Content
Even ancient people domesticated wild birds and began to breed them in order to obtain food in the form of eggs and meat, as well as feathers and down, which were used in everyday life. Today's birds are different from those that were bred by our ancestors. As a result of selection work, the most suitable breeds for breeding were bred. In this article we will tell you which bird is more profitable to breed at home, because now everyone who has a desire and a small suburban area can breed birds.
Chickens and geese bred at home
Breeding ducks
Ducks were the first on our list. It is no coincidence that they were among the first to be domesticated by our ancestors. This is because these birds are famous for their unpretentiousness and quickly gain weight. The latter circumstance is especially important, because the ultimate goal of duck breeding is to obtain meat that has an amazing taste and high nutritional value due to its fat and fiber content.
Ducks on a private farm
Duck eggs are usually not eaten as readily as chicken eggs, because they have a specific taste. However, they can be used to make sauces and other dishes. Feathers and down are suitable for stuffing pillows and blankets, therefore they are also valuable.
Those who maintain not only a poultry house, but also are engaged in maintaining a vegetable garden will be able to use duck droppings as fertilizer.
Choosing a breed
Before you start self-breeding ducks, you should pay attention to the features of the most popular and suitable species of birds, and choose the right ones for yourself. We present a selection of the most profitable breeds for breeding.
Peking duck
You don’t have to be a gourmet in order not to taste a baked bird of this breed in a restaurant at least once in your life. The body weight of an adult female is 3 kilograms, and the drake weighs one kilogram more. Fibrous, fatty meat is very nutritious and literally melts in your mouth, the edible portion of duck is about 70%.
Peking ducks lay about 140-150 eggs per year, of which about 100 ducklings grow.
Peking duck
Muscovy duck
Also known as Indo-woman. This breed can significantly surpass the previous one in size: the weight of the drake reaches 6 kg. The resulting meat is soft and lean.The nature of these birds is always calm, which is also a plus. They do not fight in open-air cages, do not make noise. Disease resistance is another undeniable benefit of the muscovy duck.
Indoor woman in water
Read also: Indoor meat breed
Duck Mulard
This breed is a hybrid of the above two varieties. The chicks obtained by crossing the Peking and Muscovy ducks are characterized by a fast growth rate and a large adult weight. Hybrids do not produce offspring, but this can hardly be called a minus, because the version of their maintenance remains very productive due to the large yield of meat.
Ducks breed Mulard
Video - Breeding muscovy ducks at home
What should be the room for ducks
Any building that has been carefully equipped will become a duck house. First of all, you should take care of the insulation of the room, since the egg production and weight gain of birds directly depend on the comfort of the temperature.
An extension made of logs should be caulked and plastered from the inside, a wooden house can be upholstered with plywood, covered with plaster, putty with clay, and so on. In hot weather, the inside of the house should be cool to give the ducks a chance to rest, and in frosty weather they should be warm and calm inside.
House for ducks on the water
When setting up a duck house, pay special attention to the floor. It should be found about 25 cm above the ground to keep rats out. Peat, sawdust or straw mixed with grass should be placed on top of the floor. Dry everything thoroughly and clean from impurities. For one individual, you need to prepare about 12 kg.
The laying of eggs in ducks directly depends on sufficient light and heat. Make sure that they are always warm and dry inside their house, otherwise you risk being left without an increase in livestock. Be sure to consider ventilation inside the house.
Reducing daylight hours in winter can be a serious problem for ducks. Increase daylight hours with artificial lighting in the mornings and evenings.
Bird shade
Arrangement of a duck house
First of all, decide in which part of the house the duck hole will be made. A good option would be to place it in the south or southeast. The size of the manhole is 40 cm wide and 30-40 cm high. It is a good idea to build a small vestibule to protect the manhole from wind and drafts.
In summer, it is worth fencing off the bird walking area so that they do not wander around the site and do not spoil the garden plantings. You can make such an aviary not only on land, but also on water. As material for the fence, you can use:
- fishing net;
- shingles;
- chain-link;
- metal mesh;
- reiki.
Fenced poultry house
A one-meter fence will be enough for the land plot, but in the water the fence should drop 70 cm below and 50 cm above the surface, since ducks can dive in and accidentally swim out of the fence. If you do not have a small private reservoir, then this can lead to a decrease in the number of livestock.
To protect the birds from the heat, sheds are fitted to the fences in the summer. It would be a great idea to immediately equip the aviaries under the spreading trees, in the shade of which the birds can cool off.
Birds will want to walk not only in summer, but also in winter. To do this, it is necessary to constantly keep the aviary free of snow, and cover its floor with a thick layer of dry straw. When the air temperature is acceptable and there is no wind, ducks can walk from morning to evening, however, in frosts, in no case should they be forced out for a walk, as this will entail hypothermia. The house must be cleaned every day, airing it carefully so as not to blow through the feathered tenants.
Duck pen
Interior decoration
Bird feeders are installed on a wide board, at least 2 cm thick. From above, it is necessary to adapt a bar to it, which will prevent ducks from trampling food.In addition to its main diet, the duck should receive mineral supplements, which it swallowed with silt in its natural environment:
- small seashells;
- limestone;
- gravel, etc.
Mineral supplements in the diet of ducks
Since ducks need a large amount of drink every day, about 600 ml, you should immediately equip a voluminous and comfortable drinker. It can be made of metal or wood. It should be as tall as a duck to keep the water clear (about 20 cm).
Duck nests are located in the darkened compartments of the ducks to help ducks lay their eggs more calmly. However, do not get crowded, leave room for free movement of the person, because you will have to regularly collect eggs and clean up in the nests. Each side of the nest should be between 40 and 50 cm, and the height should be 50 cm. To prevent the nest litter from falling out of the perch, equip a small sill at the exit.
Original feeder for ducklings
Count the number of laying ducks among your breeders and arrange nests, one for every three birds. Eggs are collected in the morning.
Be careful when cleaning, because ducks are very shy. Severe stress can lead to the fact that they completely stop rushing.
Creation and maintenance of the tribe
The main prerequisite for creating a duck tribe is uniformity. It should contain birds of the same age and weight. There are about eight females per drake. When picking up ducklings in your livestock, do not take hybrid chicks, because they cannot leave behind offspring.
Hybrid ducks cannot leave offspring
The most important criterion for selection is the appearance of the birds. The feathered constitution must be strong, it itself must constantly move and radiate energy. The number and health of the future offspring depends on how healthy the parent tribe is.
For high egg production of females, you need to create comfortable living conditions for ducks, do not frighten them by bursting into the chicken coop, do not allow other pets to offend the bird. Once you start raising young ducklings into the parent flock, increase the length of daylight hours by half an hour each week, until it is 16 hours. Leave a minimum of light in the house at night to avoid injury. Monitor the cleanliness of the floor and nest litter.
Ducks eat compound feed
The emergence of chicks
Incubation is carried out only from those ducks that are completely healthy. For this, eggs are selected that are no older than a week. They look around and weigh themselves. The mass should be 70-90 grams for light breeds of birds and up to 100 grams for heavy ones. Infected or spoiled eggs must be disposed of quickly.
Supporters of natural incubation of eggs need to remember that not all species of ducks have a developed instinct for raising offspring. For example, the Peking duck devotes almost no time to the laid eggs. Below we give a table with which you can recognize whether a duck will hatch offspring.
| Sits for a long time in the nest | Rarely fits the nest |
| Tears off the plumage and lines the nest | Walks a lot and actively |
| Walks separately from the rest of the birds | Often makes noise |
The ducks preparing for incubation can lay eggs collected earlier. It is important to take into account the size of each layer so that it completely covers the clutch with its body.
Hatching duckling
Breeding chicks artificially is based on an uninterrupted supply of oxygen and constant ventilation. At the very beginning, the temperature at which the eggs are laid should be around 38 ° C. By the 20th day it is lowered to 30. The eggs are examined and the embryo is checked for development on the 8th, 21st and 25th days.
How healthy hatched ducklings are determined by these features:
- on the evenness of pigmentation;
- fluffiness of feathers;
- wings pressed to the body;
- soft stomach;
- dry navel;
- weighing 50 g.
The breeding period for this bird for meat is about 60 days, since after that the birds begin to lose weight.
Let's summarize
From all of the above, it is clear that keeping and breeding ducks is not so easy, however, it is quite acceptable. This lesson does not require specialized education and specific knowledge and brings really great benefits.
Little ducklings
Breeding geese
Geese, being close relatives of ducks, are also unpretentious in keeping. Juicy goose meat has long been an integral part of Russian cuisine, decorating festive tables. Goose down is used for stuffing bedding and winter clothing.
Goose meat is a frequent guest on the festive table
Breed selection
To date, a large number of different breeds of this bird are offered for purchase. Almost all of them are resistant to any climatic features of the territory of residence. However, taking into account the characteristics of each variety, it is better to choose the ideal one for breeding in your region, since the regularity and completeness of offspring depends on this.
Family of geese
We present you a list of the most profitable breeds for breeding.
Gray Kholmogorov geese
Perfect for novice poultry breeders. This ancient breed is considered to be large and meaty. Adults have strong bones and disease resistance. They were bred specifically for keeping in pasture conditions. The ability to acclimatize to any weather is their undoubted advantage. Raising the Kholmogorov breed for meat is very beneficial: an adult drake weighs 12 kg, and a female - 8 kg. Egg production is about 30 eggs per year, which is a high figure.
Kholmogorov geese
Romny geese
Graceful southern birds. Perfect for natural incubation of offspring. Adults reach a weight of 5.5 kg for females and 6 kg for males. Despite the small total weight, the popularity of their breeding does not decrease due to the special delicate taste of their meat and a large amount of down and feathers. Egg production is 20 eggs per year.
Romny goose
Shadrinsky geese
In another way, the Ural. These extreme lovers are able to live in the harsh winter conditions of Siberia. The body weight of adults corresponds to the Romny geese, but the egg production is 25-30 eggs per year. They gain weight quickly and are suitable for feeding in pasture conditions.
Shadrinskie geese by the water
Toulouse geese
Some more heavyweights on our list. They have a formidable appearance, but a calm character. The weight of an adult goose reaches 11 kg, the goose weighs about 8 kg. This variety is bred specifically to obtain fatty liver, which weighs all 500 g, but its nutritious fatty meat is also popular among food lovers. This bird denies natural hatching, but it lays eggs steadily - up to 30 pieces per year.
Toulouse geese
Land geese
French nationals are also suppliers of the liver delicacy. The liver of a fattened drake reaches a weight of as much as 700 g, while its body weight is 8 kg. Egg production remains at the level of 25-30 eggs per year. Great for crossing and breeding hybrid breeds that will be even heavier than their parents.
Land geese
Arrangement of the territory and poultry house
First of all, it is necessary to put in order the land for breeding. The site on which the poultry house will be located should be located outside the city. Supporters of free grazing of geese should have a plot based on the number of livestock: an average of 10 meters per goose.
For a comfortable life for the bird, organize a poultry house. This should be a capital structure, the area is also calculated according to the livestock: 1 m2 for 4 birds. Since the air temperature in winter should not fall below 10 ° C, take care of supplying the heating system to the gooseneck. It can be represented by a self-folded brick oven, a diesel oven, batteries, or any other device.
Goose corral
The floor of the room should be made of wood or any other strong and high-quality material, since geese spend the night right on the floor. It is lined with deep bedding of peat, shavings or straw. This is necessary to protect delicate paws from cooling. The house should always be kept clean, so avoid rotting and heavy dirt on the litter by cleaning the inside more often. A large volume of water evaporates from the feather surface of geese, for 10 birds it is about 2 liters. Air the bird house constantly, otherwise its residents will start to catch cold.
Dryness and long daylight hours inside the goose are the key to productive egg production of geese.
Read also: DIY geese nests
Content
In summer, geese spend all daylight hours in the pasture, and they drive into the house to spend the night. Birds eat up to 2 kg of green grass per day, so the quality of this natural feed on the pasture must be high. Bad grass from dry or swampy fields, as well as tall grass, will not be suitable for birds. Here is a list of grasses that geese prefer:
- bindweed;
- sorrel;
- dandelion;
- yarrow;
- nettle;
- sow thistle, etc.
A canopy should be arranged so that the birds can hide from the heat of the afternoon.
Original goose house
If there is absolutely no way to dig a pond on your site, use a trick and buy a spacious children's pool with low sides for the geese.
Several times a month it is necessary to bathe geese in sand and ash, to which fodder sulfur has been added. This substance is a strong antiparasitic agent against the so-called puffer. Bites from this insect are the cause of many bird diseases that lead to stress, feather loss and weight loss.
Feeding
Oviposition in geese is short. To get the most out of it, give your geese complete rest and intensive feeding.
The diet in winter for one head is 150 g of grain-flour feed, 100 g of legumes, 400-500 g of root club crops. Add chopped dry and steamed hay and mineral additives to the list: chalk, gravel, etc. You can feed the bird with mashed potatoes made from carrots, potatoes and hay. In the evening, feed your geese with grain free from other foods.
Geese have lunch
During the period of laying eggs, the daily food rate of geese increases by 100 g of grain-flour fodder and 30 g of fodder of animal origin - milk and cottage cheese. If laying hens cannot cope with the increased food ration, reduce it by cutting back root clubs.
One month before the start of the breeding season, males should be fed. Sprouted oats are perfect, in a proportion of + 100 g per bird.
It is necessary to give clean water both in summer and in winter, despite the fact that in the cold geese will eat snow.
Obtaining offspring
The egg-laying season for geese begins at the end of February. The process begins with 1-2 eggs, next month, with proper feeding and comfort of the bird, up to 10 eggs are laid, up to 9 eggs in April and 5 in May.
Season preparation begins in early February. Nests are set on the floor, one for two females. Standard roosts should be 50 cm wide and 75 cm long. The front part should not exceed 50 cm, the back - 75 cm. It is best to separate the nests from each other so that the birds do not fight among themselves and do not damage the eggs.
Clutch of goose eggs
The litter usually occurs in the morning. After the hens have gone for a walk, eggs should be removed from the perches and stored at 12 ° C.
Let's summarize
No wonder the goose is a generally recognized favorite of poultry farmers. Resistant to any climate, unpretentious in food and care, it gives much more than it was invested in. It doesn't matter whether for sale or for food, it is very profitable to breed geese.
Breeding chickens
The chicken has long been the heroine of almost all Russian fairy tales.This is because even in the past years, keeping chickens was simple and very profitable. It is chicken meat that is used in our country every day and on holidays. It is prepared by hospitable housewives, slimming models, and athletes. And fried eggs from two eggs have long been a traditional breakfast all over the world.
Indoor chickens on the run
Choosing a breed
Let's move on to listing the most popular chicken breeds. They are distinguished primarily by egg production.
Lohmann Brown
Chickens with brown plumage, whose egg production period lasts as much as 80 weeks. More than 300 eggs are produced per year.
Chickens Lohman Brown
Russian white
As the name implies, these chickens have elegant white plumage. The egg production of this variety is about 200 eggs per year. The chickens themselves grow dense, with tender meat. Suitable for both mass and private breeding.
Russian white chicken
Hisex
Real bird fighters, they have incredible resistance to parasitic and infectious diseases. Up to 300 eggs are produced per year, the carcasses have a decent weight. The mass of one egg is a record 60 g.
Chickens Hisex
High line
They produce about 350 eggs a year, which is an amazing result. They perfectly acclimatize and adapt to any conditions of detention.
Breed High Line
Kuchinskaya
Meat breed, chickens can weigh up to 3 kg. Egg production is approximately 220 pieces per year.
Kuchin breed of chickens
Isa Brown
The weight of one egg produced by a hen of this species can exceed 63 g. The productivity is 320 eggs per year.
Chickens Isa Brown
Conditions of detention
The construction and equipment of a chicken coop will not require large financial investments. You can build a bird house with your own hands using boards, beams, cinder blocks, etc. Do not forget to insulate it before the winter season and install a stove inside so that the chickens continue to lay in the winter.
The height of the room in which the birds will live should not exceed two meters. It is imperative to have ventilation and a source of natural light, as well as lamps for artificial lighting to compensate for chickens daylight hours in winter conditions. Inside, it must be cool in summer and warm in winter, otherwise the birds can get sick.
Chickens walk in the paddock
It is necessary to regularly clean the premises, replace the litter on the floor and in perches. You can cover the floor with moss peat, shavings or sawdust of coniferous trees, as well as straw.
The entrance to the chicken coop should be located on the east or southeast side. Inside, the structure should be equipped with nests and common perches, as well as feeders and drinkers. There is one egg-laying area for every four hens.
Common roosts for chickens
Read also: Chicken nests
Feeding chickens
The easiest way to save yourself the hassle of organizing poultry feeding is to buy ready-made feed. However, it costs money and it may stop budding poultry farmers. In this case, the optimal diet per bird would be corn, carrots, potatoes, millet, bone meal, grass and mineral supplements such as shells, sand and gravel. A laying hen eats only 120 g of feed per day. If you personally take up the preparation of the leaf and herbal part of the diet, as well as purchase grain products at wholesale prices, then only 35-40 rubles per chicken will be spent per month.
Chickens eat grain
Read also: Automatic chicken feeders
Rearing and diet of offspring
Chickens are the few poultry that have a strong parental instinct, so they are great for natural incubation. Chicks can also be raised in an incubator, after hatching, by transplanting them into a makeshift aviary - a large, hard box illuminated by a heating lamp.
The menu for babies should consist of fortified foods.In the morning, you should give the protein of boiled eggs, crushed shells, chopped green onions and wheat, mixing it all together.
In the evening, mix the cottage cheese with kefir and put it in the feeders along with the river sand, which acts as a mineral additive.
Shells - a mineral supplement for chickens
Let's sum up
Breeding chickens requires the least material costs throughout the entire process and pays off with a large number of eggs and healthy chicken meat. Beginners should give their preference to these particular birds.
Breeding turkeys
Turkey meat is becoming more and more popular in the health food market. Breeding this bird species is considered very profitable today.
Turkey meat is popular in the health food market
Choosing a breed
Usually, the choice of the breed is carried out after all the characteristics of the location of the future turkey poultry are known, such as the climatic features of the region. However, there is a list of turkey varieties that are most profitable to breed.
Big 6
Highly productive beef breed, gaining weight much faster than other varieties. The weight of an adult male is approximately 19 kg, and that of a female is 11 kg.
Big 6 turkeys
Read also: Big 6 turkeys
Bronze broad-breasted
Very suitable for breeding for meat, the weight of turkeys reaches 15 kg, turkeys - 9 kg. The downside of this breed is its complete inability to graze food, since it was bred to be kept inside the poultry house. It is characterized by high fertility - up to 120 eggs per year.
Bronze broad-breasted turkeys
Read also: Bronze turkeys
North Caucasian bronze
suitable for pasture feeding. The weight of males is 14 kg, females are about 10 kg. Lowered egg production - up to 80 eggs.
North Caucasian bronze turkeys
White broad-breasted
It quickly acclimatizes in any conditions, egg production is maintained at 120 pieces per year. One of the most profitable breeds, as turkeys reach up to 25 kg. live weight, females remain at 10 kg.
White broad-breasted turkey
Cross Big 6
A heavy, beefy breed characterized by instant growth. It is bred and bought for delicious and nutritious dietary meat. A negative feature is the need for artificial insemination of birds for breeding this variety.
Read also: Turkey breeds
Breeding chicks
The turkey house should be spacious, equipped with straw nests, the width and length of which are 40 cm. There are about 15 eggs per female, so there should be enough space.
The hatched chicks must be immediately drunk with boiled water with the addition of green tea and sugar in order to increase immunity. This solution replaces water for the first four days of life, then it is introduced into the diet.
Grown turkey
Young turkeys should be constantly with the light on, which should be gradually reduced by 30 minutes so that by 20 days of life they have enough 15 days of light. The temperature should not be high, but also too low, as chicks are highly susceptible to colds.
Since turkeys are characterized by rapid weight gain, it is better to spend money and buy compound feed for them, which already includes vitamins, amino acids and minerals. However, to save money, you can feed the bird with a mixture of corn, barley and bran, as well as cottage cheese, carrots and even fish giblets. Dry yeast can be added to saturate food with vitamin A. The presence of mineral additives is mandatory, in the role of which ordinary chalk can act.
Turkey chick
Conditions of detention
Turkeys are willful birds and should not be kept with chickens, geese or ducks at a young age. In the southern regions, turkeys can be grown without a special room, since they are very resistant to weather changes, but in the northern regions, an insulated structure is required.
The enclosures for walking turkeys are fenced off with metal mesh or any other material. Inside the turkey house, feeders and drinkers are installed, preferably vacuum ones. The temperature regime of 27 degrees is provided either naturally or with the help of special heaters.
Turkeys rest on the roost
Drinkers should be rinsed several times a day, avoiding heating the water, which should remain cool and clean. Also, the poultry house itself must be constantly kept clean, otherwise the development of infections cannot be avoided.
An important point is adherence to the feeding regime for turkeys and turkeys. Food is served 4-7 times a day at the same time. Such a schedule significantly affects egg production and body weight gain.
Turkeys in the pen
Let's sum up
Breeding of turkeys is carried out for the purpose of obtaining and selling meat, but eggs and chicks can also be sold. Caring for this bird is not as easy as for others, so experienced poultry breeders should opt for it.
Video - How to breed and keep turkeys
Now that you have learned about the peculiarities of breeding the most popular species of birds, you can get down to work fully armed and achieve real success.
In this article, we will tell you how over the summer you can not only grow a crop of vegetables and fruits in your garden, but also poultry in your garden plot. What kind of food and care to use, put eggs in an incubator or buy chicks right away - read about all this in our article.
The suburban area is not only outdoor recreation and barbecue, but also hard work, thanks to which we can enjoy fresh vegetables and fruits from our own garden. Meat stocks are not in the last place. Since the summer resident begins his work in early spring, it is possible to breed poultry for meat.
Chickens, ducks or geese? Which poultry is more profitable to breed
| Survival after hatching | Feeding time before slaughter | Feed consumption before slaughter | Bird weight at the time of slaughter | Containment mode | Primary requirements | |
| Chickens | 80% | 4-5 months | 15-20 kg | 3-4 kg | Aviary + grain + chopped greens | No dampness |
| Ducklings | 95% | 3 months | 25-30 kg | 4-6 kg | Aviary + grazing + grain | Large container with water |
| Indo-kids | 100% | 4 months | 10-20 kg | 3-4 kg | Free grazing | Lack of dampness, large grazing |
| Goose | 99% | 4 months | 20-25 kg | 8-10 kg | Free grazing + grain up to 2 months, after - an open-air cage 5 × 5 m, periodic grazing | Plenty of water and greenery in the aviary, large grazing |
| Turkey poults | 60% | 5-6 months | 15-20 kg | 10-15 kg | Free grazing up to 3 months, then 3-4 times a day | Free grazing, no dampness |
The table shows the approximate amount of feed for a certain period. There is no exact daily allowance for chickens. Feed poured into the troughs can crumble, trample and get wet. Therefore, it should be removed immediately and applied fresh. The most accurate recommendation would be that there should always be food in the feeder.
Poultry plot
In order to determine what type of bird to grow, one should take into account the size of the plot that is allotted for the household.
Chickens
If there is very little space on it, then chickens are the most profitable option. They do not require a large area. Lack of grazing can be replaced by self-cutting plant feed. They don't require a lot of water. Since they are more difficult to keep free, they require more grain in a small area.
If you keep chickens for preparing meat, then they should be cut after 3 months, when they reach 3-4 kilograms. After this time, the chickens begin to lay and lose weight.
Ducks and geese
Ducks and geese require more attention. Chopped greens will not be enough to feed them - they need grazing and water. But this does not require a separately sown area or a natural reservoir.
Waterfowl sweep away any weeds located near housing, and you can provide them with water using an artificial pond.To do this, it is enough to dig in a container for water or lay out a small depression with a stone in the distant part of the cottage, in order to avoid unpleasant odors near the living quarters. After 3 months, the bird gains from 6 to 10 kg (geese).
Indo-women
Indo-kids from the very birth require greenery. Even a diurnal duckling, with its soft beak, is able to nibble on grass. If it's enough to begin with, Indo-girls ignore grains altogether.
Turkeys
Turkeys are very picky about food. They need certain supplements of greenery and special attention. But they require less feed in the presence of grazing - a free, unlimited area with weeds.
After 4–5 months, they reach 10–15 kg, and subsequently can be a “living incubator” for incubating and rearing young animals. The turkey does not understand who hatched from her - turkey poults, chickens or goslings. She adjusts to the "interests" of her brood, and it is sometimes interesting to watch how she patiently waits for her waterfowl children while they swim.
What to feed the bird
For chickens and turkeys, the desired feed is wheat, corn and oats. For waterfowl - mixed fodder from all types of grain, crushed root crops, green mass and silage. After a month, it is recommended to add sand to the feed. Since waterfowl process food very quickly, the sand gives the impression of satiety, which allows them to lie down longer and "get fat".
Poultry breeding methods
There are 3 ways to breed young animals:
- breeding poultry with an incubator
- buy young at a local incubator
- live incubator - goose, duck or turkey
The most convenient way is to place her own eggs under the hen. But not all summer residents have the opportunity to keep a bird in the winter. Therefore, in the spring, they buy small chicks at the poultry farm, hatch them using their own mini-incubator, or still put the purchased eggs under the hen. At the same time, duck eggs can be placed under the chickens, chicken eggs can be placed under ducks and geese, and any and in larger quantities can be placed under the turkey than under any other poultry.
You can lay eggs in a special incubator at any time of the year, but early spring is the most optimal option when there is already grass, because any bird needs vitamins contained in weeds and cultivated plants.
The incubator is easy to use, especially if it has an automatic egg-turning function and the ability to connect to the battery during a blackout. If you follow all the recommendations and rules for using the incubator, you can grow a bird from several bookmarks per season.
Breeding poultry with an incubator
Today, there are various mini-incubators on sale that replace live hens, under which no more than 21 eggs can be placed. Up to a hundred eggs are laid in the incubator and all the eggs are looked after at the same time, and subsequently the chickens.
For the same number of eggs, you will need about 8-10 hens, which also need care during incubation. One can only imagine how inconvenient it is to look after so many bird families. In addition, a large area is needed so that each family is on a separate site.
Manual turning incubators are the most troublesome device because the owner needs to manually turn each egg several times a day.
A mechanical turning incubator allows all eggs to be turned over at the same time using a special mechanism in one motion.
The incubator with automatic egg turning is the most convenient to use. The owner is only required to monitor the readings of the heat and humidity sensors.
It is important to select the correct eggs before starting incubation. To do this, you should purchase a special ovoscope, with the help of which the eggs are shone through with a bright light, which allows you to distinguish defective ones:
- Incorrectly positioned air chamber in the egg.Instead of the top (as it should be), it sits in the middle and moves freely when the egg is turned over.
- The yolk is not clearly expressed, mixes with the protein when stirring or stuck to the wall of the egg.
- The presence of a kind of cobweb inside the egg.
The egg should not be dirty on top - this is an incipient infection that can infect the rest of the eggs during the incubation period. Seed material is best purchased at breeder poultry farms (incubators), where everything is checked by experienced veterinarians for the presence of diseases.
Considering that hens sit on eggs in late April or early May, then you can lay the incubator in late February - early March. At the beginning of August, the bird will gain sufficient weight and it will be possible to cut it.
The difficulty is that after mass hatching, individual care is required for chicks. Since they cannot be let out on the street yet, they require a spacious warm room. For a large number of young animals, an ordinary box will not work even at night. There should be a place for them to bask under the lamp and a compartment where the chickens can go out to eat and drink water. If all this is in a small area, then the feed will be mixed with water and droppings, the chickens will begin to get wet and hurt.
Buy young at a local incubator
Things to consider when buying day old chicks:
- When choosing chickens, you should pay attention to their wings. If feathers have already appeared on them, then he is already more than 3 days old.
- Weaker chicks can be easily distinguished by weight. If you pick up chickens, it is easy to determine if they are the same weight or not. A weak one will seem like a fluff compared to a healthy one.
- If you tap your finger on the cage in which they are located, the most agile run over their heads in search of food. These are the healthiest.
- It is difficult to distinguish a chicken from a cockerel. Here is one of the popular ways: take the chicken by the legs upside down. If it flutters its wings and pulls itself up - a cockerel, if it squeaks, but hangs - a chicken. At 3 weeks of age, it is easier, there are already feathers on the tails. They are different for the chicken and the cockerel. In the cockerel it sticks up like a triangle, and in the chicken it is a loose fan.
- Do not hesitate to look under their tail - if it is wet, it is a defective chicken or duckling. But it is best to buy weekly young growth. These birds have already been drunk with special vitamins, the pestilence will be minimal.
Live incubator - goose, duck or turkey
A bird that incubates eggs by itself, and then cares for them, is popularly called a kvochka. The fact is that even during incubation, it emits certain sounds (clucking), as if communicating with the contents of the egg. Subsequently, the chickens react unquestioningly to these sounds. You cannot put as many eggs under the quota as in an incubator. But if you simultaneously lay eggs under it and lay an incubator, then when all the young have hatched, the incubator brood can be given to the mother.
Special care for the hen-mother is not required. The main thing is to give food on time, remove processed and trampled ones, and also change water more often. To avoid infections affecting small chickens, it is advisable to add manganese or furacilin to the water and often clean it in a paddock designated for walking.
How to care for a hen
Only the first 2 weeks will need special attention. During this time, the little ones who do not fit under the kvoca should be taken under a lamp at night so that everyone can warm up. But it will be better if the family initially has its own premises on the street, to which there are some requirements:
- The minimum height of the chicken coop is 1.5 m.
- To ventilate the room, there must be a window that will be open in the summer, but covered with a pest net.
- The coop should have roosts for chicks and older birds.
- There should be no food in the room!
A lamp for night heating should be installed in the corner of the room. Kvochka herself understands when the chicks are cold and brings them into a room where there is additional warmth.She herself chooses a place near the lamp so that those chickens that do not fit under her are closer to the heat emanating from the heater.
As for the mother's turkey, her front feathers are fluffed up so that they are able to warm up to 30 goslings or ducklings, which are much larger than turkeys. But leaving them without an additional source of heat, hoping for a "hot" turkey, is not worth it. Too many chicks under one mother run the risk of "suffocating" from the temperature of the frog and the rest of the chicks, despite the sufficient fresh air.
How to properly care for young animals
If the chickens are with their mother, then this saves the owner only from the hassle of special heating at a certain temperature. Also, if a brood with a quill is free, there is access to pasture with grass, then the owner does not need to mow it on his own, chop and feed the young. After hatching eggs, a hen needs the same vitamins as her children. Finding a suitable herb, she calls the others, and thus, everyone replenishes the body with vitamins. Therefore, the people say that young growth grows faster in freedom and with a mother-kvochka. But not all summer residents have the opportunity to keep hens.
Poultry pen cleaning should be done several times a day. Chicken droppings and dampness are harmful to young animals, even to small waterfowl. At two weeks of age, the bird can be taken outside and left in a special enclosure-enclosure, covered with a net on top. This will prevent predators from attacking birds. Even an ordinary crow is dangerous for small chickens.
Chickens or ducklings raised independently by the owner require additional feed. These are green onions, garlic, dill, parsley and even nettles. They contain all the vitamins necessary in the first days of life. In order for them to be constantly on fresh grass, if it is impossible to graze them, you can make portable fences made of soft wire or mesh, according to the principle of a children's playpen, only more. Chicks very quickly peck the grass around them. After that, the square "arena" can be rearranged to another area. Part of the fence must be covered so that you can hide from the sun, or put it in shaded places.
Even if the bird is not planned to be kept in the winter, a room intended for it should be mandatory. Water and feed should not be placed in it, because dampness leads to infections that affect birds, and feed scattered in the shed attracts rats, mice and other pests that can transmit diseases.
Now, using these simple tips, you can see from your own experience that poultry farming is not such a difficult task.
What birds are profitable to grow
You can keep any bird, it all depends on your capabilities! Geese need a reservoir and a lot of grass, ducks need a reservoir and a little grass, turkeys need a lot of grass! It is cost-effective to raise broiler chickens in cages for up to 60 days later for slaughter. Quails are unpretentious, take up little space, which is important, and they practically do not get sick. There are no particular difficulties with anyone, there are 2 main rules for growing up to one month, this is to withstand the required temperature regime, and high-quality full-fledged feeding.
Of course, you still have to work hard, but with a competent approach to the process of keeping poultry, labor costs can be minimized, which will not affect the final result in any way. Of all the poultry that could be kept in the conditions of your small farm or summer cottage, it is most profitable to breed chickens, geese, ducks.
Let's focus on the peculiarities of breeding ducks and geese
The main difference between these birds and chickens is that they are waterfowl, therefore it is a little more difficult to create normal conditions for them - although a small body of water was needed. However, a pond or lake can be easily replaced with large troughs of water.Of course, it is difficult to call it a full-fledged earth, but still. In the absence of water procedures, the growth process of ducklings or goslings slows down noticeably and no feed additives or enhanced rations will help.
In addition, young waterfowl are much more mobile, so they need a large pasture. A decrease in the motor activity of ducks leads to a decrease in appetite, and in addition, the feed consumed is absorbed much worse. The same can be said for geese. However, breeding geese is also beneficial.
Walking is necessary for goslings and ducklings almost from the first days of life. However, until 10 days of age, it is better not to let them go for what is called free bread, but to use a large cage for walks. In this case, it is imperative to take care of protecting the chicks from the sun, since overheating is extremely harmful for them. Therefore, the side of the cage facing the sun is usually covered with sheets of plywood, cardboard or paper.
In the future, young animals can be released into free swimming, but only on warm sunny days. For permanent maintenance, a poultry house is needed, in which there are no drafts, and the area of which must be at least 1 sq. M. for every duckling or gosling.
Since the main goal of growing poultry is meat, and the conditions of keeping are limited by the summer cottage, the ultimate success of the entire enterprise depends on the correct selection of livestock breeds.
If you decide to raise ducklings, then Peking or Bashkir white-breasted ducklings are best suited. These breeds are characterized by the rapid growth of young animals, weight gain, while being unpretentious and resistant to disease. When purchasing goslings, it is better to give preference to individuals of the Lindovsky, Italian or North German breed. There is an opinion that it is more preferable to take goslings of the Kholmogory or Tula breed for growing, the adults of which are more in body weight. However, practice shows that keeping geese of these breeds is much more expensive for poultry farmers. But when growing goslings of these breeds, each of them will have to spend 9-10 kg of grain, so that by the autumn time of slaughter the bird will gain weight of 5-5.5 kg.
With the same grain consumption per 1 Peking duck, its weight by the end of the season can reach about 4 kg.
Let's also say a few words about other bird species. At first glance, it seems that it is profitable to breed turkeys, because adult birds are large in mass. However, any experienced poultry farmer will tell you that little turkey poults are extremely immune and therefore get sick very often.
For this reason, the percentage of turkey chick loss is very high, and even surviving individuals grow weak, significantly inferior in weight to the best examples of their breed. To grow a turkey with a live weight of about 5-6 kg, it will have to provide her with a monthly consumption of feed and grain at the level of 12 kg. At the same time, growing turkey poults will require a lot of attention from the poultry farmer, careful care, which chickens need up to 2 months of age. Judge and draw your own conclusions.
Separate advice for those who are engaged in breeding large poultry is not allowed by the small area of the free area. We advise such poultry breeders to pay attention to meat quails. This is the most compact bird - on an area of 1 sq. M. you can easily accommodate up to 50 quails. In addition, the required slaughter weight - 1.5 kg of excellent dietary meat - poultry gains in just 2-2.5 months, while the consumption of compound feed for a dozen quails will not exceed 4.5 kg. So breeding quail is also beneficial.
Related entries: # chickens @ lap2a # geese @ lap2a # ducks @ lap2a # scarecrow @ lap2a # business @ lap2a # earnings @ lap2a
In the context of the economic crisis and massive job cuts, people are increasingly thinking about starting their own business.
Residents of country houses and rural areas can establish their own production using their personal plot.
Poultry farming as a home business is growing in popularity.First of all, this is due to the desire to enter the market of environmentally friendly, farm products.
In the local area, you can grow meat or egg breeds of birds and sell finished products, or you can engage in incubation and sell young poultry.
Each of these types of poultry farming as a business is profitable, but also requires investments at the initial stage.
An additional plus when engaging in poultry farming will be your own backyard. This way you can save on the rental of production space. And the presence of a small vegetable garden will allow you to independently harvest feed.
Chicken meat and eggs are eaten all over the world, therefore, the article will focus specifically on the business, which is based on the breeding of chickens.
Growing broilers
Chickens of meat breeds are distinguished by their size and fluffy plumage.
The egg production of broilers is low (about 10 pieces per month), but this does not matter for business, since the main task of breeding broilers is their further sale for meat.
The cycle of growing meat breeds fluctuates around one and a half months, since the life expectancy of such chickens is low.
For 1.5 months, the broiler gains from 1.5 to 2 kg of live weight, respectively, the net meat yield is on average about 1 kg.
Chicken of broiler breeds will cost 25-30 rubles, and with average prices for chicken meat (200 rubles / kg), the income from 1000 heads will be about 85 thousand.
Taking into account the costs of feed and maintenance and subject to breeding in your own poultry house (not leased), the net profit will be from 600,000 per year.
to the content ↑ Laying hens, or calculation of income from the sale of chicken eggs
Chickens with a high egg production rate produce on average up to 300 eggs per year.
However, layers, unlike broilers, are very demanding on feeding and keeping conditions, therefore, the costs of breeding them are higher.
In addition, egg-bearing hens require more housing space, so a house with the same parameters will comfortably accommodate more broilers than layers.
As for the cost part, in the absence of expenses for renting premises and paying for the services of workers, caring for the birds only on their own, the farmer is forced to spend about 10,000 rubles. for the purchase of 100 chicks 2 weeks of age.
The cost of keeping such a quantity of poultry per year will amount to about 40,000 rubles. (for the purchase of feed and premixes).
Considering that one laying hen produces up to 300 eggs per year, the yield from 100 hens will be 30,000 eggs.
Homemade eggs are very popular among lovers of farm products, therefore, having established a sales market, you can sell them at a price of up to 100 rubles. for a dozen.
After deducting maintenance costs, the annual profit will be up to 260,000 rubles.
to the content ↑ Raising chickens
Buying day-old chickens, raising them and then selling them is a promising business idea with lower economic risks.
To calculate the profit, it is enough to compare the cost of a one-day and two-week-old chicken.
When purchased at a price of about 30 rubles, in 2 weeks they can be sold for 100 rubles. per individual. So, each chick will bring from 70 rubles. income.
Taking into account the maintenance costs, the net profit from one chick will be at least 50. So, in just 2 weeks from 1000 chicks, you can get from 50,000 rubles.
to the content ↑ Incubation of eggs
Incubation is another lucrative poultry business. The average cost of hatching eggs is 50-80 rubles. for a dozen.
However, the incubation process is quite complicated, the percentage of chicks output will directly depend on the skill of the farmer and his adherence to all the rules and requirements.
With small volumes, brooding hens can be used to hatch chicks. You can add up to 15 pieces to each chicken.
If the farmer's plans did not include the maintenance of adults, and the volume of the brood is significant, then it is worth purchasing additional equipment - a home incubator and an ovoscope (a device for determining the quality of eggs in the light).
Having 500 eggs per brood, a farmer will spend 2.5-4 thousand rubles.
The next day after hatching the chicks, he can sell them for up to 30 rubles. per piece, thus, the income part is about 15,000 rubles, and the profit - from 11 to 12.5 thousand.
If we continue the growing process and keep the chickens up to two weeks of age, then the net profit will reach 45 thousand.
Poultry farming as a self-employed business that generates a stable income is quite cost-effective.
Poultry products are in demand all year round, even during the economic crisis.
In addition, the sale of chicken manure will become an additional source of income.
The main advantage of home breeding is that at the initial stage of establishing a business, a bird can be kept in a personal plot, and a converted shed with a walking corral, fenced with a chain-link netting, can be used as a chicken coop.
However, at the very start of the business, it is worth starting with a small number of birds. So it will be possible to study all the intricacies of your own business, begin the formation of sales channels, and also determine which bird is more profitable to breed.
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