Chickens Flashcards
hoow many australians eat chicken
90%
where is chicken meat produced per state
NSW = 32%
VIC = 20%
QLD = 20%
elsewhere = 20%
when are chickens slaughtered/caught
35 days
2 main breeds in ausralia
- Ross
- Cobb
how were meat chickens bred
- great grandparents -> import fertile eggs, breeding only to produce fertile breeding eggs
- grandoparents (breeding farms) -> genetically different chickens bred
- parent breeders (breeding farms) -> fertile hatchlings breed
- meat chicken offspring grown for consumption (broiler grow out farms)
how long are chickens grown out for
30-65 days
how long is incubation time
- delayed hatching for a week
-21 days - fumigated for 18 days (setting)
- placed in hatcher for 3 days
- chick brooding
explain breeder farms
- nesting boxes
- indoors
- one rooster per 10 chickens
- eggs into grates under chickens
what is the optimum temp for fertile eggs in storage?
- 18° for 3-4 days
- lower for longer periods
what is chick placement
- first stage of growing
- encouraging chicks to eat food from floor immdeiately after hatchign
3 ways to raise meat chickens
- conventional -> indoors
- free-range -> access to outdoors
- organic -> outdoors only
*all systems have an indoor brooding period
how many birds in each shed
40000-90000
what temp do chicks need to be at in first stage
31-32°
- reduce by a degree every day
explain a broiler cycle
- placement at day old
- staggered catching at 30, 40, 48, 56, 65 days
- shed empty and cleaned for next batch
what is a cool pad?
- air flows through pad, water stored in bottom cools air in sheds
when are chicks given access to outdoors in free range after brooding
21 days of age
*when they have feathers
what time of day are birds caught
- caught by hand at night
- put in crates
what is a full cleanout
all bedding, equipment, scrub floor, wall, spray everythng
what is a partial clean out
- feed and water cleaned
- change bedding
- don’t spray everything though
4 key biosecurity pricniples
- preventioon
- down time
- distance
- cleaning and disinfection
prevention aspects
- environemnt
- pathogens
- host susceptibility/immunity
downtime aspects
- keeping away from poultry farms if you have contacted other chickens recently
- e.g. 72 hours before entering another chicken farm
distance principles
- disances between two farms
cleaning apsects
- inactivate the pathogen
- use disinfectants and antibacterials
aspects of management of chickens
- food
- water
- air
- floor
ideal angles for water feeders
- chick = 35-45
- growing = 75-85
- grown = level with shoulder
chick positions and what they mean
- along outside = too hot
- evenly spread = right
- crowded in middle = too cold
- together in random area = something is wrong in a particular area
process of egg farming
- breeders
- hatchery
- pullet growers
- egg layer
- egg grading
- distribution
how many eggs produced in aus every year?
- 6.68 billion
how many hens in aus
30 million
when was import banned
1930’s
laying breeds
- isa brown (france)
- hy-line brown (US)
- hisex (holand)
* all brown egg layers*
genetics impoortaton process for eggs
- GGP imported
- GP eggs hatched
- parents hatched
- commercial chicks hatched -> layers
traits for layer chickens
- number of eggs
- feed conversion to eggs
- liveability
- shell strength + quality of eggs
what are pullets
- egg layers
what procedures do chicks undergo
- vaccination (egg vaccine or sprayed etc)
- sexing
- beak trimming (infared tech to take tip off/hook)
how to tell sex based off colour
- male sire will be brown which causes females to lay brown eggs
- female dam is white causing male offspring to be white
how can vaccines be given
- spray
- in the egg
- eyedrops
- wing vaccine
when do chickens lay
16 weeks
how long will chcikens sdtay in laying shed
72 weeks
what improvements ahve been made in egg industry
- lower feed intake
- lower manure by product (feed conversion)
- less water used
what is chick starter diet
- up to 6 weeks eat high protein diet
what is grower diet
- more food
what is layer diet
- higher calcium and mineral supplements and protein
lighting importance
- keep light immitating the season for breeding so they keep prodcing eggs
- 16 hours a day lighting
- reduce moulting phase
pros and cons of cages
pros:
- water and food always available
- control environement
- no predators
- efficient use of resources
- cleaner eggs
- easier for workers
- lower biosecurity needed
- less feather pecking
cons:
- welfare concerns
- low bone strength -> no movement
free range pros and cons
pros:
- consumers like it
- natural behaviour
- choice
- bone strength
cons:
- low productivity
- bacteria and viruses
- dirty eggs
- danger to predators
- wild birds -> biosecurity
barn eggs system pros and cons
- can roam around shed, inside
pros: - nests
- naural behaviour
- protected
cons: - hard to clean
- dirty eggs
- disease risk harder to contain
what happens once eggs laid
- collected
- egg packing -> transport
- graded (weigh, cracks)
- distribute
how many chickens kept in backyards
- 60,000 in WA
what are the egg standards
- national egg quality assurance program
- code of practce for welfare of poultry
- HACCP (hazard analysis and critical control points)
how much do layer hens eat
107 grams/day
main challenges in eggs production
- dominance of major supermarkets
- gov regulations
- site approvals
- salmonella
- biosecurity
