In broiler production, slow growth is a common problem. When producers encounter it, they often do not know where to start or what to improve. Today, we will help you sort through the causes of this problem and hope to help you better understand it and make improvements.
In the current context, from a disease perspective, the main reasons for slow broiler growth or below-target feed intake are as follows:
1, low Newcastle disease antibody levels, which are relatively easy to overlook.
2, adenomyogastritis, which causes the greatest harm and has the longest treatment period.
3, mold and mycotoxins, which are widespread and difficult to guard against. Ironically, many people still do not acknowledge the existence of mold or the harm it causes!
However, this article will not focus on disease. Instead, it will look for causes in feeding and management practices. We hope it will be helpful!
Good practices for rapidly increasing broiler weight—stimulate appetite and increase broilers’ feed intake over the course of the day. This is a good way to address slow broiler growth.
Analysis of the causes of slow broiler growth:
1、Management during the first week was inadequate, resulting in a low body weight at the end of the week. This affects the development of the crop, proventriculus, and gizzard, and consequently the development of the digestive system. It also affects daily feed intake thereafter, ultimately delaying the market age of this flock.
2、The first-water and first-feed procedures were not carried out properly: the quality of first feeding determines whether net feed intake reaches more than 13 grams within one day of age (within 24 hours) and within 23 hours.
3、Brooding pens are not prepared as required, vacuum drinkers are not positioned, and feed is not provided at the appropriate time. As a result, chicks are not given sufficient access to water and feed, and access to first water and feed is uneven;
4、Birds are not grouped and allocated to pens as required, resulting in uneven stocking density. Excessive density in some areas leaves some birds with insufficient feed intake.
5、Disorganized feeding: feed is not cleared from the feeders on schedule, feeding is not controlled, feed quantities are inaccurate, and feed remains in the feeders for too long.
6、Excessive day-night temperature variation causes cold stress in the flock, affecting feed intake.
7, excessive medication within two weeks will affect the normal development of the liver and kidneys.
8, workers' lack of responsibility and poor performance mean they do not shake the feed bins as required to encourage the chickens to eat more feed.
9, they do not ensure that the flock finishes all the feed in the bins once a day as required, thereby stimulating the broilers' appetite and ensuring that the feed is fresh.
10, feeding cannot be controlled appropriately. Controlling feeding is not intended to make broilers eat less feed, but simply to get them moving.
11, uneven feed distribution or inaccurate chicken counts in different pens cause broilers to eat unevenly, resulting in uneven body sizes and an increased culling rate.
Several measures to increase feed intake:
1, carry out high-density starter feeding during the first ten hours, ensuring that chicks can access feed at all times and have water within half a meter. Scatter feed every half hour during the first ten hours.
2, Routine feeding: From 1 to 4 days, scatter feed every hour and use moistened feed. From 5 to 7 days, scatter feed every two hours, use dry feed, and transition gradually. After 8 days of age, feed may be added three times a day, the feed leveled twice, and the feed bins shaken more than five times. Feeding method: Divide the previous day's feed amount into two portions. The first time (after recording the feed amount), at around 6 in the afternoon the previous day, add two-thirds of the feed amount recorded for that day. Then, after breakfast in the morning (around 8), add one-third of the feed amount. At around 11 at midday that day, level the amount of feed that can be eaten by the end of the day. Starting in the afternoon, continue leveling the feed to ensure that the day's feed is finished by around 5.
3. In general, make sure to shake the feed bins to stimulate the broiler chickens’ appetite and encourage them to eat more feed. Make sure to shake the feed bins once every two hours.
4. From 8 to 22 days of age, empty the feed bins for 1 to 2 hours every afternoon. This is only to increase the broiler chickens’ lung capacity and thereby reduce mortality and culling later on. After 23 days of age, it is sufficient to let the broiler chickens finish the feed in the bins once a day.
5. From 3 to 10 days of age, chicks’ bones develop most rapidly. Use liquid vitamin AD3E (high-quality liquid cod liver oil) to ensure that the chicks have sufficient mobility, thereby reducing the incidence of sudden death syndrome, ascites, and pericardial effusion later on.
6. Minimize the use of antibiotics within the first two weeks, because at this stage, the organs and systems have not fully developed. Excessive medication may increase the burden on the liver and kidneys and affect their normal development. Do not use fly-control products in feed or drinking water during the first week, to prevent them from affecting the early digestive and absorption systems. Improper dosing can have serious consequences.
7, the amount of feed each day must be accurate so that potential problems in the flock can be detected as early as possible. Any adverse reaction in broilers first shows up in their feed intake, much like with children who do not know any better: as long as they eat and play, they are healthy. If they do not want to eat, sit quietly, and do not want to move, that is an early sign of illness. Attentive parents will notice that something is wrong with their children. We poultry caretakers must be attentive “parents” to raise chickens well.
8, reducing temperature differences within the house is also a good way to stimulate appetite. Providing the flock with a good environment and allowing the broilers to live comfortably can increase their appetite and feed intake. Everyone knows that high temperatures affect appetite. When temperatures are low and airflow is strong, the flock feels uncomfortable and does not want to move, which can also seriously affect the broilers’ appetite.
9, the appropriate brooding area should be determined by the chicks’ activity level. For the first ten hours: 70—80 birds/square meter; at 1—4 days: 35--40 birds/square meter; at 5—9 days: 17--20 birds/square; at 10—13 days: 15 birds/square meter; at 15 or 22 days: begin expanding to the entire poultry house. Flock expansion and pen division may only be done earlier, never later. Flock expansion must be carried out before ten o’clock in the morning. Prepare in advance for expanding the pens and dividing the flock to ensure that the expansion is done on time. When expanding the pens, increase the rearing area and reduce the stocking density, while keeping the number of chickens in each pen unchanged.
10, the greater the day-night temperature difference or the temperature difference between the two ends of the poultry house, the smaller the pens should be. This prevents the chickens from moving to areas with more comfortable temperatures, which could cause overcrowding in some rearing areas and affect feed intake.
11, for summer house management: the set temperature inside the house is 26--28℃. Therefore, ventilation should be managed based on the set temperature. Ventilation is also needed when the temperature is below or within the set temperature, but there should be no airspeed; otherwise, this may have some impact on the flock. When the house temperature is up to 3℃ above the set temperature, ventilation can be increased, using higher airspeed to address the problem of elevated temperature. If the house temperature is more than 3℃ above the set temperature, it is preferable to use cooling pads and increase ventilation as much as possible to achieve a higher airspeed.