Like all other hybrids, broiler chickens are famous for their fast growth, but not too high resistance to certain infections and diseases. In order for a broiler to grow up healthy and well-nourished, it must be properly fed: the nutrition for such chickens should be as balanced as possible.
How to feed broiler chickens in the first days of life?
Chicks that are still immature should already be feeding at full strength. You need to monitor their feeders: they must constantly be filled with dry food. In the early days of the birth of chickens, they need to be given a mixture of finely crushed wheat, corn, barley, and bran. You can grate boiled eggs in a ratio of 1 egg for 20 chickens. It is important to understand that broilers need constant nutrition during this period.
The bird should be fed every 3-4 hours, leaving a short break for a night's rest. Experts advise feeding chickens with yogurt from skim milk, as well as fresh cottage cheese. After three days, green forage can be introduced into the broilers' diet at the rate of 3 g per chicken: cabbage, tops, beets, young nettles, carrots. The vitamins in their composition form the broiler's immunity. It is recommended to feed these feeds fresh to poultry.
How to feed broiler chicks after 2 weeks of life?
A couple of weeks after the birth of the chickens, a little boiled potatoes should be added to their main mixture. Its amount should be gradually increased over time. From ten weeks of age, they should be fed well-cooked and finely chopped fish waste at the rate of 5 g per chicken. Already matured broilers are fed plant proteins in the form of soy or any other cake added to the main mixture. The proportion is as follows: 20 g per head.
Any innovations in the diet of broiler chickens should be carried out gradually: first, the bird is taught to new food, and only then its amount is increased. Experts advise feeding broilers with crushed carrots, as they are very useful for them. The proportion is 20 g per chicken. For good absorption of food by broilers, feed fat should be added to the mixture. Don't forget about drinking bowls! They need to be monitored: drinkers should always be full, as water improves the chick's appetite and metabolism.
How to feed broiler chicks before slaughter?
A few weeks before slaughter, feeds that spoil the taste and quality of poultry meat are excluded from the diet of broilers. For example, broilers no longer need to feed fish waste and flour to avoid unpleasant carcass odors. There is no need to arrange frequent walks for the chickens, otherwise the feed will be used to restore the expended energy, and not to increase the nutritional mass.
A few hours before slaughtering a bird, it is necessary to empty its gastrointestinal tract. For this, the so-called pre-slaughter fasting is used: the chickens are not fed 6-8 hours before death. It is better to do this in the daytime, and slaughter at night in a well-lit room: in this case, the processes of digestion and cleaning the intestines of the bird will work at full capacity, which will improve the quality of meat.
