FARMS: HEN REARING (OPERATION FEED THE WORLD)...

Hey every one, is another day with a wonderful breath of life. as the trend about the on going project initiated by my mentor @Sirknight about Steemchurch farms (operation feed the world). I want to talk about Hen rearing.
I want to talk about Hen .

Poultry farming is the process of raising domesticated birds such as chickens, ducks, turkeys and geese for the purpose of farming meat or eggs for food. Poultry are farmed in great numbers with chickens being the most numerous.

There are such huge numbers of data on the web on the best way to begin Fowl farming in Nigeria particularly Hen farming. I want to explain in details about Hen farming.
The scientific name for hen is Gallus gallus domesticus.

Hen is very easy to start. to start a fowl farming, the steps is as follow.

Rearing your own chicks is certainly not that difficult and certainly doesn’t require any expensive equipment. A cardboard box, heat lamp, wood shavings, chick crumbs and water are all that’s required.
You can hatch your own chicks in an incubator from fertile eggs, or you can buy day old chicks from a breeder and as long as you provide them with their basic needs, they should thrive.
Before your chicks hatch, you will need a clean, dry place to keep them once they are ready to be transferred to the brooding area. This must be ventilated and protected from extreme temperatures like direct sunlight in a window or cold outdoor temperatures. For a small number of chicks, many people use a spare room, a garden shed, garage or outbuilding but wherever you choose, it must be predator proof so that your chicks are safe.

THINGS YOU NEED TO PUT IN PLACE WHEN STARTING A POUTRY FARM .

The brooder
You will need something to keep your chicks in. This is usually called a brooder or brooding area. A large sturdy cardboard box is great for this for only a few chicks as it usually doesn’t cost anything and can keep chicks contained and out of draughts.

Heat lamp
A heat lamp will be required that needs to hang over the top of their box.
This should be secure so it doesn’t fall. They usually come with a chain so the height can be adjusted. The height should initially be around 18 inches or so which should provide 35ºC on the wood shavings.

Moving your growers outside
I usually keep a small coop and covered run outside ready for my growers to go into once they are feathered at around 5 to 6 weeks. This is movable so they can have access to fresh grass.

Food and water
Food and water can be supplied in small hoppers to chicks and growers. These are very cheap. Chicks will need chick crumbs from day old to 5 weeks and then they should be gradually changed over to growers pellets after this to Point of Lay. Both food and water needs to be kept clean and you should ensure that droppings are removed from food and water is clean and replenished regularly.

Step 1: Check the laws and ordinances in your area.
Step 2: Set up your brooder.
Step 3: Pick your breed and get your chicks.
Step 4: Bring your babies home and take care of them.
Step 5: Set up permanent housing.
Step 6: Decide on feeding and ranging.
Step 7: Move your chickens into their coop and wait for eggs.

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HOW TO TAKE CARE OF A CHICK

1. Feed your chick with starter rations until she is about 18 weeks old. At about 18-20 weeks, switch her food to a layer feed, which has extra calcium to help her grow. ...
2. Avoid feeding your chick scratch if you can afford it.
   3.Make sure your chick has a consistent source of clean food and water.

TIPS TO KEEP YOUR HEN COOL

1.Always make sure they have fresh water to drink.

2: Keep a bucket or source of water on standby, so you can give them a light sprinkle of relief should they be looking overcooked!

3: Freezing foods like watermelon and other fruits into ice cubes is also an easy, tasty snack that will cool them down.

4: If your chickens are looking a little dehydrated, purchase some specialist vitamins and electrolytes and add it to their water they’ll be back to their perky selves in no time.

The best and easiest solution for both sides of the thermometer is ensuring that your chicken coop is well ventilated, and that there’s no sneaky cracks where drafts can creep in that’s a sure fire way to chill your chick to the bone.
Having more hens in the coop is also a brilliant, simple way to beat the cold, as body heat is one of the most effective sources of warmth.

One of the best attributes of chickens is that they can adapt to different climates. The best preventative measures are to research the breed, and have a reliable coop but if your chickens fall foul of the elements, all the steps needed to get them back to 100% are simple, and pretty cheep.

Hen require attention and most especially when they are still chicks.
There so many benefits of hen to the economy as the trending project about @SirKnight initiative Motto: To feed the world.
Some of the benefits are

1. production of meat.
   
   
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2. Production of Egg
   

3. production of manure for plants.
   
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Limitations and challenges
One obstacle to gathering more comprehensive data on the use of antibiotics in feed is the majority of the poultry industry utilizes vertical integration.

Solution
Performing quality improvement in the process of livestock production is another focus. Some alternative methods include “improving hygiene, using enzymes, probiotics, prebiotics, and acids to improve health and utilizing bacteriocins, antimicrobial peptides.

These are the few listed uses and benefits of hen to man.
As we can see steemchurch is ready to feed the world. Thanks for this initiative @Sirknight.just want you to know we are always there to work with you through out time. God bless you.