How do you take care of a laying hen in the winter?

With the advent of winter, farmers are faced with problems brought about by environmental changes such as insulation, ventilation, light control, and humidity. Below we will analyze and discuss several key points of breeding laying hens in winter, hoping to help you.

1.Keep warm

Usually, when the temperature is low in winter, the feed intake of chickens should increase by about 1/4 compared with the spring and autumn when the temperature is suitable.

The fluctuating temperature will also bring cold stress, which will make chickens more prone to various problems such as enteritis and respiratory diseases. If not treated in time, it may also stimulate viral diseases such as Newcastle disease.

We can adopt the following insulation methods: hang cotton curtains at the door, fill the ceiling of the chicken house with benzene board or lay dry straw on the roof of the chicken house to reduce the ventilation time and the opening of the ventilation opening.

2.Ventilation

Minimize ventilation in winter for thermal insulation, but that does not mean any ventilation. Dust and ammonia in the house can build up over time if it is not ventilated.

Dust is a good carrier of pathogens such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella, and Mycoplasma. Ammonia and other harmful gases can stimulate the respiratory tract of chickens and cause respiratory inflammation, resulting in decreased immunity of chickens.

The ventilation time should be selected when the temperature is higher in the day, generally from noon to 2 pm. The vent should be facing the roof of the chicken coop, to prevent the cold air from blowing directly on the chicken, which will cause the chicken to catch a cold.

3.Lllumination

In winter, with the reduction of daylight hours, the time of artificial light addition is prolonged every day. At this time, the light intensity of the light has a greater impact on egg laying.

Because a lot of dust generated by infrequent ventilation covers the surface of the bulb, it will greatly reduce the light intensity of the light. Reduced light intensity reduces egg production. Insufficient light will also affect the feeding time of laying hens, resulting in a decrease in feed intake and insufficient intake of nutrients, further causing a decline in egg production and eggshell quality.

Therefore, the dust on the lamps should be cleaned at least weekly in winter, and the damaged lamps should be replaced in time to ensure the light time and intensity obtained by the chickens.

4.Clean manure

Due to the low temperature, some farmers extend the normal chicken manure cleaning time, and even some farmers think that the heat generated by the fermentation of chicken manure in the chicken house can play a role in heat preservation, which is wrong.

While fermenting and producing heat, chicken manure also produces ammonia and other harmful gases. At the same time, a large amount of accumulated manure is also a breeding ground for pathogens. The accumulation of feces will also attract the curiosity of chickens to peck, thereby causing some diseases in the gastrointestinal and respiratory tracts of chickens. The result of the long-term accumulation of feces is to greatly increase risk of disease in chickens. Therefore, the manure is usually cleaned twice a week, especially in winter when the air quality of the chicken house is poor.

For more breeding information, please contact Hightop battery cage, we will provide more professional breeding knowledge.

Hot sale Hightop battery cage