mass.

To save money we advise do not buy expensive growth food, but make its composition yourself: crushed wheat, oats, corn, barley, peas. All components are mixed in equal proportions. It is advisable to add fish oil, whey, meat and bone meal to the feed. Add (but do not mix) the leaves of cabbage, lettuce, green onions.

Feeding one month old chicks

By 35 days of age, you can gradually increase the amount of corn to 40% of the total, and reduce the amount of wheat, oats and barley. The meal or cake is about 15%. The percentage of green mass can be reduced.

Under normal conditions and quality feeding, monthly chickens weigh about 800 grams.

We exclude from the diet all types of bread, boiled potatoes (if it does not go in a mixture with other components), all stitched products, especially if you smell. We remind you to refrain from adding sand. We make sure that the water of the chickens is constantly clean, fresh, slightly warm. It is useful to use settled water.

We lower the temperature of the environment to 23 - 25 degrees. The duration of lighting is reduced to 14-16 hours a day.

To avoid aspergillosis at this age, you need to ventilate the room well, avoid dampness. For prophylaxis, add a little iodine-containing preparations to feed and water.

All new feeds are given in small quantities at first so that the chicks can get used to it. Otherwise, they may have indigestion, leading to death.

Chickens 45-50 days

After 40 days of life, the young are given not crushed, but whole grain. A commercially available finishing compound feed containing the main nutrients is also used. But if you want to have tasty meat, you can refuse to purchase it.

Whole grain is poured into the feeders, not crushed grain. Vitamins, feed yeast, chalk must also be present in the feed. After reaching 45 days of age, we exclude any medications. A good effect is given by cooking porridge, which includes boiled small fish, corn, wheat, peas, greens.

2 month old broilers

All this is mixed and allowed to brew. In porridge, we increase the percentage of corn to half of the total mass.

If you did not save on feed and gave a complete diet, their weight at this age should be more than one kilogram. The breed also has a big influence on this figure.

If the weight of a unit of young of one breed reaches 1, 2 - 1.3 kg, then the weight of a grown chick of this age can be 1.6 - 1.8 kg. all other things being equal.

We continue to use clean settled water.We gradually lower the ambient temperature to 21 - 23 degrees. The duration of daily lighting is reduced to 12-14 hours.

The area in which the young are kept must be sufficient so that everyone can freely approach the feeder or drinker. However, the walk should not be spacious, otherwise the broiler will lose weight due to excessive activity.

Breeding adult broilers at home

Keeping broilers for fattening for more than two months is not economically feasible, as the birds gain weight more slowly with age and feed more. In addition, broiler meat older than 70-75 days is less tasty than two months old.

Cell maintenance and care at home

If you want to raise up to 10 head of chicken broilers at home, their cage content will suit you. Depending on the size of the cage, they contain 3-5 heads (then the size of the cage is made from such a calculation in order to limit the free movement of the bird to the required one - to go to the feeder and drinker), or up to 10 heads (the size of the cage increases, the requirements for the spatial conditions of detention and the dilutions remain the same).

Keeping birds in a cage

When growing livestock more than 10 units need to do or additional number of cells (since one cage, with more than a dozen heads in it, is very cumbersome and inconvenient to move, it loses mobility), or think about keeping in a pen.

Let's say it is economically beneficial for you to breed livestock in cages. Then, for dry food (mixed fodder, grain), it is advisable to choose trough-type feeders, which are placed outside the cages along a whole tier. We also build a continuous drinking bowl, for example, from a PVC sewer pipe.

The front side of the trough can be made of combined type metal rods. This is convenient because chickens can be kept in such a cage at first.

Steel rods on the walls are placed among themselves quite often so that the brood does not run out of the cage or fall out of it (if the cage is in the second or third tier).

After the young grows up, they are seated in different cages, removing the rods from the walls through one. Thus, we provide free access to feed for an adult broiler.

How to grow: tips for beginners

Broiler cage

There are several requirements for the conditions of keeping an adult broiler bird:

• so that the content area makes it possible eat freely each individual, that is, not too small, but not too large (for the reasons indicated above);
• permanent availability of high-quality fresh feed in the feeders. In addition, there can and should be separate feeders for porridge, if used;
• constant availability of fresh (better settled) warm water in drinking bowls, but not higher than 22-25 degrees;
• enough hours daylight hours (12-14 hours). If less - we give additional lighting;
• humidity air 68-72%;
• no dampnessespecially in cells;
• no drafts must not be;
• ambient temperature - within 20-21 degrees (if it is lower, then the activity of broilers decreases, the intensity of feed consumption decreases, the growth of mass slows down; if it is higher, then the bird becomes hot, the result is the same);
• obligatory presence ventilation, since otherwise the intensive accumulation of nitrogen has a detrimental effect on the vital activity of the bird. A case is described when the owner, in order to save on heating, placed the floor of a hundred broilers in a greenhouse where greens were grown in a small makeshift paddock. Despite the fact that the greenhouse was periodically supplied with fresh air, after a few days the greens began to fade due to the increased nitrogen content in the air, although this was not felt.After the corral was fenced off with foil, the concentration of nitrogen in the environment in the corral reached such a level that the chickens began to behave sluggishly, ate feed reluctantly, and slowly gained weight.
• cells inside must be clean... To do this, you can make the floor from a galvanized welded fine mesh, and clean the floor pallet based on the amount of droppings accumulated in it;
• if growing broilers at home is "put" on stream, then it is necessary to periodically carry out disinfection of cells (after the slaughter of the previous batch, but before growing the second).

Disadvantages of keeping birds in cages:

• requires monetary investments more than with a driven cultivation method.

Advantages:

• more convenient in service;
• more compact (saves used space).

How to keep and raise a broiler in a pen

This method of keeping broilers and chickens from zero days does not differ from the previous one. The main differences are as follows:

• economically viable in terms of construction. Basically, to raise birds in a pen you need a floor and walls. If you are going to raise a bird in a barn, then part of the barn is fenced off with collapsible sections made of welded mesh wire, put feeders and drinkers - and the pen is ready;
• designed for content not less than 10 heads birds;

Walking hens in the corral

Flaws:

• requires increased care and attention to elimination of dampness and high humidity, you need to frequently change the litter of broilers to keep the floor dry;
• by area occupies more space per one livestock unit.

Advantages:

• less material costs, compared to the first method.

Requirements for ambient temperature, humidity, absence of drafts, dampness and other conditions of detention remain the same.

Correct feeding. Where to begin

As mentioned above, it makes no sense to fatten broilers for more than two months. This is justified by the following:

• after two months fattening poultry gains weight more slowly;
• consumption feed increases;
• broiler meat older than 2.5 months tougherless tasty.

Feeding adult broilers (in our case, in the recommended age range from 60 to 75 days) comes down to the fact that they need to be given only high-quality feed with the following diet:

We feed adult broilers with whole grain or purchased final compound feed. To make the meat tastier, we advise you to abandon the purchased compound feed altogether. This will save you money and improve product quality.

But even more worries will be added, in order to breed chickens, you will need to buy separately grain of wheat, barley, corn, peas, etc., mix all this in proportions. Do not forget to give greens, add fishmeal.

If you are not lazy, then prepare porridge for your poultry from the above ingredients with the addition of cooked small fish. If there is no fish, add fish oil. The main specific gravity should be maize (up to 50%).

Some, when growing poultry, after two months of feeding, switch exclusively to corn and greens (5-10 days before slaughter). For normal chain feeding, expect your broilers to weigh at least two kilograms by 70 to 75 days of feeding.

Broiler feed

Attention! We do not give broilers:

• boiled potato (if it does not go in a mixture with other components);
• all varieties of bread;
• all overdue products;
• sand;
• medications (if possible);
• several new products food in large quantities;
• other components, if we see that they call negative reaction the bird.

What to drink

Follow the same rules as for raising young stock. The water should be:

• clean, preferably separated;
• moderately warm (in the region of 20 - 21 degrees);
• in drinkers, providing unimpeded access poultry (depends on the number of livestock);
• can be diluted at very low concentrations potassium permanganate (potassium permanganate). In this case, the color of the water must not be allowed to change to pink.

Broiler chicken diseases

Broiler chickens can be sick with quite a few diseases. Some of them:

• heterokydosis - worms in the intestines. Piperazine can be used against this disease. Preventive measures - thoroughly wash the room in which the chickens are;
• arthritis - joints of chickens suffer (broilers walk less, try to sit down). Ampicillin (10 mg per 5 kg chicken weight) can be used for 5 consecutive days. Ampicillin for arthritis

  Arthritis prevention measures: Provide only quality food, bedding should be dry;

• ascites (fat accumulates in the abdomen). The bird walks sluggishly and reluctantly. To avoid this disease, it is necessary to give greens;
• salmonellosis manifests itself in upset stomach... Can be treated with tetracycline or dithrevite. The dosage is indicated in the instructions for these medicinal products;
• pseudo-plague - chickens can become infected through contaminated eggshells. It is necessary to plant the sick and disinfect the room;
• simple poisoning... To avoid this, you need to ensure that the food is fresh and of high quality, and that foreign objects, such as fish bones, do not fall into the feeders).

If you do everything right, the result will not be long in coming.

Recommendation for beginners: there is nothing better than personal experience... Therefore, in the initial stages of developing your business, you can use the information and recommendations of others. But if in practice you achieve the best results thanks to your best practices, it is a sin not to take advantage of this.

If you find that some recommendation does not apply to the growing conditions of broiler chickens in your conditions, think for yourself how to get out of the situation to achieve optimal results.

Foreword

Broilers at home grow as fast as in poultry farms, but only if certain rules are followed. All you need for breeding is a dry, clean room, plenty of feed and a little patience. When buying chickens, the question arises: take one-day cheap smokers or two-week ones. The older the chicks are, the better, but they are also more expensive.

Features of breeding broilers at home

And now, the long-awaited moment has come. You brought home a box of little squeaky yellow lumps. Have you already prepared a place for them? If they took smokers in March or April, then first you have to keep them in the house. First, let's build a house. We connect two cardboard boxes together, fastening them with wire on the sides, and cut a hole - the entrance. The first box will be for kids' bedrooms, the second will be a kitchen and a place for walking. Chickens should always have warm feet. It is undesirable to put boxes on a cold floor. We'll put the house either on foam plastic or on an old carpet. A cloth mat is placed in the box, which needs to be shaken out and dried daily.

A light bulb with a cone-shaped dome is hung over the “bedroom” so that the light does not scatter, but shines into the house. Do not hang huge white and red 250 W lamps - the bird will be hot. Newborn chickens do not yet regulate their body temperature and may overheat. A 25-40 W light bulb will be sufficient. For the first 10 days, we leave the light on for the night. Then we reduce the daylight hours to 16 hours.

When illuminated with green and blue lamps, the bird gives more growth.

If the floors are warm, then you can fence off the corner for the young animals with the help of boards. To achieve the desired temperature, a heater is installed. Arrange feeders and drinkers.

How to feed and vitaminize chickens

As soon as the chickens were brought home, they need to be drunk with sweet water: a teaspoon of sugar is diluted in 1 liter of water. Then the chickens are given a boiled egg.

To keep broilers at home, you need to provide them with complete feed. The ration in the first week consists of a wet mash and dry starter compound feed.Add a boiled chicken egg, millet crumbly unsalted porridge cooked in water, cake and poultry feed to the mash. Instead of water, it is better to give a decoction of onion husks and pine needles, reverse (milk after separation, that is, skimming).

We put the feeders and drinkers in the second box. Drinking bowls, not lids with water. Some baby will get wet, and this is destructive for him.

From ten days of age, fish is introduced into the diet. Blue whiting, any fish waste will do. The fish is boiled whole and rolled through a meat grinder along with the bones. The ground fish is mixed with mixed feed and distributed to the chicks. Food should always be present in the feeders, but not sour.

It is better to give small chickens a little food. Pecked, add more. Feeders need to be cleaned and rinsed daily with a solution of potassium permanganate. When the chicks eat, we carefully look to see if there is enough food for everyone, if everyone approaches the feeder. Bone meal and shells are also added to the diet. You can give ground eggshells, roasted in the oven.

As soon as greens appear on the street, we immediately introduce finely chopped greens, nettles into the diet. We begin to give a little greens. If there is cottage cheese, then we give it too. From ticks and fleas, dust the chickens with ash, which has lain for at least 2 months. If there is no stale ash, then press it. It will be useful to you: then put a trough with ashes in the chicken coop.

It is impossible to grow meat chickens at home without vitamin supplements.

• Immediately the next day, when they brought them home, we give them enrofloxacin in the morning at the rate of 1 cube per liter of boiled chilled water. This antibiotic is given for the prevention of infectious diseases. We drink for 3 days each time with a fresh solution. Instead of an expensive antibiotic for 3 days in the evening, you can drip 1 drop of vodka on each chick.
• For 3 days, every morning and evening, they moisten their feet, smoke with vodka, immersing their feet in a bowl.
• The next 3 days give a solution of ascorbic acid. Vitamin C stimulates the immune system and improves the digestion process. The contents of the package must be dissolved in 3 liters of water and given 1 liter per day.
• On the 7th day, they begin to give biovit and chiktonik. Biovit is given with feed 1 teaspoon for 50 heads 1 time per day for 1-2 weeks. Biovit is given for the prevention of hypovitaminosis and as a growth stimulant. Chiktonik is a feed vitamin supplement. It is given at the rate of 1 cube per 1 liter of water for 10 days.
• On day 14, Baycox's solution is given at the rate of 1 cube per 1 liter of water.

With this treatment, about 90 birds out of 100 grow strong and after 4-5 months they can reach weight: chickens 3-4 kg, males 4-5 kg.

Keeping broilers at home

Content temperature:

• in the first week is 33 0С;
• in the second - 30 0С;
• in the third - 28 0С;
• in the next - 20-24 0С.

Broilers at home gain weight quickly. The cardboard house will have to be expanded, because it is still cold outside, and they need more space. Every night, you need to get up and lightly stir up the sleeping young. This must be done so that the kids are not crowded and do not choke.

Chickens are prone to pecking. Most often they hammer in the head. The wounded bird is seated separately. The wound is smeared with brilliant green. If the baby is immediately planted with others, then curious individuals will begin to hammer the green crown. Pecking signals about insufficient nutrient feed. Improve the quality of feed, introduce bone and meat meal, feed yeast, herbs, grated carrots.

Plumage begins at the age of two weeks - the most difficult period in the life of a hen. It is important to provide the bird with all the necessary vitamins, be sure to include fish in the diet.

Transfer of young animals to the chicken coop

It's time to move the young to a permanent place - in the chicken coop. Breeding meat chickens requires constant cleanliness. The coop is cleaned and whitewashed. Sawdust is placed on the floor, which is regularly poured.The excrement is mixed with sawdust and re-heated with the release of heat, forming a warm litter.

The feeders are washed with potassium permanganate and dried. The walking area must be clean. They put a trough with a shell, sand and ash for bathing. Birds should not use the feeder handle as a roost or excrement may enter the feed. The handle must be revolving.

Not all owners have a brand new block barn. Often, cracks in an old wooden shed are plugged with rags. Before the introduction of young animals, we remove all the rags. Curious birds love to poke their nose, or rather their beak, where they don't need to. the chicken can get tangled in the threads with its paw or even with its tongue. Potato nets are especially dangerous.

Top dressing and compound feed

Poultry food is expensive to buy for teenagers. They eat a lot of it. We have to switch to conventional feed or ground grain. You can prepare the compound feed yourself by mixing crushed barley, peas, corn. In the morning, the compound feed is brewed with boiling water and mixed with a stick until it swells. The cooled mash is distributed to the young. Dry food in troughs and water should be constant. Once a week, chickens are given a barely pink solution of potassium permanganate.

A two-month-old chicken weighs 1300-1500 g and is theoretically ready for slaughter. But I want to grow a huge carcass and break all records. The broiler is a bird responsive to good nutrition. It is better to plant only cockerels from chickens at the first signs of a manifestation of love. Heavy cocks leave wounds and scars on the backs of their friends with their claws. Agree, it is unpleasant to eat a skin with traces of love pleasures neither for you, nor for your guests, and maybe even for customers. By the way, the egg production of chickens also decreases.

Meat chickens lay eggs, very nutritious and delicious.

Barn roosts should be low. The bird can manage to climb a high perch, but falls from it at night and is crippled.

Often the largest broilers sit on their feet. The cause may be a lack of vitamins. The skeleton needs calcium. Nest the chick and give him more vitamins. Alas, he will not get up on his feet, the joints of his legs are quickly turned inside out.

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Good afternoon, poultry beginners! Today we will tell you in detail how to grow broilers at home. Gradually broilers from industrial poultry farms moved to the household. The benefit is obvious - with relatively low feed costs, the bird is ready for slaughter in a month and a half, while the net weight of the carcass is 2.5-3.5 kg.

At the same time, there are a number of features of growing crosses and it is associated not only with nutrition, but also with the maintenance of poultry. We are trying to figure out how they differ from ordinary chickens and how to properly organize broiler growing at home.

Who are broiler chickens

This is the result of long-term selection, obtained by combining the genes of crosses and a number of meat breeds. The overwhelming majority of the plumage is white, the chest is large, the legs are large in relation to the total body length, the egg production is minimal.

If you provide the chicks with a full-fledged diet, the weight gain will be stable and amount to 80 grams per day. A healthy chick already weighs more than 2 kg per month. By one and a half months, his weight reaches the standard 3.5 kg, sometimes more. Broiler chickens are characterized by low mobility, calm disposition, very high immunity and pale skin.

In private farms and for their own needs, the following breeds are grown:

Breed name	Description	Bird weight at 9-10 weeks, kg	Egg production
Broiler-61	It was created by crossing Cornish and Plymouth Rock. It quickly gains weight - already at a month and a half, the chick weighs 1800-2200 grams. Unpretentious care. Strong immunity. Highest survival rate of hatching chicks.They limit food a month, otherwise she falls to her feet.	2,7-3,0	120
ROSS-308	Meat and egg breed, characterized by rapid weight gain. During the day, the baby is gaining 55-60 grams. Muscle mass is formed already in the second week. Eating restrictions are not required, the muscles can withstand a large mass. Ready for slaughter at 9 weeks. The skin is white after removing the feather. It is extremely rare	2,8-3,1	185
COBB-500	Differs in high survival rate, powerful immunity - practically does not get sick. The body is elongated, the chest is large. With white plumage, the skin of the bird is yellow, it is often passed off as home on the market. The meat is tender. Muscle gain begins in 10-12 days.	2,8-3,1	150-160
Boiler-M	The breed was obtained as a result of crossing mini chickens and red ones from Yerevan. When small, the weight is the same as that of most boilers. The behavior is very calm, they move very little. Meat and egg productivity is high.	2,4-2,8	165
Change	The most popular for home cultivation. Unpretentious, gives a good weight gain - 40 grams. per day. The bird itself is small, but powerful and sturdy. Muscle mass builds up quickly. Direction - meat and egg.	2,6-2,9	160-165

Read about other breeds of broiler chickens at the link in this article.

How to raise broilers at home

There are 2 main systems for raising broiler chickens:

• cage keeping, in which the birds are kept in cages, do not walk, move to a minimum, even practically do not stand;
• outdoor - in the poultry house they cover the floor with straw and keep them inside, there is a little more space than in the cages, but still there is not enough space for heavy traffic.

Both systems have pros and cons.

Among the disadvantages of floor keeping birds are:

1. The need for the room. Despite the fact that broilers are kept compact, for 100 heads (this is the minimum that makes sense to grow for profit), you need at least 15 square meters, of which 10 will go for the birds themselves and 5 for their service.
2. Constant cleaning, floor treatment with sanitary and veterinary products in order to avoid diseases. The amount of droppings is very large - 10 times more than from ordinary layers, and its accumulation on the floor, where the birds themselves sit right there, negatively affects both the situation and the quality of meat in the future.

With outdoor cultivation, it is very difficult to care for the bird and to collect the droppings in a timely manner.

Option with the location of the bird in a pit, on the grass, etc. it is generally not applicable to broiler birds. It does not justify itself either in terms of labor costs or in terms of economic benefits. Let us remind you once again that this is not a running laying hen, the broiler moves very little, it is still in a sitting or reclining position, both due to the fact that the rapid weight gain does not correspond to the muscular skeletons, and in order not to expend extra calories.

The cell-battery maintenance outperforms the floor one in all positions. Yes, initially you need to invest in the construction of cages, but later you can grow more than one livestock in them.

The cellular way to raise broilers at home

Pros of cells:

• the minimum area is 20 sq.m. enough to accommodate 200 adult birds, while there will be more than enough space for them;
• due to the small area, less costs for heating, lighting and ventilation;
• easy to care for - pallets or litter trays are placed under the cages, which are emptied daily.

Content requirements

How to raise broilers at home? There are no fundamental differences between the premises for broiler chickens and for ordinary layers, you just need to pay attention to certain requirements:

1. Constant temperature. The room should be warm - in winter the temperature does not drop below 15 ° С, in summer it does not rise above + 22 ° С. To organize heating in cold weather, you can use mobile stoves, radiators, air heaters, etc. Given that the room is small, the expense would not be catastrophic.
2. Be sure to do ventilation.This is not a whim, it is a necessary measure that provides, on the one hand, access to fresh air and a decrease in the concentration of ammonia, on the other hand, coolness in the warm season. Natural ventilation will not be enough, make forced ventilation with the installation of a built-in fan.
3. Plastered walls are another harsh necessity to allow for regular disinfection. After each change of livestock, the walls are covered with a layer of lime and ventilated for several days.

Do not forget that broiler chicken breeding is a specific process that requires compliance with certain requirements. Providing a normal maintenance and a full-fledged diet, you can count on the planned financial result.

VIDEO: Learning to breed broilers at home from chick to slaughter.

How to make your own cell battery

You can choose any scheme on the Internet, especially since there are a lot of options. But we offer just such - it is justified in terms of financial and labor costs. It turns out to be a meter wide, 40 cm high. They are made three-story, and under each there is a tray for collecting droppings.

You can expose several batteries and remove the partitions between them to get one large floor. A battery is made from a square pipe. The tree is impractical, although it is cheaper. Concentrated bird droppings will gradually erode the wood, and the cages will have to be repaired frequently. Plus, bacteria accumulate in the crevices, which can lead to diseases of the bird.

So, for one battery you will need:

• square 30x20 mm for the main structure;
• square 15x15 mm for partitions;
• metal mesh with cells 50x25 mm for the back wall;
• metal mesh with cells of 12x12 mm for the floor.

Battery manufacturing diagram.

Feeders are made of galvanized steel so that the feed hopper is outside.

Bunker feeders.

Drinking bowls - nipple. Water during its stay in the container has time to warm up to room temperature, which is only beneficial.

Nipple drinkers for broiler chickens.

There is no need to make or buy a separate brooder. Part of the cage can be enclosed on all sides with a USB sheet or plywood. Lay a diaper on the floor, cover it with sawdust and install lamps for heating. This is quite enough for growing chickens, but provided that the temperature regime of 31-33 ° C is observed. Be sure to leave holes for ventilation - babies need fresh air, otherwise they will suffocate.

How to grow broilers at home video

Breeding broiler chickens

How to grow broilers at home? An obligatory step is to drink antibiotics and vitamins. Different antibiotics are selected depending on the region.

The purpose of such an event is to eliminate the risk of disease, since with a mass settlement, the epidemic among the livestock spreads almost instantly. Sometimes a day is enough for the chicks to die out in dozens.

Feeding chicks.

Furazolidone is recognized as the safest today. It is non-toxic and a broad-spectrum antibiotic. They are soldered in the second week of life for 3 consecutive days at the rate of 3 grams per 1 kg of live weight.

Furazolidone.

Enrofloxacin has proven itself in the prevention and treatment of avian diseases; it can be used both in pure form and in the form of separate preparations - Baytril, Enroxil, Enroflox. All of these medicines can be given already on the second day of life at the rate of 1 ml for each liter of water. Soldered for 3-5 days. The use of drugs allows you to avoid diseases such as salmonellosis, colibacillosis, pasteurellosis, mycoplasmosis, tuberculosis, smallpox, etc.

Vitaminization allows you to increase the immunity of chicks and ensure a good weight gain from the first days of life. All the necessary complex of vitamins is already included in the starter feed. By the way, it is not worth practicing with broiler chickens the way of feeding - brilliant green + cereal + egg.

These are specially bred breeds that gain mass very intensively and in large volumes, and it is very important to provide the baby with everything he needs in the first two weeks of life, when the skeleton and muscle mass are formed. It is the farmer's job to provide the bird with all the vitamins and minerals to support this growth. In principle, there is no such set in homemade food, therefore, at best, the chick will not form, and at worst it will simply die.

From day 15, the chicks are transferred from the brooder and the feeding system is selected.

On the fifth day, the diaper is removed from under the chicks' feet, and on the 15th day it is transferred to the common cage. In our case, they simply remove the plywood, opening access to the rest of the part.

Nutrition and a complete diet

How to raise broilers at home? Depending on the purpose for which the bird is grown, you can choose one of three feeding options.

• Self-cooking

The obligatory complex includes wheat and corn in equal parts. Sunflower and soybean meal is added by a quarter of the total volume. One tenth is fish or meat and bone meal. 3% river sand and crushed chalk. The vitamin complex is necessarily introduced in the form of premixes.

Broiler feed composition.

This method is justified in terms of finance, but risky in terms of product quality. The hardest thing to find is a quality meal. Its essence is that it contains a wide range of minerals, amino acids and proteins. Meal is used as the basis for all poultry feed. But if the quality of the meal is regulated in production, then buying a good product from private traders is a pure lottery. The same goes for meat and bone meal. It is difficult to understand by smell and appearance whether the flour is good or not, but bad flour is very well felt when eating poultry meat.

Thus, if there are reliable suppliers, it is best to prepare the feed yourself. Business profitability increases by an average of 10-15%.

• Ready mixed feed

Consumption of finished feed, depending on the age of the bird.

The easiest but most expensive way to feed broilers. If we are talking about a small farm - up to 150 heads - the use of feed concentrates is justified. It is also convenient to use them for beginners who are just trying themselves in the field of poultry farming.

• Self-preparation + BMVD (protein-mineral-vitamin supplements)

The BMVD includes sunflower and soybean meal, yeast, chalk, meat and bone meal, methionine, lysine, premixes, and salt. This is the same middle ground that experienced farmers often adhere to. What you need to do is mix equal parts corn and wheat and combine with vitamin supplements. In what proportions does the BMVD manufacturer indicate.

BMVD.

This option of feeding reduces the cost, in comparison with concentrated feed, by 15-25%, depending on the size of the livestock. At the same time, farmers have the opportunity to make the carcass the way the client wants. So, for example, increasing the proportion of corn makes the skin yellowish (like homemade, which increases demand) and reduces the amount of fat. The increase in wheat, on the contrary, leaves the skin pale, but the carcass will be oily, and the broth, accordingly, rich.

Slaughter, pluck and preparation for sale

The bird is ready for slaughter already at 45 days of age. It is senseless to grow it longer than 60 days - the meat will be fatty and loose.

For preparation, a properly organized chain of workers is needed - slaughter-pluck-evisceration-gumming-washing-drying. In general, from start to finish, one carcass takes about half an hour, depending on the skill.

It is very important not to overexpose the broiler when scalding, otherwise the skin will cook and begin to tear, but it is also impossible not to hold it, since the feather will be difficult to remove.

For large volumes - from 100 heads - we recommend using a feathering machine. The simplest design will cost 7-10 thousand rubles, its cost can be recouped from the first batch.It takes a minute to clean the feathers in the machine, while leaving the skin intact.

Carcass ready for sale.

You need to gut it carefully so that the presentation is preserved. To do this, cut the belly from the tail by 5-7 cm and carefully remove the giblets through the hole formed. For convenience, the skin on the neck is slightly trimmed, then the trachea is removed in one motion. Be sure to remove everything, including the lungs.

If the bird is not for sale, but for home use, the carcass is cut from the tail to the end of the sternum of the wing. This makes it easier to remove the offal and easier to wash it from the inside. With this cutting, the breast is not damaged, which is especially important.

After the carcass is ground over a fire and washed thoroughly. Leave to dry for 5-6 hours and rest. It is forbidden to put the carcass in the refrigerator until the expiration of 8 hours from the moment of slaughter - the meat will "suffocate" and an unpleasant smell will appear.

VIDEO: How to pluck a carcass correctly.

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Broilers are undoubtedly one of the most popular breeding options for meat chicken breeds. High productivity, fast weight gain, phlegmatic character, excellent meat quality are an important distinguishing feature of these breeds. But along with the benefits and an abundance of quality products, the breeder will face problems and specific nuances in the breeding process that require increased attention and diligence on his part. Let's try to understand all the intricacies of the process called: broilers - growing at home, feeding, note the main pros and cons of broiler breeding.

Broilers - main breeds

Broiler breed KOBB-500

Broiler is a representative of crosses, a hybrid of meat breeds (Kohinin, Plymouthrock, Langshan, etc.). The most common color is white, almost all breeds have a wide chest and strong legs, they carry few eggs. Difference and peculiarity of the broiler: genetically based rapid weight gain with relatively low feed costs (from 1.8 to 3 kg per kilogram of weight), which allows a month-old chick to weigh up to 2.5 kilograms. A healthy chick gains daily (depending on the breed) from 30 to 80 grams of weight. All breeds are distinguished by increased vitality, calm character, pale skin typical for most broiler crosses after slaughter. The most popular breeds today:

• Broiler-61;
• ROSS-308;
• Change-7;
• ROSS-708;
• COBB-500.

Let us note the peculiarity of the latter breed, which favorably distinguishes it from others: the KOBB-500 carcass has yellowness, which is popular among buyers, which makes it more profitable for breeding for retail sale. The yellowness of the breed does not depend on the nutritional characteristics, the presence of corn in the diet, etc.

Broiler keeping specifics

Preparing the chicken coop

In the early days of life, chicks are exposed to stress from moving, which negatively affects health and vitality, increasing the risk of mortality and disease. To reduce negative factors, it is necessary to conduct a thorough preliminary preparation of the poultry room, taking into account all the necessary needs of the chicks. An approximate list of necessary activities.

• Disinfect the premises. Pre-plaster the walls, grease with lime (for floor maintenance, lime the floor in the proportion: 1 kg per square meter). When reused, disinfection is also necessary, the walls should be treated with whitewash;

The use of lime is a primary necessity when building a chicken coop

• There should be no drafts in the room.All cracks must be plastered, properly filled or repaired. Do not use rags or other temporary alternatives. a bird out of curiosity can peck this part of the wall, damaging its beak or tongue;
• Regardless of the season, the temperature in the hen house in the first weeks should not be lower than 30 degrees. For heating, both various heaters and incandescent lamps are used. In the future, the temperature can be gradually reduced to 20 degrees by the time of the slaughter. At low temperatures, both weight loss and a general decrease in chick health are possible;
• In the first weeks, constant dim lighting (1.8 W per square meter) is necessary: ​​it helps to gain weight, improves the body's resistance to non-infectious diseases, and stimulates hematopoiesis (the process of formation and development of blood cells). Later, after 2 weeks of growth, when the bird gets stronger and gains weight, the lighting can be reduced by introducing the darkness mode for several hours, which will also be beneficial for the health of the chickens;

Lighting as a heat source for chicks

• Good quality, working ventilation and humidity control is essential. The accumulation of ammonia in the air, high and, conversely, low humidity in the room can cause biting, lack of appetite, stress, the appearance of infections (for example, coccidiosis), and increased mortality. The optimum humidity level is from 50 to 60%;
• When planning a chicken coop, it is necessary to ensure free and convenient access of all chicks to drinkers and a feeder, avoiding crowding and competition for food;
• Lay a dry and loose covering (sawdust, straw) on the floor with a layer of no more than 10 cm thick. Clean up dirt every day, keep the room dry: chicks inevitably spill water on the floor, which creates ideal conditions for infections and bacteria.

It is important to know: due to stress, moving day old chicks often results in increased mortality, many breeders prefer to purchase older chicks for up to 10 days, which reduces the likelihood of losses, but reduces the potential profits.

It will also be useful when buying (regardless of the age of the chicks) to pay attention to the liveliness and mobility of the chicks, rejecting excessively apathetic and immobile ones.

Containment room options

Solid brooder for chickens

In the first 10 days of life, it is recommended to keep the chicks in a brooder, a "nursery for the smallest", necessary for better control over what is happening at the most helpless moment of the chicks' life. The brooder itself can be placed in the house, making it easier to observe. To make it you will need:

• two large boxes fastened together: one for feeding, the other for walking. The boxes themselves must be disinfected (ideally with lime);
• oilcloth, a layer of straw or sawdust for bedding;
• feeder;
• drinker;
• constant lighting.

The approximate number of livestock in a brooder is 18 chicks per square meter. After 10 days of growth, a crush inevitably begins among the chicks, which means it is time to move the bird to a more extensive, adapted room.

It is possible to build a separate covered building for the chicken coop, but you can adapt a summer cottage or use an ordinary greenhouse.

The option with a greenhouse has an undeniable plus: in the case of breeding chicks in the cold season, heating costs are significantly reduced, which increases the final profit. But in the greenhouse, problems with ventilation and humidity are inevitable, which will ultimately lead to a significant loss of chickens from diseases and infections. It is necessary to constantly ventilate the room, while avoiding drafts and cold snaps, or conduct a separate ventilation system.

When using a separate room, two options are practiced:

• outdoor, with chicks on the floor covered with litter;
• cage, with the construction of a multi-tiered system for keeping chicken.

Cage multi-tiered building for chickens

The outdoor version is simpler to perform, does not require additional labor to create cells, but it has several important disadvantages in comparison with the cell content:

• the ratio "number of chicks - square meter" in the cage version is definitely more advantageous. It is advisable to place up to 10 chicks per 1 square meter (taking into account constant growth). With a cage keeping on the same square meter, depending on the number of floors, you can place 2 times more chicks, which is not the limit;
• the cost of heating the premises, ventilation and electricity in the cellular version - less;
• high degree of pollution during floor maintenance. The need for more frequent cleaning, an increase in diseases and infections.

Outdoor chicken coop

Video - Broiler cage

Creation of equipment for feeding and water supply

Also, in the chicken coop, it is necessary to think over the feeding and drinking system, it should be simple, to exclude the possibility of injury to the bird. Even without special engineering talent, it is possible to quickly and easily build several types of drinkers and feeding devices.

To create the simplest drinking bowl that works according to the principles of physics, you will need:

• deep and wide bowl or basin;
• five-liter water bottle.

Diy drinker example

Step 1... Close the bottle tightly. Make a hole at the bottom of the bottle with a nail or knife. The hole should be no higher than the top of the bowl.

Step 2... Then we put the bottle in a bowl, add water. Water flows out exactly to the desired level in the bowl, provided the lid is tightly closed. We get the simplest homemade construction from scrap materials.

An equally simple version of the feeder. For this you will need:

• large plastic bottle;
• several screws;
• a small sheet of plywood;
• scissors.

DIY chick feeder

Step 1... We cut the bottle into two parts. In the lower part on the sides with a knife we ​​make holes for the bird.

Step 2... We fasten the lower part with a couple of screws to the plywood sheet for greater stability (the bird should not be able to turn the structure over).

Step 3... Lower the upper part with the neck inside the lower part, pour the grain. As the grain is eaten, new feed will flow to the bottom from the top.

Video - Feeders for chickens from a sewer pipe

Broiler feeding

For accelerated weight gain, broilers need constant and balanced nutrition, focused on improving the taste of meat and maintaining health. Depending on the age of the bird, its diet changes, new ingredients necessary for growth appear. There are only four nutritional strategies:

Economical feed options

1) Feeding exclusively with dry compound feed. Many farmers insist on the convenience of feeding poultry with dry feed: this simplifies the daily care of chicks, which is especially important for large farms. Making a wet mash, at a lower cost, requires non-free man-hours. Also, the likelihood of problems with the safety of the product is not excluded, due to the high probability of purchasing low-quality ingredients. The composition of the dry compound feed is initially balanced for optimal growth of the bird, the bird gains weight on it almost instantly, while when using wet mash, delays in weight gain are possible (up to 15 days from the norm).

Balanced dry compound feed

2) Many breeders prefer to use wet mash (the proportion of production is 1 kg of dry food for half a liter of water, broth, dairy products), which significantly reduces feeding costs. Additional savings is provided by the ability to add part of unused products from the table (porridge, part of vegetables, yeast), not spoiled waste. This option is optimal for farms with a small number of poultry (up to 100 heads) and a modest budget;

Wet mash preparation

3) Combined food. It can be produced in various ways: dry food is constantly added to the trough, in addition to which there is wet food; dry food can be added to the mash itself as an integral part. An option that simplifies the care process (the frequency of visits for feeding poultry is reduced), significantly saving money by reducing the share of finished compound feed in the diet;

4) The use of BMVD. Modern protein concentrate (BMVD) containing mineral supplements, vitamins, biologically active substances. When added to dry compound feed (from 5% to 30% of the total amount of feed), it can significantly reduce food costs, enrich the poultry ration as much as possible, increasing productivity, meat quality, and disease resistance. Cost savings when adding BMVD can be up to 20% compared to feeding exclusively with compound feed. It also saves time, freeing you from the need to prepare food, vitaminizing it yourself, filling it with useful additives. The method is optimal for farms of any size.

Modern protein concentrate (BMVD)

When preparing mash, spoiled food should be avoided. The mash itself should not stand for more than 3 hours, sour or deteriorate in the sun.

Recipes for feeding broilers from 1 to 14 days

At the initial stage, feeding should take place 8 times a day, by the second week the number of feedings can be reduced to 6. The approximate feed rate on the first day is 10-15 grams, by day 14 - about 80 grams, the portion is increased daily to avoid malnutrition.

For chicks from 1 to 14 days old, eggs, dairy products (reverse, whey, low-fat kefir, cottage cheese) are vital, it is useful to prepare a wet mash based on millet with the addition of dairy products.

Millet is the main grain crop in the first days of chickens' life.

Millet

In the absence of stomach problems, diarrhea or indigestion, dry feed PKV6-1, created specifically for the starting period, can be added to the chicks. The feed is based on corn, which stimulates the proper development of the skeleton and muscles, the performance of the stomach and intestines.

The compound feed itself is quite expensive, so you can replace the purchased version with a mixture of your own preparation. This requires:

• exactly half of the mass will be ground corn;
• 15% - ground wheat;
• 15% - meal or cake;
• 12% - dairy products (reverse, whey or kefir);
• the rest is barley.

At the initial stage, the share of grain crops should be 55-60% of the total ration; it is advisable to serve any grain crops ground, without film.

In the second week, crushed shells, shells, chalk, bone meal and fish oil can be added to the mash, which will be a valuable source of minerals and nutrients. Also, babies in the same period (from 3 days) need to add herbal flour, chopped dandelion, dry nettle, alfalfa, green peas (up to 3 grams), this will make up for the lack of fiber for the body.

Greens are the main natural source of vitamins for chickens.

Greens for chickens

Diet for broilers from 14 to 30 days

The number of feedings is reduced to 4 per day, the bird becomes more independent, every day a chick at 2-4 weeks of life eats from 90 to 120 grams of feed. Chicks are fed with a mixture of corn, wheat, cake, meat and bone meal, skim milk, herbs, fat.

At the stage of fattening, a healthy chick is rapidly gaining weight (1.5 kilograms at the end of the fourth week), becoming almost omnivorous. There is a need to increase the variety of food during this period, which is dictated by the need for chicks in a large amount of nutrients and vitamins for full maturation. New products are added to the diet, the ratio of some of them in the mash changes:

1) It is advisable to replace part of the millet (20%) with crushed boiled potatoes as an additive to the mash;

Boiled potatoes

2) Fish waste is added, first in the amount of 5 grams, gradually increasing to 15;

3) Yeast and a greater amount of fresh greens, grass flour (if feeding is in winter) begin to be added to the mash, the optimal amount of greens is 10% of the total amount of feed;

4) Grated carrots and yellow pumpkin appear in the diet, you need to start with 5 grams, increasing the portion, as you grow older, to 30 grams per head;

5) During plumage, it is advisable to start feeding the bird with fresh cabbage;

6) During this period, it is recommended to add dairy products (curdled milk, buttermilk, etc.), bone meal, chalk, shells to the mash as widely as possible. chicks at this age are in dire need of a large amount of protein and calcium due to increased growth.

Buttermilk

Advice for those who use ready-made mixtures: it is advisable to replace the starting compound feed PK6-1 with the fattening PK6-2 containing lysine, oil and meat and bone meal, which is more suitable for this stage of poultry growing up. The pellets themselves in the feed are larger, quickly saturating the grown bird.

Finishing broiler feeding: 30 to 45 days, slaughter

At the finish line, it is preferable to feed it 2 times a day, the daily portion of an adult bird is up to 180 grams. You can refuse ground grain, it is advisable to replace it with whole grain (if possible, it is recommended to germinate grains). Fattening compound feed PK6-2 is replaced with a balanced finishing PK6-3, the composition of which can be partially recreated at home. An approximate recipe for finishing food at home:

• 20% corn;
• 20% soy;
• 25% barley;
• 25% wheat;
• 10% peas.

Cereal mixes become the main course at the finish line.

Cereal mix for broiler feeding

It is advisable to add a small amount of sunflower oil cake, minerals (shells, chalk), fat, yeast, vitamin supplements to the feed, which is useful for poultry of any age.

By the 45th day, the bird stops rapidly gaining weight, having reached the ceiling of 2-2.5 kg, the investment ceases to justify itself. It is advisable to start slaughtering the hen after this period, if there is no need for layers, eggs for incubation, etc. Below is a summary table of the ratio: age - feeding - growth.

Age	1-14 days	15-30 days	31-45 days
Feed intake	15-80	80-120	120-180
Average growth	30	48	55
Average mass	40-500	500-1600	1600-2500

What you need to do to raise healthy broilers

For the health of the bird, to reduce losses from infections, it is strongly recommended to carry out a therapeutic course of vitamins and antibiotics.

Along with vitamins and antibiotics, starting from 5-7 days, it is recommended to drink the poultry weekly with a weak solution of manganese to prevent gastrointestinal infections.

Broiler breeding mistakes at home

• The first main mistake: while observing the temperature regime, the breeder does not pay attention to the cold floors in the chicken coop (relevant for floor keeping), which leads to heat loss in chicks, diseases. Before moving in the chicks, it is recommended to check the floor of the room with your own feet. If you feel cold in the room, additional insulation will be required;
• The second mistake: it is worth paying extra attention to the floor in the room and because of the potential presence of mold. It is recommended to check the presence of fungus in the chicken coop even if the premises are clean outside. It is necessary to reduce the possibility of moisture ingress on the floor; in case of wetting, remove the wet segment as soon as possible. In overcrowded conditions, a wet floor quickly becomes a source of disease (which can easily lead to infection in the yolk sac);

Hidden mold and dirt are serious sources of danger.

Macro shot of mold

• The third mistake: do not put excessively bright lighting for the chicks, this can cause pecking, stress and weight loss;
• The fourth mistake: in the pursuit of high temperatures at the starting stage, proper attention is not paid to ventilation, which leads exclusively to negative consequences. Chickens should not have a steam room, and the air in the room should not smell aggressively of ammonia.

About what broilers should not be fed

Broilers are almost omnivorous poultry, but it is important to exclude certain foods from their diet, the list of which you can see below.

• boiled potatoes;
• stale or spoiled food;
• sausages;
• lemons, oranges;
• melons, watermelons and peels from them;
• fresh milk and cheeses;
• alcohol-containing products;
• chocolate products;
• pure jams and oils.

But even if all the rules and regulations of feeding are observed, it is possible to use either low-quality products for mash, or compound feed. This becomes clear very quickly, the bird begins to get sick, lose weight, biting is possible. In this case, it is worthwhile to urgently carry out unscheduled drinking with vitamins and change the feed.

Particularly sick birds should be placed in a separate cage for individual treatment and feeding.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Broiler Breeding

Broilers growing at home

As a result, we offer the reader a list of the main pros and cons of broilers as a breed so that he independently decides whether it is worth breeding this tasty but difficult bird or is it better to try yourself in a different field.

Advantages

High productivity and growth. By the 6th week of growth, the weight of a broiler can reach 2-2.5 kg, as a result, after 50 days of growth, up to 3 kilograms from a chicken, and up to 5 kg. with a cockerel. A real giant, while potentially profitable.

Quality products with an excellent proportion of white and red meat, in the case of proper care, no stress sources and a varied diet.

The broiler is undemanding to large spaces, at the initial stage (brooder) it is possible to place up to 18 chicks per square meter, which allows using small backyards as a mini-poultry farm.

Flaws

The need for constant feeding, high food costs. The poultry will not gain weight on pasture; for a good nutrition of broilers, clean water of medium temperature, high-quality, safe and varied food with a clear feeding schedule is needed.

In case of errors with the selection of products, death and various diseases are possible.

Due to the increased crowding and low mobility of broilers, the room with chickens must be cleaned of waste every day (also wash the feeders and drinkers with soap every week), knowingly prepare for settling, monitor the health of the bird, regularly feed with antibiotics and vitamins, settle a weak bird separately, set on an autonomous diet to avoid falling or pecking.

High humidity, temperature drops are unacceptable. It is necessary to provide high-quality ventilation of the premises, while avoiding, at the same time, drafts or cold, which lead to illness, weight loss and mortality. This fact makes setting up a broiler breeding facility a daunting and costly task.