Keeping Poultry In The Country

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Photo: Yulia Saponova / Rusmediabank.ru

Keeping poultry in the country - many summer residents are engaged in the cultivation of not only various crops, but also the breeding of various animals, in this case, special attention is paid to birds.

How to choose a bird?

Very often, poultry farmers face a difficult choice: who to breed, chickens, ducks, geese or turkeys. Actually, in this case, you should mainly focus on what you want to get in the end: meat or eggs.

If you choose the latter, then it is worth looking into breeding chickens. However, among them there are breeds that give both meat and eggs at the same time. Many poultry breeders choose the following breeds: Moscow, Cornish, Rhode Island and New Hampshire. The weight of adults can reach four kilograms, and such a hen will bring about 160 eggs per year.

It should be noted that ducks gain weight much faster than chickens. The musky ducks are the most popular in housekeeping. This breed will not quack, which means it will not bother its neighbors. Drakes of this breed are capable of gaining more than seven kilograms per season, and ducks will gain half as much. By the way, duck eggs are also quite tasty, even if their use is not so widespread.

If you choose geese, then you will always have both meat and down, and feathers, and even valuable fat. Geese of the Kholmogory breed can gain up to ten kilograms.

As for turkeys, their weight can reach fifteen kilograms. At the same time, turkeys will also help in the fight against various pests, for example, with Colorado beetles.

Chickens are very unpretentious in conditions, but geese will already need large territories. It will be desirable for ducks to have even a small reservoir. But turkeys will need the largest area, and caring for them will be difficult. Therefore, novice poultry farmers can be advised to start chickens first of all.

What should be the poultry house?

After the chicks have grown up, they need a separate room. The poultry houses must be warm, light and reliably insured against possible drafts. The house should have everything you need not only to rest and feed the birds, but also so that they can comfortably hatch eggs. The walls of such a building can be made of wood or brick. In no case is a concrete floor acceptable, it can be either wooden or earthen.

As for calculating the size, it should be remembered that there can be no more than 5 chickens, four ducks, two geese, or one turkey per square meter. The ideal location for a poultry house is an elevated position. In order to prevent the summer heat from penetrating there, it may be necessary to install shutters.

In winter, birds need to turn on the lamp from six in the morning until dawn, as well as from four to ten in the evening. To insulate the house, you can use a bedding made of straw, sawdust and dry leaves.

Pole perches must be arranged along the back wall. The height for chickens should be about eighty centimeters, but for turkeys this value should be about half a meter. Geese and ducks will not need perches. The nests should be placed along the side walls and can be made from wooden boxes filled with straw.

Feeders are made as boxes or troughs. The feeders are covered with slats, the gap between which should be at least seven centimeters. This is to prevent birds from scattering feed. Drinkers intended for chickens and turkeys should be installed at a height of half a meter. But for ducks and geese, drinkers are made on the floor. To get rid of birds from parasites, you can install a bath or any suitable container, half filled with ash and half with sand.

Birds also need proper nutrition. Ideal would be to give them grain in the morning and evening, and a mixture of grain, bran, vegetables and meat waste during the day. In winter, add carrots, cabbage, dried nettles and potatoes to your diet. Goose should also be given hay.