Small Flock

Whether you view your small poultry flock as a hobby or a significant contribution to the family diet, it is useful to estimate the costs of maintaining the flock.

Housing should provide protection from all kinds of weather, predators, injury, and theft. Consider the location of your poultry house on your property. Locate the building in a well drained area, with access to water and electricity. Your job is to keep the birds comfortable at all times.

There are three basic choices in the types of poultry to purchase; a breed primarily for egg production, a breed for showing or exhibiting, or one that is bred for meat production. Care and feed requirements will vary for each type of breed.

Adequate availability of water to birds is critical to bird health and performance. Water is sometimes referred to as the forgotten nutrient. It is considered one of the most important nutrients ingested and although it is inexpensive to provide, it is often the most neglected nutrient.

Vitamins are trace organic nutrients which occur in feedstuffs in varying quantities and different combinations. Vitamins are required for growth, reproduction, and the maintenance of health.

Animal and vegetable fats serve as a concentrated energy source and are the highest energy sources in feedstuffs.

Proteins are a large complex class of nutrients made up of smaller compounds known as amino acids. In nutrition, amino acids are grouped into two categories depending on their requirement in the diet. Non-dispensable (or essential) amino acids are required in the diet because the body cannot make them at all or the body cannot make them at a fast enough rate for maximum performance.

Carbohydrates in feed are composed of sugars, starches and cellulose. Cellulose (classified as crude fiber) is the insoluble portion of carbohydrates and cannot be utilized efficiently by birds.

Nutrition is one of the most important aspects of production. Sixty to seventy percent of the cost of raising poultry is feed. A wide range of high quality commercially prepared feed is available from many sources. Birds must be fed diets that meet their nutritional requirements to achieve maximum production.

Disinfectants are agents applied to non-living objects to reduce the number of unwanted microorganisms to a safe level. Using disinfectants should be a routine part of daily farm sanitation. Sanitation includes the substances or methods used to destroy microorganisms in order to maintain a healthy, disease-free environment. Sanitation methods prevent unwanted organisms from coming back after disinfectants have been applied.