Thread by @p_dusabimana

As promised, here is a guide to a successful 🐣🐔chicken farming business for meat production👇👇

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For a successful business, a farmer needs to consult experienced farmers to share challenges and tricks for success. Where possible try joining farmers’ groups and associations for collaborative support and great market experience.

Starting and running a broiler poultry farm demands careful planning, dedication, and attention to various aspects. In this thread, find some important considerations below:

1. Brooding
1.1. Young chicks need a clean, well-ventilated, and warm environment for optimum health and growth. Since they are hatched without feathers, an external heat source needs to be supplied until they develop feathers for self-regulation.

1.2 During brooding, the temperature needs to be maintained at 30-32 degrees Celcius. The light should be supplied 24/24.
The brooding ring is removed after 1 week.

2. Chicks’ placement
2.1 Arrange water (add anti-stress vitamin) and feeds before they arrive.
Chicks must be of good quality, healthy, and active with uniform size and weight.
Chicks must be carefully distributed evenly near feeds and water throughout the brooding area.

2.2. You can dip their beaks in water to encourage drinking in case they delay.
On day 1, they need to be monitored closely to ensure that the temperature is sufficient and that they are eating and drinking well.

3. Nutrition Management:
3.1. The right quantity and quality of feeds and water should be provided to support optimum growth, health, and nutrient utilization.
For 7-10 days, feeders and drinkers should be placed on the ground for easy accessibility.

3.2. Since they are easily contaminated with litter and droppings, daily feeds and water should be gradually placed and cleaned regularly.
For day 10 to slaughtering, feeders and drinkers should be hanged to encourage chickens to exercise while feeding.

3.3. Exercise promotes the development of breast muscle while preventing bruising. Broilers feed on 2 types of feeds depending on their growing stages, starter, and finisher phases. (See a reference table below)

3.4. Average Daily Feed Intake increases with age.
For calculations:
Record the weight of feed offered (FO)
Record the weight of feed leftover the next morning (FL)
Calculate the average daily feed intake (ADFI)
ADFI = (FO-FL)/No. of birds.
Note that water is supplied ad libitum.

4. For Biosecurity and hygiene management,
Cleaning should be done regularly.
The litter should be replaced/added with fresh litter whenever needed.
Whenever required and possible prepare and replace disinfectants depending on the movements in and out of the farm.

5. Health management,
5.1. Veterinary visits and health monitoring are important to prevent and control diseases. Note that the mortality rate can be rarely 0% but strive for at most 5%. Early detection and treatment can minimize the impact on your flock’s productivity.

5.2. Note that weighing should be done regularly with random samples (10% of the total flock) to monitor the weight gain and health status.
Referring to the common diseases, broilers are mainly vaccinated 3 times (Refer to the table attached)

6. For your reference, here is the summarized life cycle of broilers, duration, and key activities.

Finally, farmers are advised to keep records about temperature, feed and water consumption, body weight and mortalities, vaccination and medications, production and sales financial records, and others necessary for assessing performance and making informed decisions.

Broilers, just like any business, can lose even at 100 % however, do not be discouraged by failure stories, but be motivated to excel in plans and designing alternatives such as insuring your stocks. Always keep in mind that farming is not for the faint-hearted.