A poultry farm is important for the poultry industry. Chicken is a type of domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the red junglefowl. It is one of the most widespread domestic animals, with a total population of more than 19 billion in 2011. The global chicken farm business has been growing steadily over the past decade, due to rising consumer demand for meat in Asia and Latin America.
Any type of business needs to have trained staff that can do their job properly and efficiently on an everyday basis to ensure profitability and sustainability. The reason for this is that all businesses require a certain amount of training which mainly raises efficiency as well as minimizes the chance of errors.
Instead of being faced with too many uneducated and inexperienced people, one can improve their business by hiring professional staff to work in the company. Training is really important for any type of staff member in the business because it helps them to learn how to perform a task properly, prevents error, and gives them the chance to eventually be promoted.
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Poultry farm training Bangladesh:
The profitability of the poultry industry is very high in Bangladesh in recent years. From 1990 to 2003, the value of eggs has grown by about 15% annually, whereas for meat it has grown by about 20% every year (BBS, 2005).
According to USDA data, total poultry production increased from 0.2 M tonnes live weight (LW) in 1975 to 8. The poultry farm kit is the most important for the new poultry farmer. Without any poultry farm kit, a farmer cannot assess which breed and what breed of birds he could purchase from different vendors. The following are the required poultry farm kit for a new poultry farmer.
Selecting Farm Location:
Select a region where a suitable climate is available for the farm. There are some factors to consider while deciding different climatic conditions required by poultry farms.
Temperature:
The ideal temperature for poultry production is 20 C to 30 C. Higher temperature can affect the feed conversion ratio adversely, result in body weight loss, increase mortality, and egg production declines while at lower temperatures, egg production is reduced and birds tend to be less inclined to eat feeds which again may lead to poor growth and mortality.
Proper sunlight:
Proper sunlight is required for poultry farm production. The kind of sunlight to be provided for a particular region depends upon the solar elevation angle of that region. Long shadows in the poultry house may result in loss of heat energy through the roof which will affect bird comfort, body weight, and egg production adversely.
Select a proper site:
Select a proper site located at an appropriate distance from the main source of drinking and bathing water so that it remains uncontaminated by pathogens. Good quality land should be available in the region which should have a good drainage facility as well sufficient irrigation facility available nearby.
Select Highly Productive Poultry Breeds:
Before entering into any poultry farming business, it is necessary to choose the right livestock breeds for production. Some important guidelines should always be remembered by a new poultry farmer.
Suitability to local climatic conditions:
A new poultry farmer needs to know how suitable his selected livestock breed is to his climatic conditions and local environment. Most of the prolific chicken breeds are bred in US and Canada, therefore it is necessary to select a breed adapted to the climate of that particular region.
common poultry breeds in Bangladesh are below:-
- Broilers:
- Cockerels:
- Layers
Housing:
A poultry farm requires a large number of housing units. For instance, the following are the types of housing facilities required in a poultry farm:-
Housing sheds:
These are generally used for housing broilers. They are designed in a way that birds do not fly out of the house. They are constructed to hold chickens in one area without giving them access to any other parts of the house. These sheds may be partly raised for the security of birds. The poultry farm houses should be low in height, usually at least two meters high.
These houses should not have openings on sidewalls and the bottom of the housing units should be free from mud, dirt, and litter so that birds do not slip down from the stack during their feeding or when cleaning of the house is undertaken. They should also have openings for ventilation and lighting.
Litter system:
For the cleanliness of the house to be maintained, the poultry farm house must have a litter system. The litter system should have some additional ventilation holes near the top. This will enable air circulation in the house. This will keep the house cool in summer and warm in winter.
Every poultry farm which keeps broiler chickens requires three types of litter management systems-
- Type one: In type one, a well-built-up litter is provided to birds. This is the best system for maintaining the house.
In this system, floor litter is spread over the entire floor at about 300 to 500 grams per square meter area which will give 5 to 10 cm depth of litter when dry matter content becomes around 65%.
Floor litter is replaced before it becomes wet with droppings or litter moisture content becomes 80%. This system will give the best results regarding feed conversion, egg production, and mortality.
- Type two: In this system, a well-constructed shed with a litter area is provided which may be partially raised from floor level.
Litter may be added to the house as per requirement. The advantage of this system is that if excess floor litter is collected, it can be used for composting or for growing some other plants.
Wash houses:
Poultry farms can be constructed on different ground types ranging from natural soil to tilled soil or even cemented soils. A poultry farm should be constructed on a tract of land which is free from any kind of hazard to minimize the risk of disease outbreak or other casualties during its operation.
Feeding:
To feed farm birds, poultry farmer needs to provide access to foods in many forms. According to the local climate, a poultry farm will require different kinds of feeds. In the beginning, broiler and layer feeds are fed to the birds.
Nutrition of Farm Birds:
The diet of poultry farm birds should be tailored according to their growth and development stages. A productive chicken diet should have a proper proportion of essential nutrients like carbohydrates, proteins, fats; vitamins, and minerals. There are some special diets available on the market which contain a mixture of these nutrients but they are expensive.
Diseases:
In Bangladesh, poultry farm birds face several diseases. The main disease threats to poultry life and production include (but are not limited to) Newcastle disease, Infectious Bronchitis, Infectious Laryngotracheitis, Marek’s Disease, Fowl Cholera, and Egg Drop Syndrome.
Poultry Diseases are the ones that can cause economic losses to a poultry farm in Bangladesh. Poultry diseases may be caused by mites, worms, viruses, and parasites. The main types of poultry diseases are below (but not limited to):-
Newcastle disease:-
The disease is normally caused by Newcastle’s disease virus which can affect any bird; even those that appear healthy. It is a virulent viral infection that affects the nervous system and causes significant delays in egg-laying, weight loss, and muscle tremors.
Marketing:
After the survival of poultry chicks, the breeder may sell them to the local market. The prices of poultry vary according to conditions and locations. The price of a chicken in the local market is around 100 taka, the price of a duck is around 150, and around 200 for a goose.
For broiler chickens, their useful life maybe about 150 days. In the case of layers, their useful life may be up to 200 days, while for cockerels it may be up to 1 year after they are 20 weeks old.
In summary:
Poultry farm in Bangladesh: The main criteria of a poultry farm is to ensure the health and economic survival of the birds. This can be achieved through good husbandry practices like feeding, watering, housing, and management.
For poultry farmers, success depends on several factors such as natural resources, soil conditions, and climatic conditions; all of which are necessary for growing healthy birds. The average day-to-day marketing for poultry farmers is very important in ensuring the economic survival of their birds.
