In running a business or business there must be risks that must be faced, including the laying hen farming business. The risk often faced by chicken farmers is that the production of laying hens decreases. In fact, the laying hen farming business has great potential and high profits.
Therefore, farmers must know the causes of decreased laying hen production. It is intended that you can overcome these causes, so you do not experience a very big loss. So, what can be the cause of decreased laying hen production?
Relax, in this article we invite you to find out the causes of decreased laying hen production. You’re so curious, right?
Here’s the full explanation!
Nutrition ration and drinking water
Poor ration quality, either lack of nutrition or unbalanced nutrition and rations containing toxic/ anti-nutritional substances can cause a decrease in egg production. A good ration should contain balanced nutrients of proteins, fats, energy, coarse fibers, and minerals (phosphorus and calcium). If the intake of energy, protein, or calcium is not met, it can decrease egg production. It is very important to provide rations containing balanced nutrients during production with protein intake of 16% – 18%.
Therefore, during the production period, laying hens need a ration with balanced nutrition to maintain egg production. Improper nutrition can cause chickens to stop laying eggs. In addition to nutrients in the ration, the provision of clean and fresh drinking water is also necessary. Chickens without drinking water for only a few hours can stop laying eggs for up to weeks. Therefore, provide drinking water ad libitum
Diseases
The disease factor has long been considered one of the main causes of a decrease in egg production in laying hens. In addition, a decrease in egg production is also often associated with the early symptoms of chicken disease. Other symptoms can be sluggish chicken body, loss of appetite, dull and Falling Feathers, watery eyes to death. Chickens attacked by the disease cost farmers a huge loss.
Therefore, if you see a chicken with the disease, do isolation or denial and observe the entire population carefully. If you suspect a disease attack, contact your veterinarian immediately so that he can help check, so that an accurate diagnosis and treatment can be obtained. In general, laying hens are affected by the disease, then egg production will be disrupted.
Diseases that can cause the production of laying hens decreased egg Drop Syndrome (EDS), Newcastle Disease (ND), Infectious Bronchitis (IB), Chronic Respiratory Disease (CRD), and Colibacillosis. ND and IB diseases can reduce the quality of egg shells, the inside of the egg and can damage the production Channel. EDS is a disease that can cause eggshells to be very thin, so eggs break easily.
Long lack of lighting
Lighting needs of laying hens for 16 hours / day. It aims to maintain the amount of production to remain optimal. The lighting factor during the grower’s period is also closely related to the achievement of body weight and as a reproductive tract controller. Many breeders forget about this important point.
In fact, with the lighting with the time that suits the needs of chickens can stimulate the hypothalamus and will be passed on to the pituitary gland. The pituitary gland will secrete 2 hormones, namely the hormone FSH and the hormone LH. The FSH hormone functions to ripen the egg follicle, while the LH hormone functions to bully the ovulation process. Therefore, lighting in the cage is very important and the breeder must know it.
The growing age of chickens
The cause of decreased laying hen production is the age of the chicken is getting older. All living things will enter old age, as well as laying hens. When entering old age (reject), egg productivity will decrease. However, this influence varies greatly in individual chickens.
Chickens can reproduce efficiently during two egg-laying cycles. After two or three years, its productivity will decline. In general, egg production is best in the first year. However, there are also laying hens with high production, so they can produce quite well for 2-3 years. This condition is different in each strain of chicken.
Chickens are stressed
In addition to being a trigger for chickens to develop diseases, stress can also cause laying hen production to decrease. There are so many factors that can cause stress, but the factors that often make chickens stress are:
Overheating
Stress due to overheating or also called heat stress is a stress caused by temperature and humidity in the cage exceeding the comfort zone. If the laying hens are exposed to heat stress, the chickens will drink more and reduce the consumption of rations, so that nutritional needs are not met. In the end, this will lead to a decrease in the production of laying hens.
Cold
Chickens often experience cold stress when the rainy season arrives. Therefore, make sure the chickens get protection from wind and rain during the rainy season, but do not close the cage too tightly, so that it can cause high levels of ammonia in the cage. If the ammonia level in the cage is high, it can also cause disease in chickens. And it is at this time that it is time to increase the air holes in the cage. Chickens cannot survive in humid conditions and too much wind.
Capture, displacement, and density
Limit unnecessary arrests or removals. Overpopulation can increase cannibalism and eventually stress on chickens.
When chickens are stressed, in addition to increasing the hormone ACTH (Adrenocorticotropic Hormone) which can lower the immune system, in the chicken’s body there is also an increase in the hormone epinephrine. This hormone when released into the blood will cause the process of laying hens to retreat and inhibit the formation of cuticle tissue on the kerabag layer of eggs, so that the pigmentation process of kerabag is also inhibited.
Those are some of the factors that cause laying hen production to decline. The hope is that once you know some of these causes, you can deal with them or even find ways to increase the production of laying hens.
Thus this article, may be useful. See you on another occasion!