Essential Things You Need to Know About Raising Guinea Fowl

                      
       It goes without question that Guinea fowl are one of the most unusual, quirky and wacky birds around and their babies are no different. Guinea fowl babies, also known as keets, are rambunctious, excitable and- if we’re being honest- some of the doughiest creatures around. Caring for young Guinea fowl keets is one of the most rewarding experiences you can have with an animal. So long as you have a sense of humour, a little patience and are well informed, raising Guinea fowl keets will be a breeze.

 What to expect from Guinea fowl keets

Guinea fowl keets are cute, chirpy, curious and clumsy things that you’ll definitely need to keep an eye on, but the good news is they are so much fun to watch. They scurry about the brooder dazed, confused and excited seemingly without any sense of what they are or where they’re going.  This leaves them unfortunately prone to accident, such as dislocated legs, which often results in death if it occurs at an early age.

What do I need to know about brooders?

A brooder is essentially a safe, temperature controlled space- normally an extra-large plastic container- that your Guinea fowl keets will be able to spend the first two to six weeks of their life. Some people however renovate their chicken tractors, like the Taj Mahal, into temporary brooders, by positioning the tractor on top of a tarp indoors and inserting heat lamps inside the tractor.

Coat the floor of your brooder with newspaper or non-toxic hemp bedding. Avoid other beddings, such as sawdust, otherwise you’re Guinea fowl keets will mistake it for feed and end up with some very upset tummies.

The brooder needs to be kept at approximate 35 degrees Celsius, otherwise your Guinea fowl keets might get a bit cold. A carefully positioned heat lamp with a thermometer strategically placed at the bottom of the brooder is the simplest way to ensure your keets stay warm during this early period of their life. If you’re Guinea fowl keets are huddled together with their eyes closed or squinted, this is a sure sign that they are feeling cold and you will need to warm the brooder up.

One of the fabulous things about Guinea fowl keets is the fact that their droppings are an easy to clean dry and powdery substance. The easiest way to clean the brooder is to relocate the baby keets to a safe place, remove the bedding, wipe down the interior of the brooder with a natural cleaner and reline the inside with fresh bedding. Extra points if you use the droppings as fertiliser for your compost.

Guinea fowl keets grow especially quickly over the first two weeks and it might be tempting to let them out of the brooder sooner than it is recommended. Generally speaking Guinea fowl keets should remain inside the brooder for the first six weeks of their lives, but feel free to give them excursions to your living room, bathroom or backyard. So long as you monitor the keets as they begin to explore the world, they should remain safe from any of the dangers ahead of them.

guinea-fowl-keet-chick

What do the baby Guinea fowl keets eat and drink?

Adult Guinea fowl are one of the most self-reliant poultry birds around. They are able to graze in your garden all day, eating entire armies of bugs and insect, whilst scavenging all other kinds of treats and goodies. As most Guinea fowl keets won’t be safe to graze in the wild it’s important that you give them plenty of feed while they’re inside the brooder. Simply scatter the feed atop of the newspaper and they will delightedly peck and feed for hours.

Of course Guinea fowl keets need to drink water. The important thing to note about this is the fact that you will need to secure a drown-proof waterer, otherwise you might wake up one morning to find a nasty surprise inside your brooder.

What to expect if something bad happens to my Guinea fowl keets?

One of the sadder realities about Guinea fowl keets is that if they’re exposed to some kind of trauma during the first few weeks, the more anti-social and fiercely independent they will become. For example, if the other keets tease, bully or attack one particular baby Guinea fowl, it is likely that they will become less socialised as an adult. An anti-social Guinea fowl will be more inclined to chase, tease or act aggressively towards other animals and even humans.

How are Guinea fowl keets raised in the wild?

Guinea fowl have many charms but they are definitely not known for being good parents. Guinea fowl mothers tend to isolate their nest in the wild and savagely protect it from other birds, animals and even humans. Whilst caring for the eggs Guinea fowl are dedicated and caring parents committed to the cause of their children. However, once the Guinea fowl keets have hatched the mothers tend to lose interest, wander off and quite generally neglect their young baby keets. The unfortunate truth is that often in the wild a mother might hatch upward of twenty keets however perhaps as few as five will make it to adulthood. Some owners take young Guinea fowl keets under their wings when they are a few days old, once the mother has abandoned them. However be cautious before swoop in and take the baby keets, as the mother may get offended and try to keep them for herself.

Where can I get Guinea fowl keets from?

Most Guinea fowl breeders will also sell the keets, from as little as one day old. It’s in your best interest to get as young a Guinea fowl keet as possible, as they have trouble adjusting the new environment as they get older, which you can read about here. It’s probably best to call the breeder and arrange a suitable time to come and collect the keets, as they are likely to know when the next batch of Guinea will hatch. Sites like Chicken Sales can put you in contact with breeders of Guinea fowl or chickens in your area.

Raising Guinea fowl keets is a delightful, grin-inducing experience that will help you appreciate the little things in life. So long as you are understand the basics and are prepared for the touch of silliness the Guinea fowl will bring to your life, it’s bound to be a rewarding experience.

Once your Guinea fowl have come of age it’s important that they have a safe and sturdy coop to rest in at the end of a fun day eating bugs, like the Taj Mahal, Penthouse and Mansion. Be sure you find out more about how you can keep Guinea fowl with chickens, especially if you’re planning on getting a big and comfortable coop.

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Layer poultry Farming

Layer poultry farming means raising egg laying poultry birds for the purpose of commercial egg production. Layer chickens are such a special species of hens, which need to be raised from when they are one day old. They start laying eggs commercially from 18-19 weeks of age. They remain laying eggs continuously till their 72-78 weeks of age. They can produce about one kg of eggs by consuming about 2.25 kg of food during their egg laying period. For the purpose of producing hybrid eggs layer, consider the various characteristics of cock and hen before breeding. There are various types of highly egg productive layer breeds available throughout the world.

            Layer Breeds of fowl

According to the nature and color of egg, layer hens are of two types. Short description of these two types are listed below.
White Egg Laying Hens: This type of hens are comparatively smaller in size. Relatively eat less food, and the color of egg shell is white. Isa White, Lehman White, Nikchik, Bab Cock BV-300, Havard White, Hi Sex White, Sever White, Hi line White, Bovanch White etc. are some popular white egg laying chickens.
Brown Egg Laying Hens: Brown egg laying hens are relatively larger in size. They eat more foods, compared to white egg layers. Lay bigger eggs than other laying breeds. Egg shell is brown colored. There are many types of brown layer available. Among those Isa Brown, Hi Sex Brown, Sever 579, Lehman Brown, Hi Line Brown, Bab Cock BV-380, Gold Line, Bablona Tetro, Bablona Harko, Havard Brown etc. are very suitable for commercial
layer poultry farming .

Layer Hen Selection

You have to keep in mind some essential information before selecting the layer hens for your poultry farming business. You have to select those breeds which are suitable for your layer poultry farming business and can produce well in your area. Read below for selecting proper breeds for your business.
chicken, chicken picture, layer chicken, layer
For commercial eggs production, you have to chose highly productive laying hens correctly.
All type of hens do not produce equal number of eggs.
The chosen breeds must have to have good production capability.
If your chosen breed contain the desired characteristic and have a reputation for egg production, then that breed is suitable for your business.
Always purchase healthy chicks from a famous and popular hatchery. You can see their catalog before purchasing.

   Keeping Chicks

During the first weeks after birth, many chicks do not want to drink water due to transporting them from one place to another. So you have to make adequate water drinking systems in their brooder house, and you have to train them for drinking water. Mix 5% glucose with water, so that they can easily get energy. Provide them any types of high quality multivitamin by mixing with water (suggested by electrolyte production companies instruction). Multivitamin and electrolyte are very effective when you transport chick from a long distance. It reduces tiredness and lack of water, and help to make the chick normal.

   Vaccination and it’s Importance

Vaccination program is a must for chicks for keeping them free from all types of diseases. The main advantage of poultry vaccination are listed below.
Timely vaccination makes disease resistance power in the body of chick.
Help to keep the hen free from infective poultry diseases.
Disease prevalence will be less.
Mortality rate will reduce.
And low mortality rate = more production = more profit.
There are many types of poultry vaccines are available for layer hens. Marex, Ranikheth, Gamboro, Bruchaities, Bosonto, Salmonela etc. are used for layer chickens.

   Before Vaccination

You have to maintain some rules before vaccination.
Hold the chickens very carefully.
Vaccinate the chickens without any strain.
There is no need to vaccinate the ill hen.
Wash the vaccination equipment with hot boiled water or germicide medicine/antiseptic.
Do the vaccination program in cold weather condition.
Preventive vaccine is always applicable to healthy bird. Never vaccinate an infected bird.

   Keeping Growing Chicks

You have to maintain the suggestion listed below for keeping growing layer chickens.
chicken, chicken picture, layer chicken, layer
You have to provide the growing chicks special care until they reach 4-5 weeks of age.
After brooding serve them good quality pellet feed. It will make good results in the future. They will produce egg highly. High quality pellet will make the chickens healthy and increase their body weight.
So it is very important to provide them quality pellet feed during growing period.
Egg Production from Commercial Layer Farm
Egg production from a commercial layer farm depends on the care and farm management. If you take good care of your birds and manage them properly, then the production and profit will be high.
Withing the first 20 weeks of age, about 5% of hens start laying eggs.
About 10% birds start laying at their 21 weeks of age.
When they reach 26 to 30 weeks of age, they produce highly. Although, it may be different depending on their strain.
After laying a maximum number of eggs, they usually stop laying for a few days.
And after this period, their egg production might reduces slowly.
Egg laying rate and size of eggs increases gradually.
The hens grow till their 40 weeks of age.
Weight and size of eggs increases till their 50 weeks of age.

  Importance and method of Lip Cutting

Cutting the lip of laying hens is very important. The main benefits are listed below.
Lip cutting help to reduce mutual fights.
It help to prevent food waste.
You have to cut your chick’s lip at their age of 8 to 10 days.
Cut the lip of growing chicken at their 8 to 12 weeks of age.
Cut the lip of chicks 0.2 cm from their nose.
Cut 0.45 cm in case of growing chickens.
Cut the both upper and lower lips.
Don’t cut the both lip together. Cut one after another.
Use block chick trimming machine to cut the lips.
Don’t cut their lip two days after or before vaccination, after or before using some medicines like sulfur. Don’t cut the lip if the hen in a strain, and during adverse weather conditions and if the hen start laying eggs.
chicken, poultry, poultry farming, layer chicken
Serve the chicken water mixed with vitamin “K” three days before cutting lips. Wash the lip cutting instrument with antiseptic. Test the edge and temperature of blade. You have to be careful, and don’t damage their eyes and tongue. Choose cold weather for cutting their lips. Lip cutting process should be observed by an experienced technician. After cutting lips, serve them water in a deep pot. Provide them some extra energy enriched feed.

Feeding

There are many companies available throughout the world, which are producing commercial feed for layer chickens. You can buy feed from your local market or make the feed at your own house. You have to be sure that the feed you bought are enriched with essential food value. Protein and mineral are very important for laying hens.
Provide 2% of calcium for two weeks after their birth.
If you notice they are not gaining expected weight, then you have to serve starter feed for eight weeks.
Serve feed two or three times in a day till their 18 weeks of age.
Demand of feed increase very fast when the birds start laying.
Serve them layer poultry feed according to their age and weights.
Don’t decrease the amount of feed while laying (even if their weight increase).

  Water Management

Chickens health depend on the supply of pure, clean and fresh drinking water. You have to provide adequate water according to the demand of your laying hens. For purifying the water, mix 0.3 g bliching per litter. Determine a suitable place to keep the water pot inside the poultry house. Supply cold water during summer season and hot weather, and slightly hot water in cold weather or winter season.
In accordance with the age and species of chickens, food providing can control the weights of chicken. Use sufficient calcium, phosphorus, vitamins, amino acid and other mineral substance in their food. For purifying water use bliching powder or chlorine. If you follow the methods mentioned above, then you can make better profit from your layer poultry farming business.

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Terms Used in poultry

    Here are the terms used in Poultry

Cock                      — male fowl above one year of age.

Cockerel               — male fowl below one year of age

Hen                       — female fowl above one year of age.

Pullet                    — female fowl below one year of age.

Chick                     — A young fowl (0-6 weeks old).

Capon                     — A castrated male fowl.

Caponization.        — Process of castration in fowl.

Treading                — Act of mating in fowl.

Grower                    — fowl between 7–19 weeks of age.

Layer                       — female fowl over 20 weeks of age that can lay eggs.

Broiler                      — fowl reared for meat

Clutch                      — A group of young chicks.

Flock                       — A group of fowls.

Chicken                   — meat of fowl.

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Breads of domestic fowl

The various species of fowls may have had a common ancestor, the primitive fowl called GALLUS. The various breads of fowls can be classified into three main groups
  1. Egg producers which includes: white Leghorn, and brown Leghorn.

  2. Meet producers known as broilers e.g Sussex, Cornish,and Cochin.

  3. Dual purpose ones (i.e both meat and egg producers) e.g., Rhode, Island red, Plymouth Rock, and New Hampshire.

   

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How to check the fertility of an Egg

1.   First Hold the egg above the light. Take your candling equipment in a dark room within close proximity to the incubator. Take an egg from the incubator and hold it above the light. The correct way to do this is allows:
Place the larger end of the egg (where the air sac is) directly against the light. Hold the egg near the top, between your thumb and forefinger. Tilt the egg slightly to one side and rotate until you get the best view.
As you work, you should mark each egg with a number and take notes on your findings. That way, you can compare the results of your first candling with the results of your second candling.
Try to work quickly, but not so fast that you risk dropping the egg. As long as the eggs are returned to the incubator within twenty minutes to half an hour, there is no risk of the candling process affecting their development. A mother hen will frequently leave her eggs for short periods of time while she is incubating them.
Be aware that it will be more difficult to candle brown or speckled eggs as the dark shells do not become as transparent under the light.
Look for signs that the egg is a winner. A winner is an egg with a successfully developing embryo. You can tell if an egg is a winner using the following signs:
There will be a visible network of blood vessels spreading from the center of the egg outwards.
With a weaker candler, you might just be able to make out the clear bottom half of the egg (where the air sac is) and the darker top half of the egg (where the embryo is developing).
With a good candler, you might be able to see the dark outline of the embryo at the center of the network of blood vessels. You are most likely to see the embryo's eyes, which are the darkest spots inside the egg.
If you're lucky, you might see the embryo moving! [3]
Look for signs that the egg is a quitter. A quitter is an embryo which has stopped developing at some point during incubation, for one reason or another. Some quit due to poorly maintained temperatures or humidity, some are contaminated by bacteria, while others simply have bad genes.
The main indication that an egg is a quitter is the development of a blood ring. A blood ring looks like a well-defined red circle, which is visible on the inside of the shell. It forms when the embryo dies and the blood vessels supporting it pull away from the center and rest against the shell. [1]
Other indications that an egg is a quitter include the development of blood spots or blood streaks inside the egg. However, these dark patches can be difficulty to distinguish from a healthy embryo at this early stage.
If you are 100% certain that the egg is a quitter (the appearance of a blood ring is a very definite sign) then you should discard the egg immediately to prevent it from turning bad and exploding inside the incubator.
Look for signs that the egg is a yolker. A yolker is an egg that was never fertilized and has no chance of developing an embryo. You can tell if an egg is a yolker using the following signs:
The egg looks the exact same as it did when you first candled the eggs before putting them in the incubator.
The inside of the egg looks fairly clear, with no visible dark spots, blood vessels or blood rings. [5]
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How to Start Lucrative Poultry Farming in Nigeria

Medium scale poultry farm in Nigeria
A new poultry farm populated with day-old-chi
Poultry Farming in Nigeria is probably one of the most lucrative farming business you can do in Nigeria especially when it is setup and managed properly. The farmers we currently have are not producing enough poultry and will not be enough even in the next ten years! This aspect of livestock farming presents one of the finest opportunity for entrepreneurs to make good money within the shortest period of time possible. This is made possible due to the quick maturity of chickens.
With over 160 Million consumers in the country who buys poultry products on daily basis, the market is always here waiting to be tapped. The demand for eggs is so high that people go about everyday looking for where to buy eggs for supply .
So, how exactly can anyone who wish to start poultry farming in Nigeria be able to go about it and come out very profitable? This article will cover a lot of ground, and it is written based on personal experience and continually updated to make sure the information here is as accurate as possible at all time.
SEE ALSO: How to start small scale poultry farm
This very post will take more critical look at the business and how entrepreneurs who are interested in this business in Nigeria could start easily without wasting much time and resources.
Anyone can engage in poultry farming business, it doesn’t matter your educational or financial background. You can start at any level and grow as big as you want with time. The most important thing is that you are interested in starting somewhere.
This articles will focus on how to start small and grow big which I think will interest anyone with limited financial capacity who wants to start small
without involving much risks .
One of the factors that makes poultry farming business ideal is because chickens grows very fast. Unlike goats that takes 2 to 3 years to mature, a chicken can be ready for the market within 28 weeks from birth. That is why it is considered ideal business for loan takers who may actually invest the loan and within 30 to 40 weeks, they may start paying back through the money realized from sells. That is if everything goes well as planned.
SEE ALSO: Feasibility study on poultry Business in Nigeria
Profit Potential in Poultry Farming Business
1. Chicken Reproduce Fast
Average healthy Layer lays egg almost everyday or at least 4 times in a week. Some Breeds can lay as much as 325 eggs in a year and take 21 days to hatch. This means that technically a Layer is capable of producing another chicken twice in three days.
So, if you have 500 healthy layers of good breeds (such as California white) they are capable of reproducing a whooping 12,000 chicks within 40 days!
2. Chicken Grows Very Fast
Within 21 days, the egg is hatched and within 28 weeks, they are ready for the market. That means a farmer may start making his money in just 34 weeks after successfully setting up his farm and whatever returns he make could be doubled in a year based on this calculation.
3. Chicken Sells at Very Good Price
A fully grown healthy chicken sells between 2,000 to 2,500 naira in Nigeria. Therefore, if you produce 12,000 chickens in your farm, you will be making N24 million by the time they are completely sold.
4. Egg market in Large too – Apart from the chicken, the egg is another money of it’s own. A crate of eggs sells for N500 – N550 for smaller eggs and N600 – N650 for bigger ones. Each crate contains 30 eggs. Therefore, if you have 500 layers that produces 12,000 pullet in a month and decides to sell all, you will be making
N200,000 to N260,000 monthly.
As you can see, the profit in poultry farming in Nigeria is mouth watering and the turn over time is fantastic. The big question now is how to get this business started?
SEE ALSO: PDF eBook on Poultry Business in Nigeria
What Your Poultry Business Plan Should Look Like
Draw out your effective business plan . Poultry business plan is like a road map leading you to where you are going in you business. It will help you know where you are at any point in time. Hence your business plan should include:
1. Decide on Type of Poultry Bird
Here you choose Chickens ( Layers and Broilers).
We choose chicken because that’s what this article focuses on. There are other types of birds that are good for livestock business too, such as
Goose , Duck , Turkey , etc.
2. Write Down your Area of Interest
You can’t just be in all aspect of poultry farming in Nigeria. You have to choose your area of interest where you would like to concentrate your business. This will ensure high level of focus and professionalism. If you can do two area, no problem. Below are some of the major Niches in Poultry Farming in Nigeria or elsewhere.
Layers Breeding which is egg production by
Layers
Broilers breeding which referrers to the chicken meat production by Broilers
Hatchery which has to do with breeding chicken for the purpose of Hatching new chicks
Poultry feed which is producing feeds for other poultry farmers
You may choose to Breed Layers and Broilers at a time or one of them. Hatchery is better done independently just like feed production. So, you choose your area of focus
3. Sort out Location
This has a direct effect to your startup cost. A location in a very remote rural area will cost far less than the one close to the urban area. Remote rural area with good road is the ideal location as you will be free from regulatory agencies and drive down the cost of labor too.
As a person new to Livestock business, you don’t want to invest all your capital into buying lands in urban area which may turn out not being used. Government policy is against setting up poultry farm near residential/urban areas for health implications.
4. Secure you Poultry Farm Starting Capital
With location in mind, you now have clearer idea of the capital required of you. Write down your detailed capital and investment requirements for your poultry farming in Nigeria venture and set out to source for it.
Like every other farming projects, the bigger you plan to start, the more investment required. You need to decide on the level of capital investment you are willing to commit into this business before starting.
SEE ALSO: How to build low cost poultry pen for Local Farmers
(a) Small scale Chicken Rearing (of about 50 birds) kept in cages at the backyard of your resident will take about N70,000 to start.
(b) A medium scale poultry farming that requires land and housing and other materials in 1 – 2 plots of Land takes about N500,000 to N5 Million to start.
(c) Large scale or Intensive poultry farming that requires high level of sophistication and more careful planning and professionalism, using advance Livestock farming techniques takes from
N10 Million.
Setting Up Your Poultry Farming In Nigeria
With your business plan is in place, the next is to proceed to setting up your farm without delay! At this point, it is my believe that you already have the money in your hands. So here are the things you need to acquire and put in place.
1. Buy Poultry Farm land
Like we said earlier, look for land in a remote location but make sure it’s not too far from the city. A place like Ijebu Ode , Remo Area , Imota in
Ikorodu. These places are perfect if you are in Lagos. Other places like towards Oshogbo after Ibadan isn’t too far too from the major city like Ibadan.
You can get Acre of land there for cheap price, cost of lands in most cases is determined by the sellers. But we may suggest price during commenting. So drop your comments below and let’s get the discussion going.
SEE ALSO: How to start a poultry farm on demand
2. Build your Poultry Pen Structure
House is very important for chicken rearing and effective keeping and management. Poultry housing are classified according to the scale and the management system. The most common types of poultry housing used for poultry farming in Nigeria are:
• Deep litter-
• Half litter and half slats –
• Battery –
• Semi-fold –
3. Buy Day Old Chick
Look for good Hatchery where you can get healthy day old chicks to start with. It costs from N140 to N200 sometimes up to N300.
4. Items you Need for Poultry Farm
Feeders, Drinkers, Perches. Nests, Crates, Lighting system, Waste disposal system, Incubator, Heaters or brooders, Egg tray, Cages and coops.
What’s Next…
You need addition resources to make your poultry business a successful one.
Join other poultry farmers who have made our
Poultry Business eBook their companion towards starting their poultry farms and managing it effectively.

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