Tajeerah General Enterprises

26/07/2021

26/07/2021

THE CAUSES OF HIGH FAILURE RATE IN POULTRY BUSINESS

1) Lack of Technical Know-how.

It is regrettable that many people and organizations have ventured into poultry farming without technical knowledge. Knowledge of poultry farming techniques are required before anyone can operate the business profitably.

2) Management Problem.

An incompetent management may not be able to operate a profitable poultry farm. The managers of the farm must know what they are employed to do and posses the ability to do it. Some poultry managers fail to recognise the peculiarity of poultry farming in their management style, thereby preparing good ground for losses in the venture. Many managers do not recognize the need for timely planning and control in running the farm.

3) Diseased Breeds.

Some fertilized eggs meant to be hatched in the incubator could be infected with disease from the parent stock. This means that before the eggs were hatched they had been diseased. If the disease are not detected and treated on time, the affected birds may die sooner or later.

4) Hygiene Deficiency.

There is a minimum hygiene condition that must exist in any poultry farm if the birds are to remain healthy and produce maximally for profit. The poultry farm must be kept clean always; the droppings should be cleared on time before they constitute an agent of disease.

5) Poor feeding condition and wastage of feed.

The birds need to be fed well in the pens in order to produce maximum meat and eggs (either of which may be the purpose for running the farm). The birds are fed with varying quantities of feed at different stages and with the appropriate feed. The various feeds are chicks mash, grower mash and layer mash, which must be sufficiently rich to give the birds the required nutrients to grow healthy and produce optimally.

6) Security.

A poultry farm must be established in a secured place to ward off enemies of birds, such as rats, soldier ants, snakes, wild birds, etc. Most of these enemies are agents of disease that could lead to an epidemic on the farm, and they kill the birds directly as well.
There must be strict check on the farm workers who may be stealing the fowls and the eggs. Also, visitors may constitute a problem to the farm if they are not properly checked.

7) Housing.

Birds need minimum space and convenient place to grow well and produce maximally meat and eggs. Birds are spaced on the farm according to their ages; while the chicks need little space, growers and mature birds need more space and ventilation to perform well. The services of a consultant may be needed to determine the appropriate spacing for the birds without which they may suffocate to death, which will be a big loss to the business.

8) Inability to prevent, detect and control disease.

It is often said that prevention is better than cure, as far as disease are concerned and this is a true statement and relevant one to poultry farming. A poultry farmer should know how to prevent poultry disease, as well as how to cure them. If he or she does know anything about preventive measures, the services of consultants in the field should be engaged for good result.

9) Marketing.

A marketing plan is absolutely necessary for successful commercial poultry farming, as any farmer ignorant of his or her marketing needs is bound to run into serious losses and eventual failure. It will be ridiculous to start poultry production without knowing when, where, how and to whom to sell the fowls, eggs, feathers and droppings as they are produced. We cannot talk of profit if the meat and eggs have no ready market. Eggs have a very short shelf life and if they are not sold quickly, they will go bad, and no one is interested in buying bad eggs. Also, birds not sold at the appropriate time will be fed at an extra cost that may make the business unprofitable. Therefore, adequate marketing strategies are needed to sell all the poultry products at the appropriate time and prices.

10) Ignoring the role of livestock consultants.

There are always practicing experts in every profession or occupation who function as consultants. They are there to proffer solutions to problems that exist in such professions at a minimum cost. Where a livestock farmer doesn’t have adequate technical and managerial experience, he or she can consult experts for necessary advice to bridge the gap. Even where the farmer thinks he or she has all it takes to run a farm successfully, there may be need to seek the services of experts in the field, as it is usually said that two heads are better than one.

26/07/2021

STOP WET LITTER IN BROILER HOUSES

To obtain maximum broiler production potential, management of the poultry house environment is essential. An important measure of a suitable environment is proper maintenance of poultry litter.

Litter is defined as excreted manure mixed with bedding material.

Both heating and ventilation systems must be continually monitored to ensure that the moisture content of the litter is controlled and the litter remains friable. If the moisture content becomes elevated and the litter is allowed to become "sealed," then the birds are being grown on a continually damp, slippery and sticky surface. This sealed litter is often referred to as being "caked." In this condition, the litter is simply saturated with water and the water is unable to escape. A severe litter moisture problem can result if large areas of the house floor surface are caked. It is more common, however, to find localized areas of caking near leaky watering cups, ni***es, troughs or roofs. The litter in these house locations must be continually stirred, raked or replaced to prevent the problem from becoming worse.

If litter is not kept at an acceptable level, very high bacterial loads and unsanitary growing conditions may result producing odors (including ammonia), insect problems (particularly flies), soiled feathers, footpad lesions and breast bruises or blisters.

Expect carcass downgrading at the slaughter house when birds are reared under such poor conditions. In a well-managed broiler house, litter moisture normally averages between 25 to 35 percent.

Litter that is managed correctly with the moisture content kept within the acceptable range can save a farmer from disease problems and antibiotics burden.

caked litter must be removed between flocks and replaced with new litter.

There are several causes of wet litter. A number of control measures can help prevent wet litter problems.

WATERY DROPPINGS:
Diarrhea can be caused by nutrition and/or infectious agents. High intake of the minerals potassium, sodium, magnesium, sulfate or chloride can lead to excessive water consumption and wet droppings. If a wet litter problem occurs, feed levels of sodium and chloride (salt) should be determined. It is possible that a feed mixing error has occurred, resulting in an excess of salt in the diet. The water should be checked periodically for mineral concentrations, especially for sulfate and magnesium. Acidification of water plays an important role in keeping bacteria at bay !
Poor quality dietary fat or rancid fat can lead to wet f***l droppings. Likewise, using poor quality feed ingredients such as poorly dried maize, caked bran, rotten silver fish etc....will often result in excessively wet droppings.

To control wet droppings associated with some feed ingredients, it is usually necessary to use litter material that is good at absorption of water from litter for example coffee husks or rice husks.

Moldy Feed:
If broilers are provided moldy feed ingredients, consumption of mycotoxins may cause the droppings to be excessively wet. Mycotoxins are known to irritate the digestive tract and to cause marked pathological changes in the kidneys. Ochratoxin, Oosporin and Citrinin are mycotoxins known to cause these changes. Such changes can lead to increased water consumption and wet droppings. To prevent mycotoxins from becoming a problem, good quality feed ingredients must be used in both layer and broiler diets. Add sangromix active D in feed always because it has an ability to stop mycotoxins effect in the intestines.

Feed handling equipment must be cleaned and disinfected periodically. Caked and moldy feed lodged in equipment like feeders, serving plates, silos can contaminate feed as it passes through the equipment; thus any caked feed must be routinely removed.

Disease:
Numerous diseases cause poultry to excrete wet droppings. This effect may be primary where an infectious agent directly damages the alimentary canal resulting in diarrhea. Secondary effects may occur where birds go off feed but maintain water consumption, resulting in a higher moisture content of the droppings.

Coccidia infections result in direct damage to the gut and will result in wet droppings. Control of coccidiosis through improving litter hygiene, maintaining the litter dry, stopping feed spillage, and avoid pouring water on the floor as well as improving water quality.

if not controlled, coccidial infection may lead to necrotic enteritis and wet litter.

Bacterial infections caused by Escherichia coli, will also result in wet litter. In addition, several viruses phave been implicated as causative agents of diarrhea. Viruses associated with malabsorption of nutrients have an adverse effect on the consistency of the bird's droppings.
We should know that water quality is only determined is we know the bacteria load and virus load in the water together with PH of water.
Adding an acidifier to the water helps to reduce bacteria burden.

Climate Control and Equipment Failure:
Farmers have little or no control over the ambient temperature and humidity outside the poultry house. Nevertheless, temperature and humidity largely influence water consumption and impact litter quality. For example, high temperatures within a broiler house lead to increased water consumption and wet litter. When high humidity accompanies high temperatures the problem can become so severe that it becomes very difficult to properly maintain the litter in a dry and friable condition.

Leaking watering systems, when not maintained in good working order, can cause wet litter problems. The in-line water pressure must be just enough to stop water leaking.
Roofs should be leak-free and ventilation systems should move an adequate amount of air to keep litter moisture levels in the proper range.

Cleaning water pipes and drinkers. Flushing in broiler houses should be done every after 2 weeks to avoid bacteria build up in the pipes which may eventually cause disease and diarrhea.

Bedding Type
There are a limited number of bedding materials that can be used in broiler houses. Any material that is in contact with the birds must be nontoxic, and able to absorb water and subsequently release the moisture to the atmosphere. The material must be readily available in sufficient quantities. Most importantly, it must be economical. You can chose coffee husks or rice husks

Quality soft wood shavings are also used as bedding material but you should avoid saw dust as it causes irritation and respiratory problems.

*Conclusion*
Maintaining moisture levels of poultry house litter in the proper range is essential if the production potential of the flock is to be realized. To accomplish this, management practices must ensure that high quality feed is provided to the flock, disease organisms are not permitted to enter the premises, and adequate ventilation systems and quality bedding material are used.
Do not allow caked litter in a poultry house at all as this is the number 1 cause of coccidiosis, cough and flu and re****ed growth.

16/06/2021

MANAGING A BROILER HOUSE

The three golden rules for best broiler house management are:

-LOOK
-LISTEN
-SMELL

Let me show you the importance of using your sense of smell in broiler management. Simply taking a deep breath inside a broiler house can tell an experienced farmer whether or not the house’s environment is comfortable for the chickens inside.

I suggest broiler farmers to carry out the above exercise as often as possible to check the air the chickens are breathing is of the ‘right quality’.

Is there enough air in the broiler house❓

“If, when you take a deep breath of air in a broiler house, you feel that your body *isn’t getting enough oxygen*, then you can be sure that your broilers aren’t getting enough oxygen either.
This feeling – that breathing is a little tough – is usually a sign of a poor flow of fresh air in the broiler house, this explains the recurrent cough and flu in your birds!

The necessary adjustments to the equipment that controls airflow in and out of the house need to be made immediately . Farmers should not panic and over correct, opening up the house too much so that broilers get cold. A little opening of the tarplins is okay, for a specified period of time👍🏽

Airflow adjustments should be gradual, but frequent, until you’re satisfied that the birds are getting enough oxygen again.

Stand warned! if airflow through a broiler house remains a problem even when ventilation equipment, such as curtains, louvres and fans, have been adjusted, it could be that there are obstructions to airflow inside and/or immediately surrounding the house.
The latter could be shrubs or trees, for example, and must be removed or pruned.

-AMMONIA
A build-up of ammonia gas is a common problem where there is a lack of good broiler management. Excessive ammonia in a broiler house can be easily identified. A deep breath will result in a burning sensation in the lungs, throat, nose and eyes.
Ammonia build-up is caused when water from leaks in the roof and pipes, and spillage from drinking equipment, mixes with the broilers’ bodily wastes in the litter covering the floor.
A broiler farmer must immediately remove wet litter and replace it with clean, dry material. The cause of the wet litter must be identified and fixed.

A simple problem could be that the water level in the drinkers is too high. This leads to spillage and wet litter. Ammonia in a broiler house is strongest at floor level, where the broilers are.
Left unmanaged, the gas will cause serious respiratory and other health problems in birds, and money will be lost in treatment, through underperforming broilers and mortalities.
The mixture of wet litter and ammonia can burn the breast area of a chicken because it lies on the litter when resting. This could mean the downgrading or condemnation of meat at the abattoir, and could result in action taken against inhumane conditions.

Listen to your birds when you enter the house! If they are making a wheezing sound when breathing mostly in the night, it's a clear sign of respiratory distress caused by bad smell in the poultry house.

Look! Do you see any birds with swollen abdomen? Which feels like full of air if touched? it can be caused by poor air quality in the house!

Look! Have you seen any mucus of their nostrils or mucus in their mouth? Still, ammonia is the problem.
Please, eliminate ammonia from broiler houses.