How much feed does a broiler need before slaughter?

Broiler chickens are almost omnivorous and quickly gain weight. By the time of slaughter – one and a half months – they are capable of gaining almost 2,5 kilograms of weight. But even such gluttons cannot be fed with anything.

In order for the chickens to quickly “mature” and the meat of the broiler bird to be tender and juicy, it is necessary to observe the feeding regime and the correct proportions of the menu. But growing meat chickens must be profitable.

To find out the costs of different types of broiler feed and to calculate how much feed a broiler eats before slaughter, a table with feeding standards for birds of different age groups will help.

How much feed do broilers eat before slaughter?

Another table:

The most popular broilers:

Cobb 700

A bird with white plumage and a massive carcass. The cross has an enlarged breast, but compared to the Cobb 500, the thighs are smaller.

Ross 308

The highly productive cross is loved by amateur poultry breeders for its undemanding conditions, high-quality meat, and high feed conversion. Externally, it is a white bird with massive thighs and a wide keel.

Hybro-6

A popular cross that is not demanding in terms of maintenance conditions. A hybrid of Russian selection. The color of the paws and skin is yellow. The meat is of high taste quality.

Ross 708

Fast-growing bird of Dutch selection. Externally similar to the Cobb 500 cross, but the skin is pale. The advantage is an increased percentage of dietary meat due to the enlarged breast.

Cobb 500

One of the most common broilers in Russia. Ease of cultivation, rapid weight gain and yellow carcass color allow it to firmly occupy a leading position.

Fattening stages

For each period in the life of the bird, producers produce their own feed. Depending on the age of the bird, the composition of the feed and the degree of its grinding differ.

PreStart

The transition stage from embryonic assimilation of the yolk to feed consumption. The chick’s digestive system undergoes major changes at this stage.

The requirements for pre-starter feed are the highest:

• use of easily digestible ingredients;
• high nutritional value of the feed, including levels of amino acids, vitamin E and zinc;
• use of prebiotics and probiotics;
• use of immune system stimulants;
• feed intake stimulants: physical structure, high sodium content, flavor additives, etc.;
• fine grinding, homogeneity of the mixture.

Despite the high price of pre-starter feed, its use has virtually no effect on the total cost of raising poultry. Firstly, this stage lasts no more than five days, and secondly, at this age one bird consumes quite a bit of feed per day.

Start

The starter diet is used until the bird reaches at least 10 days of age.If the chicks are not gaining weight well and have not reached the standard live weight for a given cross by 10 days of life, feeding with starter feed should be extended to 14 days, or until the standard indicators are reached.

The use of high-quality starter feed is the key to the bird gaining the necessary weight for slaughter. Such specialized feed, containing an increased amount of protein and a reduced amount of fat, ensures the bird’s good health, strong immunity, and the development of a good appetite. Sizes of granulated feed:

• diameter 1.6-2.4 mm, length 1.5-3.0 mm;
• crushed – diameter 1.5-3.0 mm.

Fattening

After the starter diet, a growth diet is used. This stage lasts from two weeks to 20 days.The transition to a growth diet should not be abrupt.

At first, 20% of growth feed is added to the starter diet and its share is gradually increased. The size of the granules and grinding of the compound feed increases: the diameter of the granules is from 2 to 4 mm, the length is from 4 to 8 mm; the diameter of the grains is 3-5 mm.

At the fattening stage, it is permissible to add whole grain to the bird’s diet in an amount not exceeding 15% of the total feed weight.

Finishing diet

Starting from the 25th day of life and until slaughter, finishing feed is used. During this period of the bird’s life, active growth and weight gain occur. Finishing feed is formulated to avoid loss of muscle mass and excessive fat gain.

A broiler spends most of its life consuming finishing feed, therefore, its costs make up a significant part of the costs of keeping the bird. The share of whole grain in the finishing diet can be up to 20%.

Prohibited Food 

To prevent diseases and have a good appetite, you need to remove the following products from your menu:

• sweets, chocolate;
• alcohol;
• cheese and whole milk;
• citrus fruits and melons;
• sausages, hot dogs, smoked meats.

In order for birds to develop a strong musculoskeletal system, they require vitamin and mineral supplements containing calcium, phosphorus, zinc, copper and manganese.

They are already included in the combined feed, but with natural nutrition it is necessary to use bioadditives, for example, “Calcemin D”. The preparations are added in small doses to the drinking bowls every three days.

Natural nutrition helps reduce costs and makes chicken meat more tender.

Feeding with compound feeds on poultry farms

When fattening with complete feeds in industrial conditions, a four-period feeding system is used. Chickens receive balanced nutrition without additional food additives and grow rapidly.

Table No. 1. Scheme of four-component feeding of broilers depending on the period of life:

With such fattening, broiler chicks gain weight of more than two kilograms by one and a half months. The ability of their digestive system to digest, and therefore the consistency of the feed, depends on the age characteristics of broiler chickens.

Babies are given only micro-granulated food; from the 10th day, granules up to three millimeters are allowed, from the 25th day – 3,5 mm or loose coarsely ground food.

Compound feed fattening on a small farm

At home, such a system may seem uneconomical to the owner of a small farm. Poultry farmers using compound feed choose a three-period scheme for growing broilers, replacing the pre-start stage with home feeding of cereals, cottage cheese and boiled eggs.

Step-by-step instructions for compound feed fattening

Step 1.

Protein-rich compound feed PK-6-1 in small granules is introduced. Its composition based on grain and fermented milk products helps to strengthen the skeletal-muscular system and improve digestion of babies. Addition of granules begins with small doses, approximately 25 grams. Additionally, the chickens are offered greens and grated carrots.

Step 2.

Active weight gain of broilers begins from the 15th day of hatching. At this time, PK-6-2, produced in medium-sized granules, is preferable. Bone meal, lysine and vegetable oil are added to the initial components. For better weight gain, it is mixed with dairy products.

Step 3.

When the chickens reach the age of 30 days, they are given a large-granulated mixture of PK-6-3 with green crops, fat and yeast in the composition. This feed contains less protein, but here the vitamin and mineral composition is enhanced.

This approach can help reduce feed consumption slightly, especially if additional nutritional components are introduced.

The following are used as additional feed for birds raised for meat:

• wormwood herb to improve appetite and growth rate;
• greens, including tops and garden weeds – for vitaminization;
• onions and pumpkin from the age of one week – for the prevention of helminthiasis;
• cottage cheese, bone meal and boiled fish – to enrich the diet with protein, calcium, and iodine.

Making your own compound feed

According to the three-stage scheme, you can feed broilers and self-made compound feed. At the first stage, from 5 to 15 days, the composition should include corn and wheat grains, meat and bone meal, chalk mixture and premixes.

Additionally, chopped greens are added in small quantities. At the second stage, from 16 to 30 days, peas, feed fat and skim milk are added to the composition. At the third stage, the composition is similar to the feed of the previous period, but the proportions of the components change.

The third stage of feeding is used before the slaughter of the bird, which is usually carried out at 42-45 days, less often – at two months. Further maintenance of broilers is unprofitable, since they stop gaining weight. Before slaughter, chickens are kept for 14 days without gravel additives, they are not given industrially produced bio-feeding and medicine.

Step-by-step instructions for feeding broilers for rapid weight gain

When growing at home, it is important not only to select high-quality food, but also to ensure the correct feeding regime. Feeding babies up to two weeks of age is eight times a day. Water should be available around the clock.

To prevent mortality, it is tinted with potassium permanganate. From 15 days, the chickens are transferred to a six-time feeding regime. After a month, you can offer food four times a day, but in large quantities.

Instead of breakfast, it is better to offer broilers wet mash. For babies aged 7 to 14 days, the composition is prepared as follows:

1. Step 1. Take equal parts of corn, buckwheat, wheat, barley and oatmeal and boil lightly.
2. Step 2. Add a little bone meal and sunflower cake.
3. Step 3. Mix the mixture with low-fat kefir at a rate of 30 ml per individual and let it stand for a quarter of an hour.

From the age of ten days, finely grated carrots and cabbage leaves, garden greens can be added to the feed mixture. The volume of the vitamin composition is gradually increased from five to twenty grams.

For older chickens, a mash based on crushed barley with the addition of crushed shells or chalk powder, as well as bone meal and cottage cheese is suitable.

In addition to nutrition, broilers are provided with the right conditions for growth. Thus, the temperature in the nursery for the smallest ones should be less than 28 degrees.

They require 16-hour lighting, otherwise the birds will not find food and water. From the age of one week, the lighting is reduced to 14 hours, and from one month to 24. The temperature is maintained at no less than degrees.

Broilers do not require spacious poultry houses. For babies, a square meter is enough for 18 individuals; after half a month, 10 young hens can get along well in a similar space. Walking is not allowed, otherwise the chickens will lose weight.

A healthy broiler chicken has a large breast and plump thighs, and overall resembles a ball.

With a sharp drop in temperature or improper lighting, broilers begin to get sick and can lose 50 percent of their body weight. But if you follow the feeding regime and arrange comfortable housing, you can begin slaughtering in a month and a half.

Reasons for poor appetite in broiler chickens

When feeding broilers, you need to monitor whether the pets eat their portions completely. If the birds do not finish eating, find out why they have lost their appetite and eliminate the reasons for the loss of interest in food. Otherwise, the chickens will not have time to gain the required weight before slaughter.