Checkbook Broiler Signals

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BROILER SIGNALS CHECKBOOK Focus on health, welfare and growth

Contents

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6. Health Checklist Interior: Organs Checklist Interior: Skeleton Instruction On-farm Euthanasia Checklist Poultry Droppings Checklist Poultry Droppings: Problems Instruction Salmonella Sampling Coccidiosis: Lesion Score Scorecard Dysbacteriosis Instruction Drinking Water Vaccination Checklist On-Farm Spray Vaccination Good Vaccination Practices Dissection step-by-step Dissection: Signals of Respiratory Problems Dissection: Signals of Intestinal Problems Dissection: Signals of Mobility Problems Dissection: Signals of Internal Organs

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2. Day-old chicks Checklist Before Chick Arrival Welcome Check Day-old Chicks General Checklist Day-old Chicks Day-old Chick Quality: Navels Day-old Chick Quality: Legs Day-old Chick Quality: Belly Day-old Chick Quality: Chick Length Measuring Chick Temperature

5. End of production and slaughter Preparation for Catching Catching: Bird Treatment Checklist Muscle Disorders (myopathies) Checklist Leg Disorders Score Card Bone Disorders Checklist Skin Damage Bleeding and Bruising

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1. Preparation The Poultry Signals Concept Focus Points in a Broiler’s Life Checklist for Inspection Checklist Healthy Broiler Checklist Unhealthy Broiler Checklist Basic Biosecurity Biosecurity: Shower Protocol Instruction Cleaning and Disinfection Pest control Checklist Litter Quality: Raw Materials Checklist Drinking Water Nipples Checklist Round Drinkers

3. The first week Chick Distribution Checklist Crop Fill Weighing Young Chicks Causes of Death

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4. Flock management House Inspection Individual Bird Inspection Individual Weighing of Broilers Checklist Monitoring Heat stress Checklist Preventing Heat Stress Score Card Footpad Lesions Checklist Factors Influencing Footpad Dermatitis Score Card Dermatitis Score Card Feather Condition Break the cycle Checklist Litter Quality Checklist Water Quality Biofilm Drinking Water Treatment Feed signals Checklist Light Programme Checklist Air Quality Air movement Effective temperature

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The Poultry Signals Concept You don’t manage a farm behind a desk. You have to go into the houses and see what is happening there, think what it means and act accordingly. For good observation take your time and use all your senses.

Think

Act

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Look

What do I see?

Why is this happening?

What should I do now?

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Use all your senses listen

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look

feel

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smell

touch

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taste

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 1 . Preparati o n

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Focus Points in a Broiler’s Life Broilers grow very rapidly in a short time. When you take action, don’t think in days but in hours or even less.

The slightest interruption can disrupt the delicate process. So it’s all the more important to prevent problems, or at the very least react quickly to the signs.

Day 1 • day-old chick quality • body temperature • eating and drinking • crop fill • distribution

Week 2 • organ development • bone development • muscle development • growth

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Week 1 • growth • distribution • crop fill

Week 3 • intestinal health • droppings • clean feathers

Week 6 • leg problems • skin damage • heat stress

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Week 5 • litter quality • overheating • footpad lesions • mobility (lameness)

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Week 4 • respiratory health • change from requiring heat to excess heat • panting, sniffing, sneezing

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B roile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 1. Preparat i on

Checklist for Inspection Almost everything is automated in most broiler houses: ventilation, feeding, drinking. But inspection is a key activity and the human touch remains essential. What do you look at? Also be aware of things you don’t pay attention to (and ask yourself why).

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Frequency You don’t have to do everything, every day. So decide what your plan is for this particular house inspection.

Daily Daily inspection is required for: Water, feed, ventilation, litter, broken equipment.

Occasionally Less frequently or when suspecting or experiencing problems. Manure sampling, blood sampling, equipment maintenance

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1-2 times per week Inspections that require weekly attention: Weighing, lights, inlets, section.

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Importance Not everything is of equal importance. Pay more attention to critical signals and decide whether signals require immediate action or not.

Important This is important, but wont jeopardise your whole flock (e.g. wet litter. increased mortality, foodpad lesions, etc.).

Useful Things that need to take care of, but are not essential (e.g. single broken light, one broken nipple, etc). Or things that can just be ignored.

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Critical If you don’t take action now, your whole flock will be lost (e.g. high mortality, no drinking water or feed, specific signals of infectious diseases).

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Timing of inspections Inspections take time and you have to plan this. It has to be a routine activity, but not a rut.

Set times Plan inspections at set times, such as every morning after feeding and at the end of the day. So you can compare between days.

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 1 . Preparati o n

Variable times Visit the flock at different times, so you will see different things. If you only observe at feeding times, you will never know that the birds do at their ‘spare time’.

All the time When inspecting your flock, don’t do anything else (like repairing things, tidying up). But when doing other things, always keep your eyes open for signals!

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Checklist Healthy Broiler What are the characteristics of a health broiler? In inspection rounds you always look for birds that do not appear normal. So first you need a reference of what normal is.

nice and cheerful sound

red and clear comb and wattles

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behaviour: alert, stands up when approached clear eyes

straight neck

pink and moist mucous membranes

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clean nostrils

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concave back

no injuries to head, neck, back and tail

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closed beak, normal breathing proudly upright posture

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filled crop full muscled breast

clean, smooth and even plumage

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pink, undamaged breast skin

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straight keel bone

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smooth and flexible joints

wings well positioned along her body

firm droppings

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straight, yellow legs, and not overly warm

straight toes

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smooth footpads

B roile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 1. Preparat i on

Checklist Unhealthy Broiler This broiler does not exist in reality. But it gives an insight in what could be wrong with a broiler. It is more important to recognise an unhealthy broiler than a healthy broiler!

eyes: mucus, semi-closed, frothy, swollen, white eye, dry, dull/pale in colour

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screaming, squeaking, congested sound

comb/wattles: pale, purple

swollen nasal cavity

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behaviour: sits still in a corner, lethargic and slow

convex back

neck feathers standing out

dirty, moist nostrils

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pecking and scratching injuries

open beak, gasping

wings drooping along her body or standing out

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damaged breast skin: ammonia burn, litter spots, breast blisters

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skinny breast, under-developed muscles

empty crop

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tongue and mucous membranes pale, dull and dry

drooping and hunched-up posture

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wet, soggy litter

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plumage: dirty, fluffed out, faded, worn, no symmetry thick joints

hot legs (fever)

lame, crooked legs, pulled up

foot pad lesions sitting on hocks (hock dermatitis)

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 1 . Preparati o n

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Checklist Basic Biosecurity

No unauthorized access to the farm.

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To keep diseases out is the best prevention. This requires biosecurity measures. These will be different on each farm, but some rules apply in all cases.

Register all visitors.

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Shower and change clothing on-farm.

Clean and disinfect all equipment before bringing in to the house.

Go from the youngest flock to older flocks.

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Wash and disinfect hands and boots when entering and leaving houses.

Use the ‘all in/all out’ principle and maintain a period of downtime between flocks (preferably 2 weeks).

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People working on the farm should not keep any poultry - or actually any birds - at home.

These could be a hazard.

Ensure all buildings are adequately sealed against access by wild birds or vermin.

Maintain an effective rodent/vermin control program. Clean-up feed spills, do not leave equipment, building materials or litter lying around. Store litter material in bags or inside a storage building or bin.

B roile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 1. Preparat i on

Instruction Cleaning and Disinfection

3. Soaking Spray the house to remove as much organic material as possible with a low pressure-washer.

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2. Brush clean Dry clean and remove equipment from the house. Remove remaining dust from the house interior.

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1. Preparation Empty feeders and hoppers in the house.

Remove the litter from the house and from the farm. Spray the house interior with an insecticide and all equipment after birds have been removed.

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Cleaning the poultry house after depletion and before the new flock arrives is the most important measure to prevent diseases. Don’t short cut procedures as it will cost you more than you gain.

5. Drying Let everything dry-off properly. Remaining water in the house would diluted the disinfectant.

6. Disinfection Apply disinfection to the house interior and all equipment according to the manufacturer’s guidelines (concentration, exposure time).

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4. Washing Wash the interior and all remaining equipment with a foam detergent compatible with the disinfectant to be used later. Don’t forget to wash outside the house (access routes, staff facilities). Drain, wash and disinfect the water system.

and drying 7. Rinsing Rinse off the disinfectant after the minimum exposure time as disinfectants might be toxic or aggressive for the new flock. In case fumigation is applied make sure the house is sealed and closed for people during fumigation.

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8. Inspection Inspect the house to evaluate cleaning and disinfection. Take samples when possible (bacterial count).

9. Down-time Leave the house empty to decrease the level of pathogens. The general advice is 14 days. Use this time to effectively control rodents and other pests. Refresh footbaths, hand sanitizers and farm clothing.

B roile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 1. Preparat i on

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2. Day-old chicks

General Checklist Day-old Chicks Always check the quality of day-old chicks. Most important objective measure is the cloacal temperature, but also general appearance is important. Check the basic characteristics of a sample of chicks.

Reflexes

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A chick put on its back should stand on its legs again within 3 seconds.

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Navel

Legs Legs should be strong with normal skin colour. They should not be dried out, red or very skinny legs, or ones with red hocks and clearly visible blood vessels.

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The navel should be properly closed and clean. It should A navel that is open or has a black knob, a tear, show inflammation or is red.

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 2 . D ay-o l d ch i cks

Beak The beak should be clean, normally coloured, with anice clean comb.

The beak should not be dirty or red beak, and a dirty comb.

Belly You should feel a soft and supple belly Chicks with a distended, hard belly, or that immediately excrete meconium when their belly is touched score 1.

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Day-old Chick Quality: Navels

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Expose the navel by blowing blowing gently onto the navel area. The feathers part and the navel becomes visible. A good, well-healed navel indicates that the abdomen sealed nicely after the yolk was retracted into the body. Poorly sealed navels increase the risk of mortalities.

A well-healed, sealed navel.

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This navel is still slightly open. A well-sealed navel must be completely closed.

Residual yolk protruding from the navel. This is a potential portal of entry for infection.

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Open navel that will be a port of entry for infections.

Abnormal and unacceptable (bloody and starting infection). This navel will not seal.

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Bloody navel. This indicates wrong hatching conditions.

Broile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 2. Da y- ol d chi ck s

Measuring Chick Temperature

You can assess a chick’s temperature by holding its legs against your cheek. You will notice cold legs very quickly this way.

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Chick temperature is often measured with an IR ear thermometer. This is not very accurate and often shows a slightly lower reading.

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The development of chick temperature is extremely important at the first day. The body temperature should be 40.0-40.5°C. Overheated chicks are more susceptible to intestinal damage. Cold chicks get lethargic and will die. 10% of chicks with temperature of 37°C at arrival will die. Sample at least 10 checks at 5 locations in the house the first 4-5 days after placement.

Body temperature and chick behaviour Death

42-43°C

Heavy panting – loud chirping

41-42°C

Beaks open – rapid panting

40.6-41°C

Walking – spread wings and legs

40-40.6°C

Normal – content chirping

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44°C or higher

Huddling – soft chirping/quiet

37-38°C

Large groups huddling – very quiet

36°C

Sleeping – very quiet

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38.5-40°C

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Cloacal temperature is the best method of measuring body temperature.

Make sure to insert the thermometer is 2 cm into the cloaca for a correct reading. Lubricate the tip with a little Vaseline to make insertion easier. Do not take the temperature of chicks with wet or dirty vents.

The thermal image on the left shows warm legs. The legs in the image on the right are cold (they should appear lighter yellow than the hand).

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Broile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 2. Da y- ol d chi ck s

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3. The first week

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Chick Distribution The distribution pattern provides signals about the comfort of the chicks. This counts booth for brooder rings and for whole house brooding. The distribution does not only have to do with the temperature, but also light has an influence. Being forest birds, the young chicks tend to avoid light.

Temperature signals of chick distribution in a brooding ring Correct temperature

Temperature too low

Draft

Chicks are evenly distributed.

Noise level indicates satisfaction.

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Chicks crowd under brooder.

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Chicks huddle in one area.

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Chicks away from brooder.

• Chicks pant, head and • wings droop.

Chicks are noisy, distress calling

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Temperature too high

These birds are lying together in groups because they are cold.

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Chicks evenly distributed in the house.

The chicks are grouped around the gas heater to keep warm. But not directly underneath it, since that area seems too hot for them. The chicks can choose their own area of comfort.

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 3 . T h e f i rs t week

Chicks grouped against the wall or in corners could be a signal of the house climate, but it could also be caused by the light distribution.

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Causes of Death Mortality provides important management information. Total mortality should be below 4%. First week mortality should be below 1%.

General mortality Broiler mortality usually peaks at approximately 3 to 4 days after placement, declines until approximately day 9 or 10 then stabilizes until approximately day 30. After day 30 a gradually increase is seen until approximately day 40 to 45. After day 45, mortality rates increased until harvest.

Peak in the first few days: poor quality broilers

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20 30 Chick age (days)

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3 4 Chick age (days)

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Mortality (%)

Mortality (%)

Average mortality for straight run broiler flocks

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Instant mortality If you see instant mortality during the first few days, the start of the day-old chicks was not good. There was stress during pipping, transport or at arrival (cold or heat stress).

Late mortality Mortality later in production could be caused by locomotive problems, ascites or heart failure. If legs are too weak, birds won’t be able to get to feed or water. Flock that have an increased early mortality also tend to have a higher late mortality.

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Early mortality Since the chicks have residual yolk, mortality due to not finding feed or water will appear around day 3-4. This is also the period that infections of navel and yolk sac cause mortality (E.coli).

Peak at the end: locomotion problems

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3 4 Chick age (days)

In order to identify causes of death look at: • Crop fill > starvation?

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Mortality (%)

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Mortality (%)

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Peak at day 4-5: bacteria

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Navel > infection?

normal

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40

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45 Chick age (days)

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Conformation >

Broile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 3. The f i rs t week

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4. Flock management

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House Inspection

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the broiler house 2. Enter Enter without disturbing the flock. Observe bird distribution and general behaviour. If they are too hot, young chicks tend to run around to cool themselves down, old broilers tend to be lethargic.

From 2/3 weeks on you should observe young males fighting.

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1. First observations Look into the house before entering to observe the bird distribution, if possible. Listen carefully to the sound the birds make. You can also leave the light out to listen to sounds: sniffing? Could be a vaccination reaction. Any change in sound should get your attention.

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Perform at least two inspections per day. Look at different times to find different signals. Prepare your visit by looking at the basic information from your management system/records. Water and feed consumption patterns.

Temperature and RH and if possible CO2 development in the house. Is any malfunctioning reported? Check recent mortality. This gives you clues on what to pay extra attention to in the house.

4. I nspect the flock How do the birds react to you? Are they active and move away from you? Do they show lameness? Are they curious and approach you after a while? From 2-2.5 weeks of age the birds should move away just in front of you, and the gap should close behind you. If they don’t walk away or sit too fast (after 2-3 steps), this is bad sign.

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3. W alk around Walk through the whole house and look at wet spots, mainly in the area between drinking lines and feeders. Check the climate for local differences, draughts. Check the air inlets and air flow there. Check the height of the drinkers and feeders.

5. I nspect individual birds Pick up individual birds that stand out, but also random birds for an individual inspection. Check general appearance, crop fill, legs, feathering, cloaca and confirmation.

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 4 . F l o ck m an ag em en t

6. R emove dead birds/cull sick birds Remove dead birds and cull birds that are not going to make it to the end. Perform dissection on the dead birds or send them in for analysis when there is increased mortality or any other suspicion that could affect the whole flock.

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Individual Bird Inspection

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During an inspection, you pick up a bird every now and then. Look at the bird in a structured way, assessing the most important characteristics.

2. Head Does the bird look alert? The eyes should sparkle, no nasal discharge. Look at the comb colour.

3. Crop Did the bird eat enough? Too little: crop feels like a bag of water, too much: crop feels hard. Take feeding times into account in order to make a proper assessment.

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1. Pick

up the bird Does the bird tries to get away? Does it flap its wings? How is the tension on the wings?

5. Hocks The legs and hocks should have a good colour. Not red: irritated. If the hocks are of a darker colour it is even worse: infection or ammonia burn.

6. Feathering The feathers should be clean and dry. No breast irritations or litter spots.

8. Conformation Feel the of breast muscles. Are they developing well? Do they feel pointed or are they well rounded?

elease the bird 9. R You put the bird back in the flock. Does is walk away directly? And does it move in a normal way. That is an indication of general health and bone strength.

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4. Footpads The footpads should be clean. No discoloration, wounds, crusts or inflammations.

7. Cloaca If the feathers around the cloaca are dirty and wet. This indicates too much protein in the feed/bad digestion, feed withdrawal (empty pans) or (intestinal) disease.

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Broile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 4. Floc k management

Score Card Footpad Lesions Inspection 1. Inspect footpads at least twice a week, starting on day 4-5.

Footpad lesions can appear very early on.

2. Inspect birds with good mobility as well as those that are less mobile.

3. Always check a number of birds in different parts of the broiler house. Rule of thumb: four areas with five birds per area. If more than 10-20% of the birds have mildly affected footpads, take action.

4. Check dead and selected birds for footpad lesions.

Class 1 - Mild lesion: Substantial discolouration of the footpad, super-ficial lesion, dark papillae.

Smooth, no lesion

Superficial lesion, discolouration

Class 2 - Severe lesion: Ulcers or scabs of significant size, signs of hae-morrhages or severely swollen footpad.

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Class 0 - No lesion: No lesions or very small and superficial lesions, slight discolouration on a limited area, mild hyperkeratosis, old scars.

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Foot pad lesions (Foot pad dermatitis: FPD) develop on any area that is in contact with the floor, mainly caused by bad litter quality. This a welfare issue also affects production: birds with painful feet eat and drink less (less growth) and develop breast blisters (deterioration of slaughter quality).

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Dark papillae and ulcer

Dark papillae, no ulceration

Ulcer covered by crust

Substantial discolouration

Abscess/bumble foot swollen

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Small discolouration

Almost healed lesion, scar Source: Livestock Research, Wageningen UR.

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Broile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 4. Floc k ma nagement

Checklist Factors Influencing Footpad Dermatitis Footpad lesions develop from three weeks onwards, the main cause being bad litter quality. There are various factors that have an influence on this. litter management inspection

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season

preparation of the house

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climate control

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feed

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Signals

drinking water (quality leaking)

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A first signal of bad litter quality is often dirty feathering.

Breast irritation is caused by poor litter quality: acid burns and dampness together with damp heat. At slaughter this may cause black discoloration (litter spots) on the skin. Breast blisters can also develop.

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 4 . F l o ck m an ag em en t

Hock burn generally (blackishbrown discolouration) occurs after a long period of contact with moisture and ammonia on poor quality litter (ammonia burn): the last two weeks before slaughter.

If broilers sit on their hocks a lot, they have excessive contact with the litter. If the litter quality is poor, they will develop hock burn.

But why are they sitting on their hocks in the first place: footpad problems?

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5. End of production and slaughter

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 4 . F l o ck m an ag em en t

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Preparation for Catching

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Catching in the dark or in very dim light can ensure that the broilers remain calm.

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Remove obstructions before catching. Withdraw water as late as possible.

If water is withdrawn too soon, the crops may not get empty.

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Make sure everything is prepared when the catcing team arrives and monitor the procedure. Withdraw the feed.

Remove all obstacles. Implement partitions. But maintain ventilation to prevent overheating of the birds.

Catching in daylight can cause wing damage due to flapping by active broilers.

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Blue light calms the birds down and humans will still be able to see sufficiently when catching.

Use partitions in large houses to avoid crowding. You could also use this so that part of the flock can still drink.

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 5 . En d o f pro du cti o n an d s l au g h ter

Place the containers inside the poultry house to prevent the broilers to be carried a long way to the containers.

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Catching: Bird Treatment

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Birds have to be caught with care. For the welfare of the animals. But also to prevent buises, fractures and stress that will have a negative effect on meat quality. Although often executed by specialised catching teams, the farmer is responsible from day-old chick up to slaughter, so this includes catching and transport.

If you carry the birds by the legs, do this correctly.

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This bird is held too high which can cause drum bruising.

Hip haematomas occur mainly when you lift broilers too high. You then have the tendency to twist your wrists and the bird’s leg. So lift your arm up high enough, like this.

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Whole body catching. This method causes little stress and injuries. It does require skill and commitment of the catching team.

If the catching crate opening is too small, the broilers’ wings or legs will get caught easier. In such cases, keep the wings well together.

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There is a high risk of injuries when broilers are handed between several people. So do not do it! The less steps in the process, the better.

B roile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 5. End of p rod uc tion a nd s l aught er

Checklist Muscle Disorders (myopathies) Factors influencing these disorders: • Genetic predisposition • Fast growing breeds • Seasonal influence (more in nov/dec, march/april: higher growth rate)

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Muscle abnormalities may occur from 21 days of age.

Disorders arise through factors such as a high demand for nutrients and oxygen in the muscle, or because metabolic waste products and moisture are insufficiently removed. You can feel firm muscles on the live animal.

Normal breast muscle.

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‘Wooden breast’. Disease of the superficial part of the breast muscle, especially in male animals (hard, light coloured muscles).

‘Spaghetti meat’. Muscles with a soft, fibrous structure.

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‘White striping’. Broadened connective tissue strips between the muscle fibres.

Abnormality of the ‘tenderloin’ or ‘inner fillet’ in the breast muscle (colour change).

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 5 . En d o f pro du cti o n an d s l au g h te r

‘Green muscle disease’ (GMD), deep pectoral myopathy (DPM) or Oregon disease. Abnormality affecting the deep breast muscle.

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Checklist Leg Disorders

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Tenosynovitis Inflammation of the Achilles tendon/tendon sheath (Reo-virus) enhanced by bacterial infection. Swollen, warm and painful tendon.

Bruises, skin irritation and hock burn develop. Often on both legs. In that case, the entire carcass and the organs must be rejected.

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Synovitis Cause: trauma or overload of joints and tendons, causing more joint lubrication in the capsule. Lying down on its breast leads to a higher risk of litter spots and breast blisters on the breast skin. The affected part is rejected for human consumption.

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The causes of leg disorders are pathogens, nutritional or management problems. Because of these disorders, broilers have difficulty walking, so they eat and drink less and fall behind in growth, thus causing poor uniformity. They are also inclined to sit on their breast, causing litter spots, bruising, breast blisters.

Arthritis Festering inflammation in a joint, always involving a bacterial infection (Staphylococci, E-coli, Salmonella). Usually a one-sided inflammation. In that case only the affected part is removed, up to the joint above it.

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Peri-arthritis Subcutaneous inflammation around and in the joint. It may spread via the bloodstream to liver, kidneys, lungs and elsewhere. The affected part is removed up to the joint above. If the infection is spread through the body, the entire carcass and organs are rejected.

Perosis Slipped (Achilles) tendon, causing the lower foot to rotate outwards (twisted leg). Cause: nutritional deficiencies (manganese, zinc, choline, other B vitamins such as pyridoxine, biotin, folic acid, niacin).

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Pseudoperosis Resembles perosis. One or both legs are turned outward. The hatching process might be the cause, but it can also occur later, especially in young chicks not moving enough. Birds can’t move and often die from malnutrition. No reason to reject the leg or the whole carcass.

B roile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 5. End of p rod uc tion a nd s l aught er

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6. Health

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Checklist Interior: Organs When dissecting a broiler you look at all organs as a lot of diseases cause clinical symptoms in vital organs.

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10. pancreas 11. liver 12. gallbladder 13. spleen 14. heart 15. crop 16. trachea 17. proventriculus 18. gizzard

lungs caecum ovary kidneys oviduct vent rectum small intestine duodenum

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Organs

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 6 . Heal th

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Checklist Interior: Skeleton The broilers’ bones are young and still flexible. Problems with the locomotion system or skeleton are often related to the joints (heavy weight of broiler). Enterococcen may casue femoral head necrosis and abscesses on the spine. During catching for slaughter you have to be careful not to break the bones.

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1. cranium 2. eye socket 3. nasal cavity 4. nostrils 5. cervical vertebrae 6. thoracic vertebrae 7. radius 8. metacarpus 9. ulna 10. humerus 11. pelvis 12. tailbone

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13. ischium 14. pubis 15. femur 16. fibula 17. tibia 18. hock joint 19. metatarsus 20. knee joint 21. sternum 22. clavicle 23. coracoid 24. scapula

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Skeleton

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soft, mushy abdomen (ascites)

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Bone problems

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The broilers’ bones are young and still flexible but you should hear a dry crackling sound when breaking it. It requires some power to break the bone. A poorly calcified bone breaks easily with a soft sound.

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Broken bones after killing

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B roile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 6. H eal t h

Checklist Poultry Droppings Droppings tell you a lot about a bird’s gut health. Chickens produce two types of faecal material: intestinal (‘normal’) and caecal droppings. Monitor these in every inspection round. In case of abnormal droppings: get it analysed or let your vet do some dissections.

Caecal dropping

The ‘normal’ or intestinal droppings should be firm with a white urate cap on it and without too many undigested particles.

The brown caecal droppings, which are usually smooth and creamy, are produced when the caecum is emptied. The colour in itself doesn’t say much, but it should not be foamy.

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Intestinal dropping

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Consistency

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Consistency

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Roll a dropping from one hand to the other. Good consistency: no dirt is left behind on your hands. If the droppings stick to your hand, this indicates poor fat digestion.

Manually Squeeze droppings, when water drips out it is a bad signal.

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Paper Collect fresh droppings on paper. A large water rings around the droppings (photo) indicates an intestinal problem.

Moisture meter Use a device to quickly and objectively assess moisture content.

B roile r Signa ls Che c kb ook: 6. H eal t h

Checklist Poultry Droppings: Problems Intestinal problems can be seen in the droppings. Assess droppings on consistency (firm), moisture content (dry), colour (dark brown) and digestion (fine). To assess digestion, squash droppings in your hands and feel with your finger for coarse parts. Get samples analysed or perform a dissection of some birds.

Good

White/yellow

Good droppings, nice brown color with white cap and firm dropping without undigested parts.

The white layer on the dropping is uric acid.

White/yellow fluid indicates kidney damage.

Dark droppings usually indicate bleeding in the first part of the intestinal tract. Blood is digested and turns black.

Green

Orange

Undigested

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Dark

Orange mucus in droppings indicates a damage intestinal lining. Often combined with blood (enteritis).

You can even see maize in this very poorly digested dropping; normally this is the most easily digestible ingredient of chicken feed.

Foamy

Soft/watery

Light coloured, foamy caecal droppings indicate excessive gaseous bacteria in the caecum (Clostridium, Dysbacteriosis).

If droppings get soft, this is a first indication for diahrroea. Solve this before it gets really watery.

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Green bile indicates an empty intestine (starvation) and/or an infection (such as IBD).

The white urates are a waste product of protein break-down.

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Bloody

If droppings are mixed with blood, alarm bells should ring. This could indicate coccidiosis (Eimeria tenella).

B roiler S ig n a l s C h e c k b o o k : 6 . Heal th

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BROILER SIGNALS CHECKBOOK Focus on health, welfare and growth

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Broiler Signals Checkbook

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Broiler farmers are always looking for practical tools that they can use in their daily work. This checkbook focuses on this practical knowledge.

It is not a book that you have to read from back to back, but separate cards on various topics. To be consulted when required. With little text as possible and full of visual aids in the form of photographs and illustrations.

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The book has been developed in close collaboration with poultry farmers, veterinarians and farm advisors. The checkbook is a collection of 60 cards that can be used independently. The total checkbook comprises 80 pages.

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Topics range from preparations for a new flock, via guidelines for euthanasia to assessing intestinal health and slaughter quality. The whole broiler production process is covered.

There are various type of cards. Instruction cards shows you step-by-step how to perform certain activities on the farm. Scoring cards help you to objectively assess specific potential problems. Checklist address the highlights per topics that you should focus on.

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In Broiler Signals Checkbook various topics are presented on separate pages bound together with a wire-o-binding, making it easy to flick throught. Pages are laminated in order to withstand dirt and water. So it can be used in the poultry house or anywhere else on the farm in order to have it at hand all the time. To be used by farmers, advisors, trainers and students.

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Broiler Signals Checkbook is part of the successful Poultry Signals® series.

Poultry Signals® presents practical knowledge of animal oriented poultry farming in an easy, accessible format.

ISBN 978-90-8740-372-0

www.roodbont.com

9 789087 403720