BACKYARD & PASTURE POULTRY Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 BACKYARD & PASTURE POULTRY Dr. Jacquie Jacob Poultry Extension Associate Dept of Animal and Food Sciences, UK 2008 Fall ANR update October 20, Winchester Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 DEFINITIONS Backyard poultry Small flocks which may or may not be kept ‘for profit’ Pure-bred breeders, 4-Hers, family flock(s) for meat and/or eggs, etc. Pasture poultry A management method, regardless of flock size Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 BACKYARD POULTRY Pure-bred breeders Hatcheries sell day-old chicks to poultry fanciers Poultry fancier that breed their own flock, not necessarily for sale Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 BACKYARD POULTRY 4-Hers/FFA Poultry projects: Very from state-to-state and within a state Meat chicken, turkey, duck, goose, pigeon, guinea fowl Egg layers: brown or white chicken eggs Purebred chicken, turkey, duck, goose, pigeon (rollers, homers), guinea fowl Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 NPIP CERTIFIED National Poultry Improvement Plan Probably the greatest single factor which limited the early expansion of the U.S. poultry industry was the disease known as Bacillary White Diarrhea (BWD), caused by Salmonella pullorum. This disease, later called pullorum disease, was rampant in poultry and could cause upwards of 80% mortality in young poultry. The causative organism was discovered by Dr. Leo Rettger in 1899 and a diagnostic blood test was developed by Dr. F.S. Jones in 1913. Egg transmitted Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 NPIP CERTIFIED National Poultry Improvement Plan Kentucky program run through state veterinarian in the Department of Agriculture, Division of Animal Health Poultry program coordinator: Sue Blair Phone: 502 564-5665 ext. 248 Email: sue.blair@ky.gov Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 BACKYARD POULTRY Family flock(s) for meat and/or eggs Chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese, pigeons, quail, guinea fowl, etc Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

What do they have in common? WHITE EGG LAYERS What do they have in common? White ear lobes

What do they have in common? BROWN EGG LAYERS What do they have in common? Red earlobes

Green eggs

AMERAUCANAS versus ARAUCANA Beard and muffs Tail Araucanas: No beard Tuffs, not muffs No tail

BARRED PLYMOUTH ROCK versus DOMINIQUE Barred Rock: Single comb Dominique: Rose comb

FAQs How can I tell if an egg is going to hatch a male or female, so I only set eggs for laying hens?

Sexing eggs before incubating: Is it possible? Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 Sexing eggs before incubating: Is it possible? Old wives’ tale Shape of the egg: Football shaped eggs house male chicks and more oval or round-shaped eggs house female chicks 50% accuracy which is slightly higher than for lucky guessers Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

FAQs I hatched out some chicks, but I am not allowed to keep roosters where I leave. How can I tell which is which?

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 Sexing young poultry Old wives’ tale Tying a needle or weight to the end of a piece of string and hold it over the young animal. If it the motion of the object is in a circular motion it is a female. If the motion is back and forth it is a male. 50% accuracy which is slightly higher than for lucky guessers Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 Sexing young poultry Sex-linked characteristics Requires a specific breeding program only With proper training, is 100% accurate Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 Avian Genetics Mammals Male XY Female XX Males determine sex of offspring Birds Male ZZ Female ZW Females determine sex of offspring Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

BLACK SEX-LINKS (also called Rock Reds) Non-barred male Barred male Offspring: Both sexes hatch out red but males have a white dot on their heads Males feather out with Barred Rock pattern and females feather out black

RED SEX-LINKS Golden Comet White rock with silver factor Offspring: Males hatch out white Females hatch out buff and feather out buff with white or tinted undercolor

RED SEX-LINKS Cinnamon Queen Silver laced Wyandotte Offspring: Males hatch out white Females hatch out red and feather out red with white or tinted undercolor

RED SEX-LINKS Other red sex-link crosses (just referred to as ‘red sex-links’ Rhode Island White female x Rhode Island Red male Delaware female x Production Red male

OTHER SEX-LINK CROSSES California Gray rooster x White Leghorn hen = California White California Gray is a dual purpose breed that has a heavier type than a leghorn Not flighty birds Are excellent winter layers in cold climates Popular in northern Midwest and Canada

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 SEXING YOUNG POULTRY Vent sexing Developed by a Japanese professor, Kiyoshi Masui Involves holding the day-old chick upside in one hand and while visually examining the vent area for the presence or absence of a rudimentary male sex organ. Trained, non-professionals typically 60-70% accuracy Professionals typically have 95% accuracy Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

SEXING YOUNG POULTRY Best way to tell is to wait till they grow up Tail feathers Comb size Wattle size Spur size

FAQs: Why have my hens stopped laying? Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 FAQs: Why have my hens stopped laying? Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

FAQs: Why have my hens stopped laying? Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 FAQs: Why have my hens stopped laying? Nutrition Disease Age Management Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Why have my hens stopped laying? Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 Why have my hens stopped laying? Management – Light: For most of the year require supplemental light to maintain egg production Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 FAQs related to eggs Where does the chick develop in an egg? There are these red spots in my eggs. Are these embryos? Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 No Fertilization Fertilization has occurred Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Candled appearance of a blood spot

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 FAQs related to eggs Is there any chance that the eggs from the store will hatch in my fridge? If I put fertile eggs in the fridge and then decided to incubate them later, will they still hatch? Is it okay to eat fertile eggs? How can I tell if an egg is fertile without breaking it open? Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

KIDS AND CHICKS Will my kids get sick from handling baby chicks at the petting zoo? Can my kids catch chicken pox from our chicken flock?

KIDS AND CHICKS My kid was holding a chick and it just seemed to die in his/her hands. Is this normal? Were they stressed out? Were they sick? The avian and mammalian respiratory systems are very different: It is possible to suffocate a bird by holding it too tight?

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 HUMANS Tidal respiration Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Unique feature of birds: Air sacs Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 Unique feature of birds: Air sacs Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Air flow in avian lungs is in one direction Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 Air flow in avian lungs is in one direction Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Birds don’t have a diaphragm Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 Birds don’t have a diaphragm Inspiration Expiration Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

FAQs: Housing Are there any blue-prints I can use for building a house for my small poultry flock?

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 DEFINITIONS Backyard poultry Small flocks which may or may not be kept ‘for profit’ Pure-bred breeders, 4-Hers, family flock(s) for meat and/or eggs, etc. Pasture poultry A management method, regardless of flock size Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Backyard and Pasture Poultry October 20, 2008 Pasture poultry Presenter: Jacquie Jacob

Pasture poultry Portable, bottomless pens

Pasture poultry Automatic waterer Feed trough

Pasture poultry

Pasture poultry Remote monitoring

Moveable, bottomless hoop barns Day-range: Moveable, bottomless hoop barns Pasture area surrounded by fence, mainly to keep predators out

Day-range: Moveable, bottomless hoop barns To close the broilers in at night ‘Uses up’ the pasture

Day-range: Turkeys Heritage turkeys are becoming popular

Day-range: Fixed housing for locking the birds up at night, free to roam around during the day

Day range: Geese

Free-range poultry Multiple-age laying flock: A different breed introduced each year so that the age of the hens can be tracked Barred Plymouth Rock Rhode Island Red Barred Plymouth Rock

Free-range poultry

Day range: ‘Eggmobile’

FAQs: Housing I want to have a small flock for meat and egg production. What kind of housing should I build? Can I renovate existing buildings?

FAQs: Housing Is it okay to house different species of poultry together?

FAQs: Processing Where can I get my birds processed?

POULTRY PROCESSING Very few independent/custom processors ‘Mobile’ slaughter facility Home slaughter

SLAUGHTER/BLEED OUT

SCALDING

DEFEATHERING/PLUCKING

REMOVE FEET

‘FREE’ CROP

OPEN ABDOMEN

EVISCERATE Drop area allows for easy disposal of waste material

REMOVE LUNGS

FAQs: Processing I processed my chickens and they looked fine, but when I cooked them and went to carve the chicken for dinner, there was green disgusting meat in the breast. What is this?

Green Muscle Disease

BROILER QUALITY: Green muscle disease Also called Deep Pectoral Myopathy A non-infectious, focal bi- or uni-lateral necrosis of the deep pectoral muscle (breast tenderloin) Initially noticed in fast growing turkeys Recently observed sporadically in heavy broilers destined for deboned breast meat production Lesions observed during processing indicate that birds are either genetically predisposed to this condition or some "stressor" acts as a trigger this condition during the pre-slaughter phase

ANY QUESTIONS?