Getting Off to a Good Start – Best Brooding Practice

In view of increasing farmer request for Day Old Chicks during this period and the brooding process that follows which must be properly done to get a quality output, we will be reviewing the brooding process:

Getting Off to a Good Start – Best Brooding Practice

Brooding

The term brooding refers to the period immediately after hatch when special care and attention must be given to chicks to ensure their health and survival. More than 50% is decided in this period as to the performance of the flock for the rest of its life. Mistakes made during this period cannot be corrected later.

Floor Brooding

The ideal temperature should be at the chicks’ level i.e. almost at floor level. If the temperature at that height is too high, the chicks will be dehydrated; if the temperature is too low the chicks will pileup together (as demonstrated below); will not eat or drink sufficiently resulting in high mortality.   

The temperature under the brooders should be 35⁰c especially in the first 3-4 days, after which the temperature may be slowly decreased by 2⁰c per week. At least one drinker per 60 birds should be used in the first few weeks. It is important that the chicks start drinking immediately while the feed can be provided 1-2 hours later. Use broken maize for the first 24 hours.

Cage Brooding

Start the heating system 24hours before the chicks’ arrival. Relative humidity must be 65 to 75% otherwise chicks can dehydrate making them more susceptible to infections and reducing feed and water consumption resulting in higher chick mortality.

Location of the Brooder House

Chicks should not be located close to other poultry to avert disease transmission. There should be at least 1Km distance between brooder and the layer house.

Preparation of House before Every Batch

• Remove all litter; scrape the floor of caked litter; Clear cobwebs at the roof, broom all the dust. Wash the roof with water containing disinfectant (VetOdine) using pressure hose, if the roof is washable.
• Clean the floor with water containing VetOdine; Sprinkle caustic soda flakes on floor and apply with broom; Wash with water after a gap of 2 hrs. Spread disinfectant (VetOdine) on the wet surface. White-wash the floor if possible. Leave the shed vacant for 2 weeks.
• Take out necessary equipment and clean with water; If the side curtains are of HDP/Plastic, dip them in water containing disinfectant (VetOdine) and leave to dry.

One Week before Arrival of Chicks

• Make sure no remnant of litter and feathers are seen in and around the pens.
• Put back the curtains; Place the feeding and watering equipment in a corner of the pen. Disinfect equipment like brooders, drinkers and feeders by dipping in or spraying with disinfectant solution – VetOdine. Keep spraying the disinfectant inside and outside the house on a rotational basis (keep changing the disinfectant everyday); continue spraying till a day before the arrival of the chicks.
• Make necessary arrangements for heating the pen; Clean water tanks and fill with fresh water.

One Day before Arrival of Chicks  

• Make arrangement for brooding based on the number of chick’s e.g. brooding guard (circles). Spread the wood shaving inside the circles and cover with old newspapers. Arrange the feeding and watering equipment. Check water and electrical connections.
• Spray 2% VetOdine all over the interior of the shed, equipment and surroundings. If the house is small, consider fumigation. Keep all curtains closed. Measure the length x width x average height of the house to get the total cubic feet. Use 20gms of Potassium Permanganate (KMnO₄) + 40ml formalin per every 100 cubic feet area. Put KMnO₄ into a bigger container and formalin into it. See that all persons are out. Divide the chemicals into 3 – 4 portions if the house is bigger.
• Open the curtains on the sides 2 hrs before the arrival of chicks to allow some fresh air. Add medicine in water tanks as required. Use Doxineo (contains Neomycin and Doxycycline) @ 1gm/5ltr of water. Add Vitamin preparations like Divertamin.
• Keep small drinkers inside the guards @ 1/80 chicks; keep them at least 2” above the ground level on a stand to prevent chicks getting in.

When the Chicks Arrive

• If the weather is cool, request the hatchery to deliver the chicks during the day.
• Open the boxes and ensure all the birds are active and alive; the chicks should try to jump out of the boxes when the lids are opened. Check the quantity against the delivery note; take out the dead and dull chicks.
• Take medicated water in a plate; dip the beak of each chick in the medicated water before releasing; count while releasing; if you find some chicks too small or weak while handling, place them in a separate brooder. Few chicks should be shown to use nipple drinkers; others will copy them.
• Put the heating system on before they are released.

Bedding Material

• In Nigeria, wood shaving / wood dust are generally used as bedding material; this material is not disinfected and is directly put into a clean brooding room which can bring many kinds of infections especially E. Coli. It is better to disinfect (Use VetOdine) the bedding material before putting in brooding room

Monitoring and Assessing the Conditions

• To monitor accessibility to feed and water take 100 chicks from different places and palpate their crops; the crops should be soft and 80% full after 8 hrs of arrival of chicks; and 100% after 24hours.

Temperature

• Chilling puts a lot of stress on chick; the chick will not eat which will cause the yolk not to be absorbed. Consequently, the maternal antibodies will not be consumed; this can cause Yolk Infection especially by E. Coli leading to increased mortality. With good management, mortality in the first week should not exceed 0.7%. Beyond mortality, chilled chicks will not have a good start as others; there will be lower weight which will cause uniformity problems. In the remaining period of its breeding life; chilled chicks will have less production average and other complications can set it at the latter stages. Chilled chicks have very high incidences of “Ascities” (this is a situation whereby fluid accumulates in the abdomen of the bird).

Relative Humidity (RH)

This is also an important factor in brooding. Low RH can cause dehydration and dusty litter leading to respiratory problems and poor feather growth; high RH causes chilling and wet litter. In hatchers the RH is about 80% and if the chick is placed at a lower RH, it will feel a great shock. To prevent the chick from this shock; the RH level in the brooder house must be between 70% – 75% for the first 3 days. As the chicks grows, the requirement for RH decreases. When chicks are 18 days old, the RH should be between 55 – 60%. This facilitates the desired growth of feathers.

Feed

The digestive system of the young chicks is still undergoing physiological and anatomical changes; feed given during this period should be palatable, easily digestible, balanced, and free of pathogens and toxins. Do not use ingredients that have high levels of “Non Starch Polysaccharides (NSP)” e.g. Wheat Offal. The NSP causes viscosity in intestine and are responsible for poor digestion and wet litter. Do not use fat sources such tallow and lard.

Water

Water is essential to the chicks. Generally, a chick consumes water twice as much as the feed. It helps in transporting nutrients within the body of the chicken. If water is contaminated, it equally will carry infection through the body of the chicken.

Ventilation

The objectives of ventilation are:

• Good air quality,
• Uniform shed temperature
• Good litter conditions
• Removal of moisture and noxious gases
• Conservation of heat

Debeaking

This is also important during the brooding period. Debeaking also called beak trimming is the partial removal of the beak of poultry especially egg laying strains of chicken. Beak trimming ensures low mortality, less feather pulling and better feed conversion. It is advisable to debeak the chicks at the age of 5 – 10days of age. 

Points To Observe In Debeaking

• If you are not competent to do it by self; give it to a professional.
• Do not debeak under extreme temperatures. The best temperature is 20 – 25⁰c.
• Remove feed 4 – 5hrs before debeaking and give feed immediately after Debeaking, when the birds are hungry, they will start eating immediately afterwards; this stops possible bleeding.
• Give the birds 1 day before and 2 days afterwards Divertamin in the drinking water.
• Give some preventive dose of antibiotics – Diverflox for 3 days.
• It is recommended to check the beaks before production starts; birds with too long beaks or very  long lower beaks should be debeaked again
• It is better to repeat the debeaking at around 10-12 weeks of age

Advantages of Debeaking

• Toe picking is reduced
• There is less interference with later vaccinations
• It helps to prevent feather picking and cannibalism
• There is more uniformity of the birds in the flock