How to get the BEST from your Hens

Bulletin #4

Laying Period Management

1. Managing the production phase

The transition from pullet to hen is a very stressful period for the bird. During this period of early production her appetite should have already be developed to allow for a 35% increase in consumption and a 300 gram increase in body weight. This is critical if she is to maintain a positive energy balance and also be able to continue the process of calcium accretion in her bones both skeletal and medullary. Medullary bones are a major source of transient calcium storage and provide the shell glands with a quick source of calcium. The possibility of low calcium intake due to poor feed intake is an ever present possibility if the birds were not grown properly during the pullet stage. The dietary calcium level of 4.5% can result in poor feed palatability if all the calcium carbonate is in the powdered form therefore it is recommended that approximately 50% of the calcium carbonate should be available in a granular form to avoid feed refusal. The presentation in this section outlines the inter-relationship between feed energy and protein, vitamin D and calcium metabolism and the importance of light management in sustaining the egg production cycle.

1. The feeding program: The current state of how hens are fed in Jamaica is compared to that of the USA and it is apparent that we are 58 years behind in the technology of feeding management. Jamaican table egg producers are still feeding one ration (18% layer mash) from 18 to 72 weeks of age. Producing hens however requirements for protein at a constant energy level fall over time while feed intake increases. This provides the opportunity to introduce different rations with decreasing protein levels to match the requirements of the hen. A reduction in cost of feed accompanies the reduction in protein level by approximately $1000 per 1 percent reduction in protein. This so called “Phase Feeding” of hens therefore can result in significant saving to the producer. It would appear however that the adoption of the feeding program would depend on the acquisition of new feed bins to allow for two or three different feeds to be available; currently most farmers do not have one feed bin per house.

2. Culling

2. Procedures for the removal of poor producing hens from the flock is discussed. The important point here is that there will always be a few non performing hens in every flock and the astute manager will seek them out and remove them thereby saving in feed cost. The non-producing hen exhibits certain pigmentation characteristics of the feet, comb and vent that can be used in combination with pubic bone displacement to aid in the decision to cull or keep.