There is nothing more frustrating or demoralising than
embarking on a career in free range production, being
committed to the ideals, investing in state of the art
accommodation and facilities, being happy to put your birds
on public show on range and then finding yourself with a
flock that is already losing its feather cover by peak
production, or depressingly is showing signs of cannibalism.
Perhaps even worse than that, is doing the job well for
several flocks, thinking of a consistent and successful
approach to husbandry and management and then being
presented with a flock that wants to pluck itself to death,
even though you think you have done nothing to trigger
problems.
Whose fault is it?
So whose fault is it and what can be done to prevent it,
because it is clear that once a flock starts to feather pull or cannibalise it is virtually impossible to get them to kick the habit. There is seldom a straightforward solution but there are some approaches that can reduce the likelihood of this vice appearing in your flock.
Feather pecking is an abnormal behaviour.
Feather pecking is an indication that all is not well in your flock. It is an abnormal behaviour triggered by some sort of imbalance. This might even start as early as during any delays or hiccups in transit to your farm. In itself, losing a few feathers off the neck and tail of a bird does little other than spoiling its appearance. However, if pecking becomes persistent, sustained or more vigorous it can lead to extensive patches of feather loss. The loss of this protective covering can affect the birds' ability to regulate its body temperature, especially in poorer weather conditions. Poor feather cover has been implicated in white egg syndromes or can leave the exposed skin more prone to tearing by claws or an inquisitive beak. The end result can be miserable birds, "hen pecked" and showing skin damage
leading to cannibalism, damage to internal organs and
death.
A ban on beak trimming?
As the law stands at present, the mutilation of beak trimming will be banned for all laying hens after 2010. There was a hope that developments in genetics, management and husbandry factors might remove the need to beak trim the
vast majority of flocks. One can argue that rearers,
producers, consumers and the birds would welcome that
day. Indeed, since DEFRA set up its Beak Trimming Action
Group in 2002 with industry and other stakeholders,
considerable advances in knowledge and actions have been
made.
There is currently much interest and activity in long term
genetic breeding to reduce the birds' desire or drive to peck, whilst at the same time developing techniques and systems(such as infra red day old beak treatment) that allow
consistent, effective and acceptable methods for neutralising the birds' ability to cause damage during investigative or even aggressive pecking.
What can the producer do?
There are two areas where producers can have a major
impact on whether a flock pecks or not. The first is
consistency in everything you do. The second is to do a risk
assessment or analysis of your production system. This latter approach should help identify the trigger factors for your particular premises and procedures and give you the chance and ability to reduce their impact.
But what are the trigger factors?
This is probably the single most important question for a
producer to ask……. and then answer. As when you built
your first hen house, the most important aspect is laying
down the right foundations.
An even flock is essential. Experience shows that a flock
that approaches point of lay with good feather cover, good
body weight (at least on breed target) and weights as even
as possible is a recipe for success. In many ways, this puts
a phenomenal responsibility on your rearer to achieve all
that, and most take that responsibility very seriously.
However, producers need to play their part. Make it easy for
the rearers. Tell them in plenty of time exactly what you are after in terms of bird numbers, what you want to achieve in terms of egg size and number, when you want the birds, what you want them vaccinated against etc, etc.
Rearing expectations and techniques
Tell the producer what you expect. Moving birds to the
laying site usually with a final injectable vaccination at a time when they are approaching sexual maturity is a
phenomenally stressful period. Do all you can to knock out
as many of those stresses as possible. Talk to your rearer or even visit his farm. Discuss house layouts and try to match layout, drinker type, perches, feeders, feeding and feeding patterns, lighting patterns (including dawn/dusk dimmers) and other management practices to reduce the number of variables the birds are exposed to on your farm.
Bird weights and evenness
Recent experience suggests this is one of the most important
keys to success in subsequent laying performance.
The aim is to keep the good news going. Once you have
got the birds adapted to their surroundings and settled, you
need to maintain the momentum. Feed quality, presentation
and consistency are paramount. To keep the flock even,
they must be supplied with good quality feed and sufficient
feeder space to ensure adequate and consistent intake to
maintain body weight, without undue competition. This is
especially important in the lead up to first egg as at least
150 grams of that early weight gain is directly into the ovary and egg tube development.
Good food, better water
Since feed is expensive (and getting more so) and water is
relatively cheap by comparison, producers may not always
give water provision and quality the attention it deserves.
If you restrict the birds' water intake you will reduce feed
intake (try eating six cream crackers in two minutes without
a glass of water!).
Ample supply is essential but quality is as important as
quantity. Poorly maintained bell drinkers or giving birds
access to heavily contaminated puddles on a poached range
means birds have no option but to drink a bacterial soup.
This can contribute to peritonitis but also the more recently identified problem with Brachyspira (which has been covered well in previous editions of the Ranger). This gut infection not only has a direct effect on production, it can rapidly lead to unevenness and reduced feed intake. Treatments are available but can work out more expensive than preventing infection in the first place. The use of vitamins or electrolytes in the drinking water may help at specific times.
Keep them occupied
Those producers with school age children will have just
endured a Summer of keeping the kids amused and hence
out of trouble and strife. The same can be said for your
laying flock. A flock that is occupied and ranges well will
remain calmer and less likely to be distracted by the
glistening vent area of one of her sisters.
House lay-out and design
Since even a flock that is ranging well will spend a lot of
time within the house, layout, design and distractions are as important as a good range. Good quality friable litter in
which to dust bathe and busk is a must. One only has to
look at the birds' behaviour when you introduce fresh
bedding to appreciate the enjoyment they derive from this
activity.
Avoiding areas of congestion and aggravation, especially
allowing birds easy migration from litter to slats to feeders to drinkers to nests to roosting are paramount. Most producers supply "adequate" feed and drinker space as laid down by industry and retailer codes, but you should still take time to assess layout to see whether this is achieving what the majority of birds need to allow all birds to feed and drink unhindered.
Many observers point to the importance of environmental
enrichment. Good litter and range provision answers a lot of
this but hanging objects for birds to peck at has been shown
to occupy the birds. Som