The secrets of growing broilers at home for beginners

Each owner of a particular type of farm animal is interested in rational use of feed and making the most profit. In poultry farming, broiler growing at home is becoming increasingly popular. This is explained by the fact that, with proper care and proper nutrition, the fattening period of broiler chickens is only two months, while the percentage of meat output is quite large. We learn about how to start growing chickens, what they need to be provided in the first place, what kind of care is needed, from the article below. Especially useful will be information on growing broilers at home for beginner poultry farmers.

Origin

Contrary to popular belief, a broiler is not a breed of chickens. So it is customary to call a young livestock of farm birds and animals that are raised to obtain cheap meat in large quantities. Broil translated from English means "spit roast". When broilers are grown at home, they get more meat from one chicken than from an adult bird of another breed, and besides it compares favorably in quality.

The first broiler chickens brought English farmers. They crossed two breeds of large chickens and received chickens, which they began to call giants and attributed to a larger breed. However, at home, the bird reproduced poorly, and after one generation the chickens turned into the most common.

Soon, farmers realized that large chickens could only be obtained by hybrid means. To create such a bird, the following meat breeds of chickens are most often crossed:

• Cornish
• langshan;
• faverol;
• bramah;
• Plymouth Rock;
• Dorking;
• kokhinhin.

Professional breeding of broiler birds can be carried out only in special farms. Every year, breeders create new hybrid forms, the so-called crosses. They inherit the best qualities from their parents: precocity, high slaughter weight, immunity to various diseases.

Appearance

Broiler chickens compare favorably with chicks of the same age of common breeds. The first ones by the age of one and a half weeks are able to gain up to 1.5 kilograms of live weight, while ordinary chickens gain no more than half a kilogram. The weight of an adult chicken of hybrid breeds reaches 4 kilograms, and the weight of some males is 5.5.

Broiler chickens have a rather compact body, short legs and wings. The bird is inactive, has a calm disposition and a phlegmatic character. The color is most often white, as is the plumage of the parents.

Productivity

When grown at home, broilers build muscle mass relatively quickly. The minimum weight of a bird carcass is 2 kilograms. At the same time, a little bird feed is eaten: about 2-3 feed units per kilogram of weight. Egg production in broiler chickens is poorly developed, but the maternal instinct is well developed.

Rating of the best broiler breeds

When breeding, only the most healthy and persistent bird is selected for breeding new highly productive crosses. Crosses of the latest generation in all respects outperform previous breeds. The most common broiler breeds to date:

• COBB-500;
• ROSS-308;
• ROSS-708.

Broiler breed KOBB-500

A distinctive feature of this bird from other breeds is the yellow color of the skin. In the consumer market, such meat is always more in demand. Chicks at the age of 6 weeks reach a weight of 2 to 2.5 kilograms and are suitable for slaughter. COBB-500 has strong immunity to various diseases, as well as 100% survival. Broilers have large legs and a wide breast, which is undoubtedly an advantage when growing broilers for meat at home. One of the advantages of this cross can be considered that all birds have almost the same weight and height.

ROSS-308

Broilers are distinguished by their intensive growth, during the day the chick gains about 60 grams. A period of rapid growth occurs in the first weeks of life. The carcass of the bird is pale in color, but the breast is much wider and fatter than that of COBBs. A feature of this cross is a relatively good egg production.

ROSS-708

The last breed of broilers bred occupies a leading position among other types of crosses. She is distinguished by her incredible early maturity, the chicken reaches a fairly large size at the age of one month and weighs about 2.5 kilograms. The skin color of these broilers is similar to COBBs, but they do not always manage to acquire such a shade.

Growing broilers from scratch at home

Before you start buying chickens, you need to prepare a place for them in which they will grow healthy and gain good weight. While the chickens are small, a plywood box can be used as a house for them, the main requirements for which are: heat, light and lack of moisture. Later, when the chickens are a little older, they can be settled in a specially prepared room.

Where to get chickens

Experts recommend, especially for beginners to grow broilers at home, to buy poultry only at poultry farms, where they strictly observe sanitary standards and provide full-fledged care for young animals. You can buy chickens in the market, but in this case there is a chance that you will get an unhealthy or outbred bird. When buying chickens, you need to pay attention to the behavior and appearance of the chicks:

• clean feathers;
• a clear look;
• movable;
• react to noise;
• soft tummy.

Small chickens

A plywood house for babies needs to be kept in a warm place, especially if they were purchased in early spring. Under the box, lay a warm cloth, you can use the old mat. Care should be taken to ensure that there are no drafts. By the way, when choosing a box, you should know that one chicken needs an area of ​​at least 30 square centimeters. Very often special brooders are made for little chicks, which is without a doubt the best option.

On the first day after birth, the chickens must be provided with uninterrupted lighting. For the bird, ultraviolet light is also necessary, so if possible, be sure to purchase such a lamp. For chickens, and even adults, the temperature regime is very important.

The technology of growing broilers at home

There are two methods for growing poultry for meat: intensive and extensive maintenance. In the first case, from the beginning of life, chickens are fed complex feed, which is intended specifically for broiler crosses. You can buy such food in almost every veterinary pharmacy. With this method, another restriction on the movement of birds can be considered another secret to growing broilers at home. If you chose this way of keeping, then the bird should be raised in special small enclosures. It is worth emphasizing: if more intensive growth of chickens is necessary, a more compacted content is used, where on average 12 heads account for no more than one square meter. One of the most important factors when caring for chickens is cleanliness in the chicken coop. Broiler crosses are extremely sensitive to contaminated bedding and air. If the chicken coop is not regularly cleaned, the likelihood of poultry diseases is very high, which ultimately can even lead to its death.

In the event that the second method of growing broilers at home is chosen, feeding and caring for them continue for 4 months in the warm season. At the same time, the bird is fed with hand-made feed. It should be remembered: new types of feed are never introduced into the diet on the same day, it must be done gradually. All wet mixers should be eaten by the bird within 35-40 minutes, if left in the chicken coop for a longer time, the product may become sour, insects inseminate with eggs .

When keeping chickens, it is important to have a clean, dry litter. The best is considered to be husk from seeds, which can be purchased at any oil mill. In the event that this is not possible, it is recommended to use straw, fibrous peat or sawdust. You must remember: the presence of wet litter is unacceptable.

Using feed for broilers

For more intensive growth of broiler chickens, feeding and growing at home, it is recommended to use specialized feeds that can be purchased ready-made or prepared by yourself. This food fully meets all the physiological needs of broilers. Such a diet brings particularly high rates in the first four weeks. Ready-made feed for broilers varies in composition and in particle size. For ease of perception, information on the required feeds is presented in the form of a table.

Broiler feeding

Consider the features of growing and feeding broiler chickens at home. In chickens of all broiler breeds, intensive growth is laid genetically. Therefore, they must be provided with complete and high-quality feed in the required quantity. It is believed that the sooner the baby begins to feed, the faster the chicken broiler will grow. If in the early days one of the chickens cannot peck, he must be fed a mixture of yolk and cream, using a pipette.

A feature of growing broilers at home is considered intensive feeding, which begins from the first days. The first one and a half weeks, small chickens are fed with an interval of two hours, about 7-8 times a day. A break in feeding should not be more than six hours. For good growth in the diet of chickens, it is necessary to include easily digestible protein - milk, cottage cheese and boiled egg. The last product from five days of age can be given with shell (chopped). Further, the diet is gradually replenished with corn grits and crushed wheat. And already from ten days of age they are transferred to feeding with a vitamin-grain mixture:

• corn grits - 50%;
• wheat - 25%;
• barley flour - 10%;
• oat flakes - 5%;
• nettle (scalded. simmer.) - 10%.

Broiler chickens when grown at home from the age of 15 days begin to feed with grated carrots, boiled meat, greens. At the same time, an additional feeder is placed for mineral feed: chalk, bone meal, crushed shells, gravel.

With special care, you should approach the water supply of chickens, about 40 ml of water is needed per bird. Experts do not recommend giving raw water, it is better to replace it with a decoction of chamomile or dog rose, which will have a beneficial effect on the digestive tract of chicks. Once every two days, you can give boiled water with the addition of potassium permanganate - for the prevention of gastric diseases. The color of such water should have a pale pink tint. If there is not enough water when growing a bird, dehydration may begin in the chickens, which, without specific treatment, can lead to their death. When growing broilers at home, the three-stage feed system is most often used, which is calculated by the age of the hens from birth to slaughter.

It should be noted that such compound feed is more expensive than home-made feed, but it significantly improves all indicators of a growing livestock. It simplifies the cultivation, feeding, control of food intake and, in general, the entire care of broilers. At the initial stage, this food helps to strengthen the immune system, creates the prerequisites for rapid growth and good health of the bird. During the period of active growth of chickens, feed is a source of protein, fats, calcium and vitamins, which provide rapid bone growth and muscle building. Closer to slaughter, finishing mixes are introduced into the diet to increase fatness. All this increases the profitability of growing broilers at home.

Disease Prevention and Treatment

As you know, prevention is the best way to prevent broiler disease. Therefore, the main and main rule will be to carry out disinfection measures in the room where the chickens live. Cleanliness prevents various infections. The smallest broilers are advised to immerse the paws in a disinfectant solution for 3 days. Experienced poultry farmers advise chickens from 3 days of age to give Enrofloxacin solution at the rate of 1 cube per liter of water.

To strengthen immunity, broiler chickens are given water with ascorbic acid dissolved in it (1 packet per 3 liters) - this will fill the vitamin C deficiency in the body. Vitamin supplements such as Chiktonik and Biovit begin to be given at the age of seven days for prevention of vitamin deficiency. The duration of taking vitamins is 10 days.

Among young broilers, there is often such a thing as cannibalism (popularly “pecking”). In order to avoid such a nuisance, you should carefully monitor the behavior of the chicks. The main causes of biting can be considered too bright light, the close content of chickens and lack of protein or gravel in the diet. In the event that a bite nevertheless occurred, it is necessary to add a little citric acid to the drinking water (acidify), anoint the wounded chicks with brilliant green and plant it separately. Otherwise, the bite can continue - curious chicks will peck at the green crown.

Bird growing in cages

Increasingly, poultry farmers choose cages for growing broilers at home. This content has several advantages:

1. Chickens quickly gain weight due to a sedentary lifestyle.
2. The risk of various diseases is reduced due to the fact that the bird does not contact the litter.

With this content, 10 birds are settled in one cage with a floor area of ​​0.5 m ² . The microclimate itself in the chicken coop is subject to the same requirements as with other cultivation methods.

In the room where broiler chickens are kept, it is necessary to install an extract, because this bird especially needs fresh air. The hood must be with a thermostat and turn on and off at a certain point so that the bird does not freeze.

We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the features of home-grown broiler chickens in more detail by watching the video.

Walking for broilers

If desired, a small walk can be made for broilers, just do not make it too spacious. While the chickens are small, they can be released into it for several hours. When broilers lean well, and the air temperature in the street does not fall below +18 degrees, they can be settled in a separate house. It is only necessary to ensure that the chicken house is warm and without drafts. In the room it is necessary to make the floor and cover it with straw. For additional heating, you can hang lamps in it. The chicken house should not be made too large, the main thing is that it is convenient to clean it. At night, the chickens are left to sleep in the house, and during the day they are released into the pen.

Breeding as a business

Growing broilers at home, according to many owners, can be turned into a source of additional income. First of all, before buying small chickens, you need to draw up a business plan and find a market for finished products. Broilers can be offered to individuals or enter into an agreement with online stores that sell natural products. Such cooperation will be beneficial to both parties: for the owner of broilers, this is the appearance of a wholesale buyer, and the benefit for the store is a constant percentage of profits.

Broiler meat can be offered to owners of small stalls where they sell fast food: shawarma, grilled chicken, pies. Or deliver chicken meat to catering establishments. Breeding broilers can be considered a profitable business both for your family and for the purpose of generating income.