Increasing performance is the biggest goal in the broiler industry, but how exactly is this accomplished? One possibility is on-farm hatching to reduce biosecurity and sanitation risks associated with transporting newly hatched chicks.
Increasing performance is the biggest goal in the broiler industry, but how exactly is this accomplished? One possibility is on-farm hatching to reduce biosecurity and sanitation risks associated with transporting newly hatched chicks.
Water is one of the most important resources in broiler production, yet it can be easy to overlook until a problem arises. Birds depend on consistent access to clean, fresh water throughout the flock cycle, and the watering system must deliver the right amount at the right pressure and height.
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Most poultry companies invest significant resources in infectious bronchitis vaccination programs. But according to one of the poultry industry’s leading infectious bronchitis virus researchers, Mark Jackwood, PhD, Ceva Animal Health, one critical question often receives less attention than it should: How do you know the program worked?
A research team led by Sanjay Shah, PhD, North Carolina State University, developed a new Excel-based mass-depopulation calculator to help poultry producers and animal health officials rapidly estimate the resources needed during HPAI outbreaks.
Water is one of the most important resources in broiler production, yet it can be easy to overlook until a problem arises. Birds depend on consistent access to clean, fresh water throughout the flock cycle, and the watering system must deliver the right amount at the right pressure and height.
Raised to maximize meat production, commercial turkey toms are bred to grow quickly and gain weight in a short time. This begs the question whether the bird’s skeletal system meets that developmental challenge.
By David L. Wicker, PhD, industry consultant, Gainesville, Georgia and
W.A. Dozier, III, PhD, Department of Poultry Science, Auburn University and Alabama Cooperative Extension System
An innovation taking the broiler/breeder industry by storm is Comfort Nest™, a mechanical egg-laying system from VAL-CO that more than doubles the nest size to accommodate high-yield broiler-strain hens.
Broilers do not spread evenly across their environment. Some may cluster near a wall, equipment line, or other boundary, while other areas appear relatively unoccupied. Shawna Weimer, PhD, University of Arkansas, explores the behavior of wall hugging and what it means to broiler production.
Technology that measures body fat in live hens could help producers extend persistency of lay and meet growing demand for eggs without increasing flock numbers, according to Jarred Oxford, poultry nutritionist with Cargill Animal Nutrition.
