Unit 2
Poultry Housing
Introduction
Poultry housing is a very important part of your poultry farm as it protects the birds
from predators and rough weather conditions. A comfortable poultry house is also
important for efficient production and convenience of the poultry farmer. In the last
unit you learnt about the advantages, disadvantages and economic value of poultry
keeping. In this unit you will learn the requirements of a good poultry house, how to
identify a suitable location for a poultry house, and the different types of poultry
house systems that you can adopt. As usual, we shall start by reviewing our
objectives for this unit.
Unit Objectives
By the end of this unit you should be able to:
Describe the requirements of a good poultry house;
Identify a suitable size for a poultry house and a good site for construction
Determine the most suitable poultry production system for your project.
Section 2.1: Requirements of a Good Poultry
House
The following are the requirements for a good poultry house:
a) Protection: ensure that the poultry is protected from extreme weather
conditions, such as, high winds and droughts. Also protection from
predators, e.g. hawks, owls, mongoose, wild cats etc.
b) Good Ventilation: the house should have good ventilation, that is, able to
supply oxygen and remove carbon dioxide and dampness. A damp
atmosphere favours the development of pathogen and retards the activity of
the birds. High temperatures may cause deaths or drop in egg production,
low shell quality, and reduced weight gain. A combination of high
temperatures and high humidity may kill young chicks. To protect birds from
the cold, you can use old feed bags as curtains to cover the chicken wire at
night.
c) Ease of cleaning: it should be easy to clean and facilitate parasite and
disease control. All the interior fittings should be removable or easy to clean.
d) Sunlight: this is in order to maintain the heat of the flock (VHD). The sun also
has disinfecting value and is important to the birds.
e) Economical construction: it should use cheap, durable and locally available
materials.
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f) Accessibility: the house should be convenient in relation to other buildings in the surrounding area. It should be tall enough for a grown-up person to work in there.
g) Spacious: always ensure that your poultry have enough space to run around. This will help you to avoid frequent loss of your birds due to suffocation and contamination.
h) Safe: ensure that your poultry house does not have sharp edges that can injure the birds;
i) Floor: the floor should be cemented or made of concrete for ease of cleaning;
j) Disinfection: a disinfectant dip should be placed at the door of each house to prevent entry of diseases agents into the flock house;
k) Storage: a separate room should be constructed to keep feeds and other equipment in a safe place protected from weather and contamination by humans and rodents.
Perches
Perches are timber frames on which birds perch for rest. They are important for chickens to rest on during the night. It is the natural behaviour of chicken, such as layers and indigenous table birds to sleep above the ground in trees. A one meter perch can roost five adult birds. The perches should be removable to facilitate cleaning. Perches are best made of bamboo or round sticks to accommodate for the size and structure of the birds’ feet. If the sticks are too big or too small, the birds may fall. Perches can also be square and flat: 5-10 cm broad. Figure 1.1 below shows a picture of a perch.
Figure 1.1: Chicken perch
Nesting Boxes
Chicken need areas where they can lay their eggs. You should allow one nesting box for 4-5 hens. The nests should be large enough to make the birds comfortable. They should be placed in a dark and private place in order to discourage egg eating and cannibalism. The floor of the nest should be covered with soft dry grass or wood shavings to prevent egg breakage. The advantages of laying nests are:
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Eggs laid in the next boxes are cleaner
It reduces the problem of egg breakage
Egg eating by the hens is reduced
Removal of eggs by the farmer is easy and time saving.
The nests for brooding must be individual and should be placed in a dark and quiet place. They should also be easily removable. Figure 1.2 shows an example of nests.
Figure 1.2: Nests for laying and brooding
You are making very good progress! Before you continue, review what you have learnt by completing the following activity.
You now know the requirements of a good poultry house. Next we shall look at sizing and location of a poultry house.
Activity 2.1
Qualities of a good poultry house
Which of the following are NOT good qualities of a chicken house? Identify them with a circle.
Well ventilated house
Dark and dump
Easy to clean
Difficult to access
Economical to construct
Leaking roof with big open cracks in the walls
Compare your answers with those given at the end of this unit.
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Section 2.2: Sizing and Location of a Poultry House
Sizing a Poultry House
The size of a poultry house is very important as it helps you to avoid overcrowding. Overcrowding results in vices such as cannibalism and stress due to discomfort. An ideal poultry house is open-sided to allow natural ventilation and has an east-west orientation to minimize the amount of sunlight directly entering the house. The house should be rectangular in shape and the walls not higher than three feet (3ft). The walls of a poultry house can be made of off-cuts, iron sheets or bricks. While the windows should be covered with wire mesh or chicken wire. To reduce the risk of rodents gaining entry into the poultry or flock house, you should clear all the vegetation around the flock house.
Figure 2.3: A model poultry house for 500 chickens
The house should provide adequate space for the flock. The ideal stocking density is one square foot per bird. When calculating the floor space, consider the internal fittings such as the dropping boards, perches, nest- boxes, feeding troughs, etc. Table 2.1 below gives you the minimum floor space per bird.
Table 2.1: Minimum floor space per bird
Number in flock Light breeds
