AVS 324 1st Edition Lecture 2 Outline of Last Lecture I. Overview of courseII. The five aspects of managementIII. Birds, Horses & PigsIV. Disease Preventiona. Biosecurityb. Appropriate VaccinationV. Humane Problems Outline of Current Lecture I. Types of ChickensII. Qualities of Egg LayersIII. Leg Horns vs. Rhode Island RedsIV. Standard Egg Laying FacilitiesV. MoltingVI. HatcheryPulletEgg LayersCurrent LectureChickens- Egg Layers- BroilersEgg Layers- Produces a lot of eggs & large eggs- Disease resistance- Long Lifespan- Feed Efficiency= the # of pounds of grain to give you a dozen eggso Lower feed efficiency is better- Small BirdsThese notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute. Both evolved from one chickeno Put more into a facilityo Eat less- All white egg layers are related to Leg Hornso The region of NYC and Chicago things brown eggs are “dirty”o Leg Horns are known as “squealy” birds- All brown egg layers are related to Rhode Island Redo Bigger birdso The region of New England prefers brown eggs- Birds give one egg every day (ideal)o May give three if it’s a young chicken- Commercial Egg Laying Facilityo Turn lights on and birds are noisy (if not there is a problem b/c chickens are interactive with you)o Biosecurity not an issue in these facilitieso All eggs sold are unfertilizedo Normal facility 100,000 birds standardo 6 birds per cageo Most cramped facilities like this are down south o Efficient but not humaneo California Humane lawo Europe open area (“cage-free”)o Pull dead birds out every 1-2 dayso Free-Range chickens live longero White eggs most popular around Easter time so inc. productiono Also people eat more eggs in winter - Molt: bird shuts down & allows itself to build up calciumo Almost ALL its feathers fall out & grow backo This happens after 72 weekso Commercial Molt Decrease food Turn off lights Full water How many times you do it and when you do it depends on the price of food & price of eggs- Farmer gets birds at 14 weeks old and puts them in pullet cages until 16 weeks old- Happy chickens  Hatchery  Pullet Cages  Egg Layers- Hatcheryproduces pullets year round. Hatchery keeps for 21 dayso Incubator has humidity, temp and rockingo This allows for cell division to occur- Happy Chickens (“The Breeders”)o Not pure bredCan manipulate this processo Do well in cageso Produce best offspring Offspring depend on area Down south tolerate heat Up north tolerate cold- Avian influenza: when birds are not making noise when they see you and al you hear is sneezing there is a problem- SIDE NOTE* Goose eggs are used in powdered eggs*- Broody hen: wants to sit on eggs (spring time)o Lays 10 eggs (one every day)o Lays on them for 21 dayso All hatch at the same time bc she rotates them all starting at the same time with the same temperature- If you dip eggs in wax & keep them cold they’ll last for 90 days (may turn green but still good)o Wax bc the shell is porous & if not the albumen will dry out- Chicken incubation period: 21 days- Duck/Turkey Incubation period: 28 days- Egg shells are porouso Composed of calcium carbonateo Yolk food for fetus (cholesterol)o Germicidal disk where fertilization occurso Albumen protects the yolk- Hen can store semen for 14 days inside them o In a gland- “Free-Range” (running around outside)(light is environmental factor)- “Cage-Free” (on the ground not as many birds)- “Organic”- Price of electricity & products go upo Problems with system- High producing bird can do better with a smaller amount of