BASIC MANUAL FOR BOUNTY FRESH FREE RANGE COLORED BROILERS PRODUCTION

By: Eldani S. Fernando, DVM

Table of Contents

What is Bounty Fresh Free Range Colored Broilers? Bounty Fresh free range colored broilers is a meat type bird that has a comparable taste to our Philippine native chicken. These hardy birds can be readily ranged in open areas requiring minimal supervision as these can forage and source food from naturally available food sources to supplement normal feed ration. These birds are well suited to our climatic conditions with better growth rate, feed conversion, higher meat yield, and faster time to attain slaughter weight compared to our native chicken without compromising disease resistance. Why raise Bounty Fresh free range colored broilers? Over the years, the demand for high quality free-range chicken meat that is free from antibiotics, synthetic growth hormones, animal protein, pesticides, fertilizers, and other chemicals have consistently grown due to the increasing awareness of consumers of its health benefits. Traditionally, for this purpose, the Philippine native chicken is used but with some drawbacks and disadvantages as the Philippine native chicken tend to grow slowly, is not a good feed converter and day-old to slaughter weight takes at least 18 weeks. To address these problems brought about by the limits of the genetic capability of our native chickens, Bounty Fresh has introduced the colored broilers that can be ranged and raised like the Philippine native chicken. These colored broilers are suitable for backyard as well as commercial type of farming. Bounty Fresh free range colored broiler is a meat-type bird capable of averaging 1.6 kilos live weight at 56 days if raised on a fast grow system. It can have a

Page number

Introduction. Standard equipments and materials. Chick brooding Ranging time... Feeding Growth performance... Common diseases and problems.

2 4 7 10 14 17 18

livability of up to 97% if grown correctly. This is a considerable improvement from the 1.2 kilos at 126 days for the native chicken. Why choose Bounty Fresh free range colored broilers? 1. Chicks we are selling are coming from: a. Genetically superior parent stocks coming from a reputable breeding company from Europe (Hubbard) b. Parent stocks thoroughly vaccinated against NCD, Fowl Cholera, Infectious Coryza, IBD, IB, Fowl Pox, chicken infectious anemia, chronic respiratory disease and other economically important diseases. i. Chicks would benefit from the maternally derived antibodies that they will receive from the parent stocks that will protect them from these diseases during their first few weeks of life c. Parent stocks housed in environmentally-controlled houses ensuring controlled feeding, lighting, better production and barrier to diseases leading to healthier parent stocks d. Parent stocks fed with breed-specific feed specs. We formulate our own feeds based on the specific needs and requirements of our parent stocks as required by Hubbard i. We ensure the health of our parent stocks to give you the best quality chick in the market for a necessary good start for you

e. Are hatched in our own state of the art hatcheries. Not in any toll hatcheries ensuring clean, uniform, and healthy chicks

Fig 1. Bounty Fresh Free Range Colored Broiler Parent Stocks in our environmentally controlled housing 2. Chicks we are selling comes with technical services to ensure that our customers will grow their free range chickens the right way

OUR CHICKS ARE OF THE HIGHEST QUALITY OUT IN THE MARKET! Standard equipments for 100 Bounty Fresh free range colored broilers under Philippine condition Feeding equipments For brooding stage (day old to 21 days) Chick feeder troughs (1 meter length) Chick feeder trays (20 inches diameter)

For areas without electricity Used 3 kilo capacity powdered milk can Charcoal Other standard equipments: Light source: two 18 watts CFL lighting or petromax (for areas without electricity) Emergency light source 1x50 gallon drum as water reservoir 1x5 gallon plastic pail 1 unit weighing scale of 10 kilo capacity Fishnet for perimeter fencing of range area = 100 meters = 3 pieces = 1 sack or as needed

= =

2-3 pcs 2-3 pcs

For growing stage (22 days up to harvest, minimum 60 days) Tube feeders (5 kilos capacity) = 8 pieces Feeder troughs ( Watering equipments For brooding stage (day old to 21 days) Water galloners (medium)

Housing dimension and living space requirements for 100 heads Bounty Fresh free range colored broilers = 2-3 pcs BROODING AREA (day old to 21 days) o 8 square meters per 100 heads ( or a double decked cage of dimensions 2x1x0.5 meters per deck can house 50 heads for each deck)

For growing stage (22 days up to harvest, minimum 60 days) Water basin with basin guards (1 pair) = 8 pairs Heating/brooding equipments for brooding stage Incandescent bulbs (50 watts) 1 watt per chick is usually sufficient = 2 pieces

Fig 2. Improvised brooding area by utilizing pig pens covered with fish net to protect from predators with incandescent bulb as heat source

MOBILE RANGING HOUSE (22 days up to 80 days) o 7x2x2 meters or 14 square meters per 100 birds o Option of putting up ranging house per ranging area or ranging house can be transferred to another ranging location as flock is transferred from one ranging area to another to save cost of building new ranging house o Ranging house should offer protection from bad weather conditions RANGING AREA (space requirement up to harvest age of 80 days) o At least 1 square meter of ranging area per bird excluding ranging house o Ranging area is enclosed in fishnet 5 feet in height to prevent birds from roaming too far away and to protect birds from predators o Presence of forage materials is an added advantage to encourage natural foraging behavior of chickens

CHICK BROODING Brooding Management Principle A chick does not have the ability to maintain its own body temperature, therefore, it is necessary to provide external source of heat to help the chick maintain its core body temperature constant The first few weeks of the chicks life is critical, this few weeks will determine the success of your

Fig 3. A triple deck design with 2x1x0.5 meters with side extension for heaters. Capacity of 150 heads

performance until harvest. It is necessary to give your chicks a good head start. Brooding Management Provide clean and dry litter (dried grass, rice hulls, wood shavings) free from moulds, bacteria, viruses that can be a possible source of infection o Newspaper placed on top of litter for the first few days to enable floor feeding Provide right number of waterers (please see recommended poultry equipment ratio) and place in strategic locations where chicks can easily have access to the waterers Make sure that brooding area/cage is protected from cold drafts but with openings to keep brooder house temperature from getting too hot Provide heating source (please see recommended poultry equipment ratio) Pre-heat the brooding area at least 2 hours before chick arrival to avoid cold stress to the birds Upon chick arrival, do not give feeds during the first 30 minutes to encourage birds to drink first. Floor feed birds first to encourage them to eat. Provide chicks with clean, new feeds 30 minutes after placement Provide feeds in small amounts but in frequent interval to ensure feeds are fresh encouraging chicks to feed

Recommended brooding temperature during the first week Day 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Brooding Area Temperature (C) 34 34 34 32 32 30 30

Fig. 4. Charcoal heaters as heat source for brooding

Fig 6. Incandescent bulb used as heat source. Note that laminated sacks installed to prevent cold drafts from entering and conserve heat inside brooding area Ranging Time Fig 5. rice hulls burned in drums provide artificial heat source Stage where birds are set loose to forage for grass, insects, legumes, as supplementary diet aside from feeds These stage will help birds develop lean meat due frequent foraging and acquire the taste of native chicken

Ranging Proper Provide at least one square meter of range area per chicken Provision fishnet perimeter fence to exclude predators and to confine chickens o Fishnet is the material of choice for fencing so as not to block the flow of air Provide shaded areas as rest areas during hot times of the day o Improvement of 10-15% in performance was noted if birds are provided with shade. A heat stressed bird will consume less feed than it normally does Before letting loose chickens in the ranging area, o Confine birds inside the ranging house for at least 3-5 days to allow them to adjust to their new environment Strategically place waterers inside the range area that can be easily accessed by the birds Make sure water provided is clean and regularly replaced. Leftover water from the previous day should be replaced the next morning Ranging house should be big enough to accommodate all chicken when it is necessary to confine them at night time or during bad weather (give at least 1.5 square feet per bird) Rehabilitation of pasture/range area must be practiced to prevent pasture fatigue which can lead to hyper acidic soil that can favor the growth of pathogenic microorganisms in high numbers

Fig 7. Permanent ranging house. Note ranging house was placed on highest point to prevent flooding inside

FEEDING Three types of feeding management 1. Fast grow system with intensive use of high density feeds CLASSIFICATION: CERTIFIED SEMI-INDUSTRIAL FREE-RANGE Expected average live weight of 1.65 kilos in 56 days Brooding time (day old to 21 days) Feed type: chick booster Feeding: ad libitum ( full feeding) frequent but in small amounts Watering: change water every 3 hours Ranging time (22 days until harvest time) Feed type: 22-35 days: chick starter 35-56 days: grower finisher feeds Feeding: Full feeding 3x a day Watering: provide water as needed Fig 8. chickens confined for three days inside ranging house to familiarize them to their new environment 2. Medium grow system with use of mixture of high density and low density feeds CLASSIFICATION: STANDARD GROW FREE RANGE Expected average live weight of 1.50 kilos in 56 days

Brooding time (day old to 21 days) Feed type: chick booster Feeding: frequent but in small amounts Watering: change water every 3 hours

Feed type: 22-32 days:

Ranging time (22 days until harvest time) Feed type: 22-32 days: 33-43 days:

grower finisher feeds 50% grower finisher feeds 50% corn grits 44-56 days 35% grower finisher feeds 65% corn grits Feeding: Full feeding 3x a day Watering: provide water as needed 3. Slow grow system with use of 30% high density and 70% low density feeds and legumes CLASSIFICATION: SLOW GROW FREE RANGE Expected average live weight of 1.50 kilos in 70 days Brooding time (day old to 15 days only) Feed type: chick booster Feeding: frequent but in small amounts Watering: change water every 3 hours Ranging time (16 days until 70 days)

50% grower finisher feeds 50% corn grits 33-55 days: 35% grower finisher feeds 65% corn grits 56-70 days 80% fresh corn 20% binlid/palay Supplemented with vegetables, fruits, herbs as additional food source Feeding: Full feeding 3x a day Watering: provide water as needed

*GROWTH PERFORMANCE Performance obtained with crumble feed at 3200 kcal AGE WEIGHT **FEEDS FCR (days) (grams) (g/bird) 14 251 28 1.22-1.26 21 471 37 1.36-1.40 28 733 47 1.50-1.54 35 1023 62 1.64-1.68 42 1316 70 1.78-1.83 49 1601 83 1.91-1.97 56 1877 99 2.06-2.12 63 2136 110 2.21-2.27 70 2405 120 2.37-2.43

COMMON DISEASES/PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED IN FREE RANGE CHICKEN PRODUCTION Infectious Coryza New Castle Disease Fowl Pox Worm Infestation External parasite infestation (mites and lice) Diarrhea

*The performance data contained in this graph was obtained from the results of Hubbards research flocks and flocks of their customers. In no way does the data contained in this graph constitute a warranty or guarantee of the same performance under different conditions of nutrition, density, or physical or biological environment. **under Philippine field conditions

Steps in preventing these problems from occurring in your operations Vaccinate your birds against NCD and other disease that are prevalent in your area. Vaccination is an accepted practice in free range farming especially if you are going into commercial scale of production. It is necessary to consult a veterinarian regarding the right vaccination program o Vaccination will protect your birds from potentially dangerous diseases if an outbreak may occur o Vaccination will protect your birds from disease outbreaks from unvaccinated flocks Practice good biosecurity in your farm o Although an overused clich, An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure still holds true! o It is of extreme importance to keep your farm and farm premises as clean as possible to eliminate possible source of infection o Limit the number of people coming in and out of your farm especially people coming from other farms

10

o If possible, practice all in, all out system of rearing o Cull/remove weak or sick birds that would not recover and practice proper disposal of mortalities to eliminate risk of possible source of infection Adapt a deworming program for your operations as free range chickens are more predisposed to internal parasites due to prolonged contact with the ground.

REMINDERS!!! BOUNTY FRESH FREE RANGE COLORED BROILERS ARE NOT INTENDED FOR BREEDING! PROGENY FROM BOUNTY FRESH FREE RANGE BROILERS WOULD BE LOWER IN PERFORMANCE COMPARED TO THEIR PARENTS. BREEDING BOUNTY FRESH FREE RANGE BROILERS WITH EACH OTHER WOULD BE INBREEDING AS THESE CHICKENS ARE CLOSELY RELATED AND WOULD RESULT IN DECREASED PERFORMANCE OF OFFSPRING AS WELL AS INCREASED SUSCEPTIBILITY TO DISEASES References: Basic Manual for HAPPY FARMERS CHOICE FREE RANGE CHICKEN MEAT production. Dr. Erwin Cruz

Basic Farm Layout

Fig 10. basic farm layout

11