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Veterinarian: Rethink layer health programs with move to cage-free
The poultry industry’s gradual switch to cage-free egg production has underscored the need to rethink disease-control programs.
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Temperature and air flow critical to broiler performance year-round
By Michael Czarick, Engineering Specialist, University of Georgia Department of Poultry Science
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Special Report: Managing the health challenges of moving to free-range egg production
Free-range egg production will bring major challenges to the way birds are produced, but it will also mean big shifts in the ways bird health and welfare need to be managed.
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Training and management critical for cage-free egg production
Training chicks and pullets so they are prepared for life in cage-free egg systems is critical to ensuring they meet their full productive potential.
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Right skills critical to managing increases in Salmonella, coccidiosis associated with cage-free egg production
Producers making the switch to cage-free egg production need to ensure they are properly prepared for managing potential increases in Salmonella and other health challenges.
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Special report: Helping broiler chickens keep their cool
The scorching days of summer are almost here. In this special report, Poultry Health Today looks at the impact of heat stress and ways to prevent it.In this special report, Poultry Health Today looks...
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Prepare now for summer heat, humidity
By Tom Tabler, PhD, Extension Professor, Mississippi State University Extension Service, Poultry Science Department, Mississippi State, Mississippi
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Moisture monitoring critical to improving bird health and welfare
Poultry shed humidity should be monitored as regularly as shed temperature and ventilation to ensure bird health and productivity is as high as it can be.
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Better air circulation, moderately lower humidity improve paw quality
Increasing air circulation coupled with moderate reductions in humidity can dramatically improve paw quality, Michael Czarick and Connie Mou, University of Georgia, told Poultry Health Today.
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Cooling chickens with sprinklers has multiple benefits
By Tom Tabler, PhD, Extension Professor, Mississippi State University, Extension Service, Poultry Science Department, Mississippi State, Mississippi
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Urban chicken movement requires legislators to learn chicken basics
Legislators need to know some basics about raising chickens in response to an upsurge in the “urban chicken” trend, Nat Tablante, DVM, told Poultry Health Today.
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Mortality composting the right way: Tips for poultry producers
By Tom Tabler, Ph.D. Extension Professor Mississippi State University Extension Service, Poultry Science Department Mississippi State, MS
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Heat stress may impair immune system in broilers
Heat stress in broilers induced lesions of lymphoid tissues, indicating immune system impairment, but it’s not yet known if heat stress affects the vulnerability or severity of coccidiosis.
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Rainwater harvesting helps poultry farms reduce water dependency, save money
A new system for harvesting and storing rainwater from poultry barns provides birds with high quality water while reducing the grower’s dependency on local wells and municipal water systems.
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Windrowing litter can reduce pressure from poultry viruses, insects and bacteria
Poultry producers looking to improve litter quality and flock health should consider windrowing — a practice that not only works to control ammonia in the reconditioned litter but also reduces...
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Cage-free hen housing: How far will the pendulum swing?
By John Brown, DVM Senior Technical Services Veterinarian, Zoetis
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Early feeding, housing may affect broiler response to immune challenges
Early feeding after hatch and the housing type can affect the response of broilers to immune challenges later in life, indicates a study from the Netherlands.
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NCC to food industry and consumers: Go slow on slower-growing chickens
The National Chicken Council is urging food-service and retail industries, non-governmental organizations and consumers to go slow on the slow-growth chicken trend before evaluating its potential...
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Hens in enriched colony system appear more stressed, flighty
Hens in an enriched colony system were more stressed and flighty than conventionally caged birds in a study from Mississippi State and Texas A&M Universities.
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More light at night reduces daytime heat stress in broilers
Extended lighting periods help boost welfare and production of big broilers during high seasonal temperatures, a University of Georgia study showed.
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Water pressure: How does it affect broilers’ consumption, performance?
Low-pressure water systems designed to reduce water usage have some poultry growers turning up the pressure to hydrate flocks and improve bird performance, but is this a sound practice economically?
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What is the carbon footprint of your poultry farm?
New research by the University of Georgia on greenhouse-gas emissions from poultry farms is expected to lay the groundwork for reducing the industry's carbon footprint.
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Cage-free layers: Are ‘happier’ birds also healthier?
Leading egg producers in the US are pledging to go cage-free, but are happier layers necessarily healthier? John Brown, DVM, a veterinarian who specializes in layer health, shares his thoughts on the...
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Candid camera: Undercover videos on rise in poultry industry
Undercover videos of poultry farms made by animal activists appear to be on the rise, Mark Crouser, a consultant to the Center for Food Integrity (CFI), reported at the recent National Meeting on...
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Wet litter, footpad dermatitis tied to reduced broiler performance
Increased litter moisture not only led to severe footpad dermatitis (FPD) in broilers, it reduced other aspects of animal welfare and negatively affected performance and carcass yield.
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Breaches in biosecurity: Sanderson Farms vet shares three valuable lessons
By Philip A. Stayer, DVM Corporate Veterinarian, Sanderson Farms, Inc.
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High stocking density predisposes broilers to NE
High stocking density has adverse effects on broiler welfare and intestinal health and predisposes the birds to necrotic enteritis (NE), according to the results of an experiment conducted by...
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Waste-heat recovery system could save millions annually while improving air quality
A team of researchers and engineers from the University of Missouri has developed a waste-heat recovery system that could lead to significant savings in propane costs for producers heating their...
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British vets question health, welfare of free-range chickens
While activists tout the happier, healthier life of free-range chickens, veterinarians in Great Britain have expressed concern about their long-term sustainability and increased likelihood of a major...
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Producing Grade A chicken starts in the broiler house
In order to produce Grade A chicken at the processing plant, poultry producers must place healthy chicks and maintain bird quality throughout the life cycle.
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New app improves cold-weather ventilation for poultry
A new app — appropriately named CHKMINVENT — is designed to give poultry producers an easy-to-use means to calculate minimum ventilation rates in their houses during cold weather conditions.
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Zoetis to expand biodevice solutions for poultry industry with acquisition of hatchery-automation company
Zoetis Inc. announced an agreement to acquire KL Products, Inc. to strengthen automation technology for poultry hatchery operations.
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The growing importance of nighttime air quality
By Drs. Michael Czarick, Brian Fairchild and Brian Jordan Department of Poultry Science, University of Georgia, Athens, GA
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Ammonia concentration versus ventilation rate
Monitoring ammonia levels in poultry houses can help producers to adjust ventilation rates and thus prevent problems.
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Frequent Application of Litter Amendments in Broiler Houses During Grow-out on Bird Health, Production and Environment
A series of experiments at the University of Delaware show that frequent application of sodium bisulphate improved broiler production performance and foot pad quality and reduced ammonia emissions...
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Temperature of drinking water may affect bodyweight during brooding
The temperature of drinking water during brooding may affect the bodyweight of broiler chicks, according to a University of Arkansas study.
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Impact of lighting types on broiler performance
A study at the University of Delaware shows that broiler performance in terms of breast and body weights was similar for two poultry-specific LED lamps and incandescent lamps and better than for
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New studies examine effects of lighting on chickens
Two recent studies show that broilers perform better under LED lighting than fluorescent lamps while layer behaviour is affected by light wavelength.
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Research review: What’s new in poultry housing and equipment?
With animal welfare and the environmental aspects of food animal farming gaining more attention from the public and high feed prices focusing efforts on getting the best performance from poultry,...
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Poultry housing tips: Without air movement evaporative cooling pads can increase bird heat stress*
Though evaporative cooling is used around the world to keep birds cool during hot weather, by itself it is not a very effective method of reducing bird heat stress. To understand why, one must...
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