Layer production: Lessons from beginner to beginners

THIS week we continue with sharing lessons on layer production, from the lens of a beginner. These are experiential learnings and therefore are by no means presented as authority in the subject matter.

It is, however, envisaged that there are several poultry producers including those into layer production that will find the lessons valuable as they are probably operating at the same scale and may encounter similar situations.

The lessons herein shared are derived from operating a battery cage system for layer production. There are generally two housing systems that can be used by layer producers, namely the deep litter and the battery cage system.

In the deep litter systems layers are housed in a fowl run in which they can roam around, and they will lay eggs anywhere within the fowl run.

The fowl run may have laying nests but not all birds will use the nests. On the other hand, the battery cage system conforms the birds to cages; water and feed being provided in the cages. They will lay the egg which rolls down a tray to be collected outside the cage.

Each system has its own advantages and disadvantages but suffice to mention that the battery cage system is ideal for producers with limited space such as backyard production in residential areas.

It can accommodate more birds in a smaller place, however, it does not come cheap. The deep litter system is ideal for producers who have abundant space and also are producing large numbers of layers.

The first lesson I learned was that you need to get your measurements correct for the fowl run, that is both the height and the width especially if you are going to construct the fowl run before you procure the battery cages.

The height may turn out to be shorter both for the cages and for your own comfort as you move around feeding and inspecting the birds. The width may be too small to accommodate all the tiers of the cages and as such, like me, you may find yourself with a tier of cages which you cannot use because they cannot fit in the fowl run!

The other lesson you will soon learn is that there are animal welfare enthusiasts who find the battery cages punitive to the birds and they may give you a lip or two about the welfare of the birds.

Thirdly, some fitments of the battery cage system are not appropriate for the size of the cages. An example is the drinking water tank which has a ten-litre capacity for a system that can hold up to a hundred and twenty birds.

This is too small and as such you will need to be refilling the tank now and again, which can be an inconvenience for producers who do not spend time at home because they are employed elsewhere, or they are running a business somewhere.

You will find that you then need to either improvise for a bigger water tank or connect to a hosepipe and water tap and the system can selfregulate in terms of refilling the water tank.

This may be also another inconvenience because outside water taps are used for other uses such as watering the garden and even for household water. Some of the drinking nipples also tend to leak, providing two challenges for the producers.

The leakage will cause your fowl run to be damp which is not an ideal condition for your fowl run.

A damp housing is a haven for diseases, and you don’t want that for your enterprise. Leaking nipples causes the already small water tank to empty very fast and hence requires frequent refills which become a serious inconvenience.

Then you will find a number of birds out of the cages roaming around the fowl run, because they have somehow knocked down the small gates for the compartments.

The compartments for the battery cages have small gates that close the cages and keep the birds in one compartment, but with time as your birds jostle for the feed, the small gates get tilted or completely thrown off and the birds walk out of the cages.

In fact, the birds will now patch on the feeding troughs which are outside the cages and as a result they begin to spoil the feeding with their droppings. You will find that you may need to tie the small gates with a soft wire to keep them intact and prevent birds escaping from the cages. I hope these few lessons will help other upcoming layer producers.

Other than the few challenges observed above, you will notice that you will produce the cleanest eggs for the market from the battery cage system as the egg rolls down the collection tray immediately after laying, protecting it from being soiled by the chicken droppings.

Uyabonga umntaka MaKhumalo. l Mhlupheki Dube is a livestock specialist and farmer. He writes in his own capacity. Feedback mazikelana@gmail.com / cell 0772851275