What is heat stress ? Chicken heat stress Solution
Heat stress is produced when chicken experience difficulty between body heat produced and heat emission. When chicken experience heat stress they find it difficult to maintain a constant body temperature.
Heat stress is easy happen in hot weather in Summer. The lasting hot weather let chicken eat less feed , broken and soft egg increase. This lower the profit.
The main reason is that chicken no sweat gland. If the weather very hot , no enough water drinking , no good ventilation system, chickens are difficult to emit heat in body. If farmer not take action quickly. Chickens will easy to die in serious cases.
The phenomenon of heat stress
- Eat less feed .
The comfortable temperature for chicken is 20℃~23℃. It is best for egg laying on 21℃. Temperature over 26℃, egg laying is less . Temperature over 30℃, broken eggs rate will increase .
In hot weather , chicken eat less , but have to breathe deeply to emit heat. This consume more energy. But chickens are unwilling to eat feed to get energy.
- Egg become light.
Temperature over 27℃, egg will lighter 0.1~0.2g with temperature increase 1℃.
- Egg shell become thin, broken egg increased.
Over 27℃ conditions, below standard egg will increase 1% with temperature increase 1℃. If temperature over 39℃, this will cause chicken death directly.
- Layers weight decrease , easy get sick in Autumn .
Because layers not eat enough feed . So layers health is bad and easy get sick in Autumn, a season temperature become lower and lower.
Solution for chicken heat stress
- Supply ventilation and cooling system for chicken shed. You can add ventilation fan , cooling pad , water spraying cooling system to cool the temperature in the chicken shed.
- Adjust the breeding times per day. You can give feed less but more times . Give chicken feed on cool time , such as morning and dusk time, even in the evening .
- Enough water supply. You should give chicken water continuously. Make sure the water is fresh , clean and cool.
- Add Vitamin C or baking soda in water. Please notice that can not use them together. Add vitamin C 0.1%. If add baking soda, it is 0.2%.
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