One option for running an effective business of your own is an ostrich farm. Ostrich breeding at home is exotic, in demand, profitable!
Why breeding ostrich?
Every year, this type of farming is becoming increasingly popular, because it quickly pays off and begins to make a profit after one or two years.
A businessman who decides to breed ostriches at home, in addition to studying a large amount of information from various sources, is recommended to visit several farms specializing in this particular type of farming. This is required to form a true impression of the planned business and a clear idea of its optimal conduct.
Valuable ostrich products
Why exactly breeding ostrich? Because it:
- Meat is a tasty and healthy, dietary product that is rapidly gaining popularity due to the rich composition of trace elements, high protein content and minimal presence of fats. Reminiscent of veal, ostrich meat resists any type of heat treatment, perfectly absorbs marinades and spices. The meat yield when cutting carcasses is approximately 25-30 kilograms, and this is 40% of the bird. One sold carcass of an ostrich can bring in 500 and more dollars despite the fact that the price per kilogram of such meat in European and American markets ranges from 15 to 25 dollars.
- Fat, widely used in pharmacology and cosmetology, as an integral part in the production of soaps, balms, ointments, creams. The most valuable is the fat of emu ostriches, which has bactericidal, hypoallergenic, anti-inflammatory properties. On average, an adult bird can produce from 7 to 15 kilograms of such a valuable product.
- An egg whose weight ranges from 450 to 1800 grams, which is equivalent to 25-40 chicken counterparts. The cost of such an unusual giant, which is not inferior in anything to a chicken egg and is an exotic dining table, is 10-15 dollars. The ostrich egg is also a champion in terms of shelf life, as it can lie in the refrigerator for up to one year. A strong shell, which is very difficult to break, is similar to porcelain and is in demand among artists as a subject of painting and engraving, and is also in demand by masters who make various decorations. Fertilized eggs are considered the most valuable; their price at poultry farmers reaches up to $ 100 apiece. In a year this can amount to 3.5 - 8.0 thousand dollars, based on the assumption that one female per season can lay about 70 eggs.
- Feather, which has become, along with meat, the cause of mass extermination of ostriches. The fashion for ladies' hats with a feather in 1840 impoverished South America by 1000 kg of such a valuable product, and in 1910 this figure grew to 370 thousand kilograms. And today, the white feather of an ostrich, growing on the back or in the tail of males, is readily bought up by fashion designers, designers, dance groups, as well as visitors to farms as a souvenir. The remaining feathers are used as pillow filler. Ostrich breeding in Russia benefits even from selling the feather of this bird, which brings the farmer about 10% of the total profit.
- The skin is moisture-resistant, elastic, with a high service life (more than 30 years), is in great demand among designers and is a material for the manufacture of luxury models of bags, wallets, shoes, gloves, belts, wallets and cowboy shoes popular among Americans. Ostrich skin, equivalent in quality to snake and crocodile, cannot be faked. Selling the skins of one ostrich, the price of which varies from 200 to 300 dollars per piece, fully pays for all costs of breeding poultry.
- Adult birds are also an important part of the farmer’s income. As a rule, pedigree chicks and individuals are realized, which in the future can be used to breed future offspring. A five-day-old chick in Russia costs about $ 100, a monthly ostrich can be bought for $ 200, a pair of adult ostriches will cost 3.5 thousand and above.
African ostrich - a favorite of farmers
African ostrich is the largest breed (weight 100 - 160 kg, height - about 3 meters), due to its unpretentiousness in the content is grown in more than 50 countries. This bird is able to withstand high and low temperatures. The speed developed during running reaches 50 km / h.
Emu ostriches, whose breeding on farms is less developed than the content of African ostriches, do not require special care. It is important to know the behavior of this bird in natural conditions, in order to optimize the artificially created environment for the natural environment familiar to such exotic creatures.
Brief description of bird keeping
In winter, the bird can be kept in unheated rooms on a deep litter, for a 6-month-old young on cold days the room should be warmed up to a temperature of 12-18 degrees. The productive season for the African ostrich is from March to October. The egg production of one female per season is from 50 to 80 eggs, the weight of which is 1.3-1.8 kg. The incubation period of young animals, the hatching of which occurs simultaneously, is 45 days. The ostriches that have appeared have a weight of up to 1 kilogram with an increase of 20-25 centimeters. Females reach puberty at 18-24 months, males at 24-30 months.
Ostrich feeding
Ostriches, being an omnivorous bird, feed on what nature provides. Preference is given to vegetation (grass, leaves, fruits, roots). Do not disdain also various animals, birds, small insects and lizards. In general, the poultry diet should consist of 50% green feed, 30% combined feed, 20% at the farmer’s discretion and ability. An adult bird and young animals older than a year are required to be fed 2 times a day, young animals up to a year - at least 3-4 times.
On farms, poultry, the average daily diet of which is 3 kg of feed, receives:
- Green food (clover, rapeseed, alfalfa, quinoa, cabbage and fodder, spinach, corn and cereal silage, mustard, nettle, beet, carrot, mulberry leaves).
- Coarse food (hay of clover, alfalfa, meadow herbs, soybeans, seradella and cereal straw).
- Root crops, fruits and vegetables (pumpkin, radish, cucumbers, carrots, beets, apples, watermelon, bananas).
- Cereals (corn, barley, oats, wheat, rye, millet, sorghum, sunflower).
- Feed additives (meat and bone, bone and fish meal).
- Minerals (shells, gravel, limestone, eggshells) that ostriches are very eager to find and eat with pleasure. This contributes to the normal functioning of the digestive system. By the way, the farm should be cleaned thoroughly, as ostriches do not disdain any small debris (nails, pieces of plastic).
Ostrich farming systems
Modern ostrich farming adheres to three main systems on which the breeding of these birds is based:
- Intense Breeding and keeping ostriches is similar to stall care for livestock on livestock farms. Birds are kept in a small area in the conditions of full support of their livelihoods by farm personnel, which positively affects the development of livestock, and especially young animals. Close contact and regular care make it easy to tame the bird and manage it. With an intensive system, eggs are removed from the nests and incubated, which leads to high reproduction rates, making it possible to obtain from one layer to 80 eggs per year.
- Extensive . Ostrich breeding is as close as possible to natural conditions: the bird itself is more or less worried about itself. Females, thanks to free movement, can mate with various males, as a result of which the number of fertilized eggs increases markedly.
- Semi - intensive - combines the positive qualities of the above systems and is recommended for beginner poultry farmers. There is one female for one adult male.
Where to begin? Business plan
Breeding ostriches in Ukraine and Russia is a promising business, because the unpretentiousness of this bird in the care and the high cost of ostrich products will pay for a new business quickly enough, starting to bring tangible profits in a fairly short period of time.
The first step in starting your own farming business will be to find a suitable territory for keeping ostriches. Where to start breeding ostriches? The first steps are the arrangement of the farm for their maintenance and the purchase of young or adult individuals.
Of course, breeding an ostrich will require certain financial investments, but they are worth it, since it will pay off in the first year of running an ostrich farm. Although the ostrich is an unpretentious bird, nevertheless, the key to a successful start in the ostrich business will be to create the most comfortable conditions for it.
Cost item - farm construction
Significant costs will require the construction of a farm. The cost of investments will depend on local characteristics, personal and rental arrangements, prices for building materials and the work of hired people.
It will be necessary to build:
- closed warm room, bright and spacious, with an approximate area of 150 sq. meters for the maintenance of an average herd of about 30 adult heads: at least 50 square meters per individual. meters of land;
- open-air cages with an area of 1,500 square meters. meters;
- fencing;
- communications ensuring the continuous functioning of the farm.
Be sure to pay attention to the remoteness of the farm from noisy highways, industries with hazardous emissions; Wind protection and terrain are also important. Good access roads and good water supply are necessary conditions for the smooth operation of the farm.
Finding less costly ways
The advantage will be farmers who own land with buildings on it.
Another way with minimal investment will be to search somewhere in the backwoods of an abandoned pigsty or barn, surrounded by pasture and water. Of course, the premises will require repairs (heating, sewage and ventilation) and equipment, but this option will save a significant portion of the money that can be invested directly in the purchase of livestock.
Buying 4 adult families and 6-8 females will cost 30-40 thousand dollars. You can purchase grown chicks, which will significantly reduce the investment, but will delay the time period for making the first profit.
Breeding work - the right way to a healthy livestock
From the first days, special attention will need to be paid to breeding, periodically updating the herd with a good productive bird and rejecting sick and unusable individuals. When forming families, it will be necessary to take into account the mutual sympathies of ostriches, because the mechanical connection of birds can be unproductive and will cause reduced egg production.
You will definitely need to get an incubator, the cheapest of which, designed for 45 eggs, costs $ 1,500.
To feed ostriches you will need to buy domestic compound feed for laying hens, including vitamin and mineral supplements. Also, the bird will gladly consume oats, corn, barley, millet, bran, hay and straw. In summer and autumn, the bird can be transferred to green juicy feed: alfalfa and clover.
With a large bird population (500 individuals and above), it is advisable to establish our own feed production, which will only reduce the cost of maintaining ostriches. Own feed can be sold to neighboring farms.