The Chicken Egg Production System

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Introduction This is the second volume in a series of three reports looking at the chicken egg production system. Layer hens are highly productive however to get even better production they need proper care and management so this volume focuses on health care and housing of the chickens going into detail with feed and nutrition, infrastructure requirements and design, health, and lifetime productivity and culling strategies. Feed and nutrition Feed and nutrition changes throughout the hen’s life and nutrient intake, defined by the nutrient levels in the feed and the amount of feed consumed (Poultry Hub, 2016a) is affected by diet composition and feed intake. The hens feed intake is voluntary and so to ensure all hens achieve the required nutrient intake feed is provided free choice at all stages of life. This is done in small amounts of feed at least 3-4 times a day where no new fed is given until the previous feed is finished (Homestead organics, 2016). A number of factors influence voluntary feed intake including: breed, age, nutrient balance of the diet, ambient temperature, health and welfare status of the birds and accessibility of the feed (Poultry Hub, 2016b). Additionally certain ingredients, poor quality or contamination can also negatively affect voluntary feed intake due to poor palatability or the presence of toxic factors (Poultry Hub, 2016b). Table 1 provides data on the typical feed consumption for brown egg laying hens in relation to target body weight over the growing period, 0-18 weeks. Table 1 – body weight and feed consumption for brown-egg laying breed hens during the growing period (Poultry Hub, 2016a) Age (weeks) Body weight (g) Feed consumption (g/bird/day) Age (weeks) Body weight (g) Feed consumption (g/b... ... middle of paper ... ...ls the chick in seconds when done correctly but gassing can take up to two minutes while the chicks gasp and shake their heads (RSPCA, 2016). Conclusion Proper care and management is highly important in the layer production system. Hens feed and nutrition requirements change through the different stages of life and their housing must protect them from harmful weather conditions, disease and predators. Even with great housing conditions and the best feed if the hens become sick they will not be as productive if they contract a disease so biosecurity should be strict to reduce the chance of disease entering the system and vaccine schedules should be followed and appropriate for the local conditions. Finally hens are culled at the end of their laying cycle if they are not to be moulted and used again and male chicks are culled unless they are to be used for breeding.

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