Enhancing Broiler Productivity Through Innovative Techniques

As a final year student, you have a project you work on which you will also defend at the final stage, but then we have the starter phase and the finishing phase. Now for the starting phase, my supervisor gave us a pen to use which we all as a student and suppose to maintain and do what is required. But eventually the pen has not been repaired, so we had to work on getting it intact for the birds that are coming. We started sorting the brooding house, which we use just 3 out of about 14 poultry houses we had on the farm.

Brooding house in progress

One thing I love about this project is that it made me explore to some places I haven't been to before, which part of it was going to the hatchery unit. We got some eggs of about 4 hundred and fifteen, and we took them to the hatchery for candling, which will last for 22 days. On the 18th day of candling we went back to the hatchery to inject each egg with thymus vulgaris extract which we wanted to determine how strong and fast the birds can adapt to this current harsh weather conditions. Especially the hot season.

We brought the eggs back after 21 days and started the brooding in the brooder pen that we have prepared I and my partners, but I was the leader of the teams of 5 people. Day one stared, and we gave each treatment and anti stress drugs to the chicks, and we did some collections like the serum collection, weight measurement and length of each chick. One of the most annoying and painful part of raising broiler chicken is the death, which can be demoralizing sometimes.

20th day of hatching

After about 5 days of rearing, we got 3 mortalities which I believe was due to the stressful journey we subjected the chick to. Now we are in the 20th day of rearing and the chick are now getting bigger and better than what they were when we brought them to the pen.

Day old chicks*

The aim of this project is to assess the in ovo feeding of thymus vulgaris extract on the biochemical parameters of broiler chickens under hot, dry conditions. Like I said before the weather is very harsh currently, even on the humans talk more of broiler chick which are animals. The cost and estimate of rearing this broiler chick till the 6th weeks of termination cost 2.8 million naira with the analysis of the data collected.

I am now beginning to enjoy what this project is about because it is something I really love, and it makes me explore and want to learn more about the course and the topic itself. On the day of termination, some parameters will be recorded, which I will use for my final year defense to show that I really worked on the project. I got some feeds, and we are to feed the birds as the feed and water and everything other things are free available for them.

This will ensure that we get to the climax of what we want faster, as the feed will also enhance the growth and development of the birds. I hope the girls retain their shape till the end of the termination day so that my team and I will be able to make some money back and also get to enjoy the chick for the festival periods.