Raising and breeding animals can become a profitable business if you approach this business wisely and with some knowledge. Of course, you need start-up capital and appropriate premises. Nowadays a variety of species are bred. What animals are profitable to breed for business? Let's look at it in this article.

Business plan: pig farming

Livestock farming can become a profitable business if the right approach is taken to develop it. Most often, farmers resort to breeding pigs. These pets gain weight well and are unpretentious when feeding. To properly start the breeding process, you need to draw up a business plan. Pig farming has a number of advantages:

• payback rate within 6 months;
• constant demand for meat;
• high ratio of meat received to feed spent.

This type of livestock farming is also used for breeding and selling piglets. The method of making a profit is more profitable, but requires more investment of effort and knowledge.

The disadvantages include a large amount of physical labor costs. You will also have to invest money to equip the premises with mechanized equipment. Therefore, answering the question of which animals are most cost-effective to keep for a business is quite simple. Having spacious premises and capital, it is better to acquire pigs. It is especially profitable to make stew or sausage yourself if there are additional branches in the production sector.

Rabbit breeding business plan

The meat of these animals belongs to the dietary category and is valued among gourmets and people who adhere to proper nutrition. This product is the first to be introduced into complementary feeding of all types of meat for babies. It is more often used by allergy sufferers, as it practically does not cause negative reactions.

Breeding rabbits has its advantages:

• high fertility;
• good profitability - obtaining meat and skins;
• low labor costs;
• small amount of feed.

These points allow even novice farmers to engage in rabbit farming. The only big disadvantage is the high percentage of morbidity in animals at an early age. It is quite simple to combat this problem - vaccination of young animals. This is the only way to protect rabbits from pestilence.

To accommodate 1,000 livestock, approximately 6 acres of land are needed. It is necessary to build cages on the site and supply water under the drinking bowls. Rabbits can be outdoors from April to October. In winter, the cells can be hidden under greenhouses. In this case, you need to take care of lighting.

For larger scales, it is advisable to build sheds to house animals in the cold season. Litter can also be used for sale as fertilizer - humus. Thus, net profit will increase by a sufficient percentage.

You can build up your customer base gradually. First, the products can be offered to relatives and friends. The customer base will then expand due to their reviews. You can also sell your products to restaurants and cafes.

Carcasses are often purchased by resellers. To sell meat, you must take care of a certificate from veterinarians about the suitability of the meat and the health of the live stock. A rabbit breeding business plan will help you calculate the amount of capital investment and monthly expenses for maintaining the farm.

Raising turkeys

Poultry breeding is very often used in this type of animal husbandry. This type of animal husbandry is also popular among small and medium-sized farmers. Turkey meat is in good demand among the population, as well as in catering establishments.

Turkeys gain weight well with proper feeding and care. They grow to quite large sizes. One bird reaches a weight of 30 kg. The meat of this bird has virtually no fat and contains a large amount of healthy proteins and amino acids.

You need to start by drawing up a business plan. It describes the main points of organizing a farm:

• acquisition or lease of land;
• choosing a bird breed for breeding;
• purchase of equipment;
• purchasing and growing feed;
• purchase of young animals;
• costs for veterinarian services;
• sales of products.

Turkeys have good egg production. This is another point of business payback. Their droppings are also used as fertilizer. These birds have good disease resistance. This argument is a huge plus for their breeding endeavors. What animals are profitable to breed for a small business? The answer is obvious - turkeys.

You can already receive your first income from this business in 4-6 months. These birds are very demanding about the purity of the water in their drinkers, so breeding turkeys requires special attention in caring for them.

Raising chickens

The meat of these birds is the most in demand on the food market. Growing chicken as a business gives excellent results. You can choose several directions for the development of this matter. Breeding broilers makes it possible to obtain good weight gain and profit from the sale of meat in a short time.

You can purchase breeds of chickens that are light in weight but have excellent egg production. Thus, profit is obtained from the sale of eggs. Most often, farmers combine two types of business and breed several breeds of birds.

For raising meat breeds of chickens, the option with broilers is perfect. You can start a business by purchasing one-day-old chicks or eggs for an incubator. For those planning a long-term business, it is advisable to use the second option. In this case, you can sell extra chickens and increase your profit.

If birds are raised for meat, then when buying chickens you can not pay attention to their gender. You just need to transport them to the farm correctly. Often, novice livestock breeders suffer large losses at this stage of breeding.

Young animals should be transported in small boxes with holes, each containing no more than 20-30 chickens. It is also necessary to take into account the outside air temperature. You cannot transport poultry during the day during hot weather.

Features of keeping broilers

Raising chickens up to 1 month requires special attention to air temperature. It should be at least 24-26 0. Then 11-12 degrees will be enough. It is necessary to avoid drafts and provide good ventilation in the premises.

To protect chickens from attacks by rats and other predators, finely broken glass is often laid out on the floor and covered with straw. Particular attention is paid to bird feed. Chickens eat according to a special diet and schedule.

Raising chicken as a business requires a special approach to preparing feed. This process uses cottage cheese, milk powder, vitamin supplements and various methods of preparing grain components. Many farmers, before starting to draw up a business plan, think about how long a broiler grows. The answer is very simple. After 2-3 months, the bird gains 2-3 kg in weight.

Breeding laying hens

To obtain the maximum number of eggs from a bird of this species, a simple approach to their cultivation is required. For this type of business, special breeds of chickens are used. They gain little weight, but are capable of laying up to 300 eggs per year.

According to experienced livestock breeders, this type of business will pay off 100% in 8-10 months. This is the answer to the question of which animals are most profitable for business. Caring for these breeds of chickens is simple and does not require large expenditures on feed and equipment. It is necessary to make a one-time investment in organizing the premises and keeping it clean with periodic small contributions for routine repairs.

Small farms cannot compete with large poultry farms, but they can get regular customers due to the naturalness of the product. This nuance is achieved by proper feeding of poultry without the use of artificial additives and by preparing feed yourself.

Rare animals: breeding nuances

Nowadays, growing exotic animals is gaining popularity among small and medium-sized farmers. In the country you can find entrepreneurs who breed small crocodiles.

These animals are often bought as gifts for executives of large companies and members of government agencies who have their own small zoos. To purchase the initial number of young animals you will need about 50 thousand dollars. This amount includes the arrangement of swimming pools for them and the purchase of food for the first time.

This direction is often used by large farms as an additional one. To save on feed, crocodiles are fed waste from processing chickens or turkeys. This type of business is quite risky, but with the right approach you can get a 300% return on investment.

Other directions

You can also find farms that grow snails and shellfish. Basically, these are small breeding operations that focus on the work of restaurants or sell products to large supermarket chains.

Po and chinchilla farms will not surprise anyone in our country. This type of business has been established for several decades. They are actively starting to grow fish for red meat throughout the country. This direction requires an initial significant investment. Breeding rare animals as a business is gaining momentum every year in all regions of the country.

Profitability of livestock farming

According to experts, the most profitable direction is considered to be breeding chickens to produce both eggs and meat. For a small home business, it is more profitable to keep pigs for sale by live weight or meat. Farmers often wonder what animals are profitable to breed for business. The answer to this question depends on the region in which the animals will be kept and the amount of starting capital.

Breeding birds does not require large investments in the construction of premises, but there will be significant costs for the purchase of young animals. Raising pigs requires labor and mechanized equipment.

Only the farmer can decide which animals are profitable to breed for business. This will depend on the area of ​​land and premises and the ability to grow food yourself.

• What is better meat or eggs?
• Regulatory framework
• Selecting a room
• How to feed poultry correctly
  • • • Similar business ideas:

Poultry meat is dietary. It is widely used in cooking, preparing the most incredible dishes. In addition, eggs are one of the main products on the consumer’s table. That is why raising birds is doubly profitable.

Prospects for the direction, cheap grain opens the way

Recently, after a decrease in poultry imports, the demand for this product is growing rapidly. The ecological option of growing is more profitable because it opens up the possibility of supplying meat to restaurants, where its sale will bring more profit. This activity can be organized only if the rules for keeping birds are observed: the presence of spacious enclosures - grazing, organic feeding, creation of living conditions and increased cleanliness. If there are no special problems with the feed, in cooperation with farmers or direct wholesale purchases, then there will be difficulties with sales and cultivation at first.

The market price of grain is 10,400 rubles per ton, and you can negotiate with wholesalers to reduce it when purchasing from 10 tons. 1 kg of chicken meat alone for restaurants costs 360 rubles, while a goose starts at 500! If we consider the wholesale price for instant sales of 250 and 350 rubles, the profitability will be at least 25% in excess of the return on investment.

If we consider quails or “wild” ducks, sales income can be increased by at least 50%

Modern methods of cultivation significantly simplify work, minimizing physical costs. Anyone can organize an eco-farm; all you need to do is study the technology of keeping poultry.

Which bird is more profitable, chicken, duck, goose or quail?

At the initial stage of project implementation, it is necessary to decide on the direction of the business, namely, what kind of poultry will be raised. It is worth considering that for keeping ducks and geese more space is needed. Raising chickens, as a rule, can be organized anywhere; having a plot of land does not require a large area to build enclosures. Ecologically clean birds are individuals living on a special plot of land. Another great option is to raise quails with chickens, how is that?

Quail cages can feed an entire flock of chickens, simply because these birds scatter 30% of the feed.

It is best to start raising poultry with chickens. This is the most versatile option that guarantees profit, since it is the most popular option for the middle price segment. Simultaneously with the launch of the chicken house, or better yet, before its construction, you need to start gaining a client base. To do this, you need to create a high-quality website on which to present the technology for producing meat and eggs.

A preliminary supply agreement allows you to obtain guaranteed financing at a reduced price for the customer. Offer these conditions to the client for whom the raising of chickens will be organized.

Having made a profit, you can gradually expand your business in several directions. For example, start selling chicks, young animals, add ducks, geese, and “game” to your assortment. The main thing is to look at the market opportunities and decide what can be offered to customers.

What is better meat or eggs?

When creating a poultry farm, some entrepreneurs give preference to one source of income, raising birds “for meat” or for the purpose of obtaining eggs. Sometimes it is worth combining directions. Sale of eggs and carcasses helps increase income several times. At the same time, you can sell eggs to private buyers, which will increase profits.

It is worth remembering that when selecting a queen cell, it is necessary to choose the right breed. For example, the Leghorn breed of egg-laying chickens is distinguished by its rapid growth and productivity. A young hen can produce more than 200 eggs per year. Meat “Brahma” or “Cornish” is distinguished by its significant weight. The average size of an adult varies around 4-5 kg.

How much can you earn from raising poultry?

The profitable part of the business depends on the focus of the project, but in any case, the maximum profitability indicators are 60%. With proper organization of content and established sales, the profitability of activities can be more than 100%.

The main income of the poultry farm comes from the sale of meat. Wholesale price is:

• 1 kg of chicken for sale through stores costs about 100 rubles,
• duck meat - 190 rub.,
• goose - 250 rub.,
• a dozen eggs - 32 rubles.

And this is the price for consumer wholesale; restaurants are willing to pay much more for “ripened meat”, provided that the quality is improved.

When calculating the profitability of a project, you should be guided by the following indicators:

• Laying hens produce more than 250 eggs per year in the first year, then their productivity begins to decline;
• An adult weighs up to 2 kg, chickens of meat breeds - 4-5 kg;
• A duck weighs up to 2.5-3 kg, is capable of producing more than 150 eggs per year, from which future young animals can be raised;
• A goose weighs more than 5 kg, is capable of producing up to 60 eggs per season, and 600-700 g of fluff.

You can increase your profit by organizing the production of environmentally friendly fertilizer for agricultural crops and indoor plants.

Moreover, in addition to the main product, the bird also produces fluff and droppings. The minimum price of down is 250 rubles per 1 kg. The droppings can be sold as fertilizer; 1 liter costs 30 rubles.

How much money do you need to start a business?

The main cost items when organizing an eco-factory are:

• Purchase of young animals: chickens - from 45 rubles. per piece, goslings - 150 rubles, ducks - 55 rubles. young chickens - from 150 rubles/piece, geese - from 350 rubles/piece, ducks - 120 rubles/piece.
• Rent of land, construction of enclosures, sheds - 200 thousand rubles;
• Purchase of grain feed - 50 thousand rubles,
• Creation of a cutting shop, purchase of refrigerators - 150 thousand rubles.

The business plan should also include the costs of registering activities, obtaining permits, advertising and sales organization. In total, about 500 thousand rubles will be required to open an eco-friendly poultry farm.

Step-by-step plan for opening an eco-poultry farm, only the main thing

To organize poultry breeding you will need:

Regulatory framework

After drawing up a business plan - a document that outlines all expenses and expected profits, possible risks and methods for eliminating them, it is necessary to begin solving organizational issues, namely registering activities. An eco-poultry farm can be registered either as a legal entity or as a farm. To legalize a business, a stationary package of documents is provided to the tax office.

Do you need permission to open an eco-friendly poultry farm?

Sales of poultry meat and eggs are not possible without obtaining veterinary certificates (obtained for each batch of goods) and a certificate of product compliance with standards. It is also necessary to obtain a sanitary permit. To receive it, you must provide the SES with:

• A photocopy of registration documents received from the tax service;
• Documents for premises, plot of land;
• Technological map of production;
• List of equipment used;
• Documentation for the organization of the ventilation system;
• Garbage removal agreement.

Which OKVED code should I indicate for an eco-farm?

When registering a business, indicate the OKVED code 01.47. In accordance with the updated all-Russian classifier, the following codes are prescribed:

• 47.11 - breeding poultry for meat;
• 47.2 - breeding poultry for the purpose of obtaining eggs;
• 47.12 - raising brood birds.

Which taxation system to choose for registering activities

Taxes are paid in accordance with the chosen organizational form. WHEN opening a CFL, it is advisable to use the Unified Agricultural Tax at a rate of 6% of the profit received. Important: 70% of the income should be profit received from the main activity.

When opening an LLC, the simplified tax system is applied at a rate of 6% or 15%.

Technology for organizing an eco-poultry farm

Technology opening a poultry farm is to provide the most approximate conditions for keeping birds. That is why the implementation of the project will require the creation of spacious enclosures. Also, special attention is paid to the feed base, which should consist of natural products.

Purchasing queen cell, what breeds of chickens, ducks, geese to choose

Before purchasing a queen cell, you should decide for what purpose the bird is needed. Chickens are considered the most popular. Keeping geese and ducks requires larger areas and more varied feeding. Last time Quails have gained popularity, which are raised both for meat and for the purpose of producing eggs.

Exist:

• Meat breeds of chickens - White Plymouthrock, Dorking, Brahma;
• Egg species of birds - Russian Whites, Leghorn;
• Meat and egg - Sussex, Livenskie, Poltava.

Among the duck breeds that have gained popularity are Peking, Gray, Black White-breasted; geese - Kuban, Arzamas, Ekzemskaya.

For a poultry farm, it is best to buy young individuals, whose age is determined by the condition of the feathers.

Choosing equipment for creating a poultry farm

As equipment, the entrepreneur must purchase feeders and drinking bowls. In addition, barns must be equipped with a ventilation system, lighting, and tapes for removing droppings and collecting testicles. It is better to buy everything you need in bulk in specialized online stores.

Organizing poultry farming at home is not so difficult, the main thing is to properly equip the premises for the birds and take care of a complete diet.

Let's start with the premises:

For full development and good egg production, chickens should be provided with proper nutrition:

• Cereals. The grain contains small amounts of protein and should be mixed with protein feed. In the summer, it is recommended to feed oats, millet, and barley - they improve egg production. In winter, for gaining weight and saving energy - wheat, corn and buckwheat. Cake and meal, beans are a good protein supplement.
• Green food. Contains many vitamins and minerals. It is recommended to give no more than 20% of greens per day, since most of the birds are eaten on the range. When kept without walking, dill, clover, young peas, and alfalfa are introduced into the diet. Nettle is considered the most valuable.
• Roots. It is recommended to add carrots and beets, pumpkin and turnips, and potatoes to the diet. Vegetable crops are boiled and added to wet mash. You can also put table scraps in them.
• Animal feed. Dairy products are given to chickens for full development. Good additives include earthworms, crushed bones, fish and meat and bone meal.

ATTENTION! Chickens must be given mineral supplements: ash, gravel, chalk, shell rock.

DIY bird cage

You can build a cage for chickens at home as follows:

1. We make a frame. Mostly a metal corner is used, but wood is also suitable.
2. For construction you will need vertical posts - 4 pieces, long crossbars - 6 pieces, short crossbars - 6 pieces.
3. The crossbars are connected to each other - the frame is ready. For stability, you can add a couple of vertical posts in the middle.
4. The height of the compartment is approximately 60 centimeters, width – 2 meters, depth – about 65 centimeters.
5. The bottom is made of durable mesh, and a slight slope is made so that the eggs roll into the egg collector.
6. The roof and back wall are made of plywood.
7. The side walls are installed on hinges, bolts are added - the door is ready.
8. Feeders and drinkers are attached outside.

Laying hens

The size of the cage directly depends on the size of the chicken. To make living comfortable, there should be approximately 0.2 square meters per hen. m, stocking density – 5-6 heads.

When kept in cages, laying hens will need artificial lighting for good egg production. It should be distributed evenly throughout the cage room. Very bright light is prohibited so that the bird does not become stressed. Initially, the photoperiod lasts 13 hours, then it can be extended to 17 hours. The increase is made gradually.

Diet of laying hens when kept in cages:

• wheat;
• sunflower cake;
• calcium carbonate;
• vegetable fats;
• vitamins and minerals, salt.

Broilers

The planting density of a broiler in a cage should be 1 square meter. m for 10 heads.
For such care, it is better to give preference to cellular batteries.

Basically, broilers are raised for meat.
Pursuing this goal, the light regime lasts around the clock for 3 weeks. By the end of cultivation it can be reduced to 17 hours.

Diet of cage-fed broilers:

• crushed and whole grains;
• cellulose;
• fats;
• calcium;
• vitamin complex.

Grain should make up approximately 65% ​​of the total feed. To gain weight, birds are given free access to feeders around the clock.

IMPORTANT! When keeping both laying hens and broilers in cages, cleaning is carried out every 2-3 days, feeders and drinkers are washed daily.

Chicken coop

When building a chicken coop, you should follow certain rules:

• place the room on a hill so that it remains dry and warm;
• choose a quiet, calm area; in a noisy environment, the productivity of laying hens decreases;
• there should be no road nearby;
• no closer than 3 meters from a residential building.

A vestibule is required in a chicken coop. In winter, the amount of cold the farmer lets in will be much less.

The poultry house is built with a capacity of 1 sq. m – 4 egg-laying chickens or 3 meat-laying chickens. For example, a chicken coop for 50 birds should have an average size of 15 square meters. m. Nests are built near a wall 6 meters long.

For construction, you can use foam blocks, brick, wood, and shell rock. The chicken coop is equipped with nests, perches, drinking bowls and feeders, a container for ash, ventilation, lighting, and heaters. It is recommended to insulate the building itself so that the chickens feel comfortable in winter.

Disinfection

It will not be possible to raise productive and healthy livestock without following sanitary rules in the chicken coop. Carry out cleaning and disinfection as follows:

1. They sweep ceilings, walls, and clean perches.
2. Change the floor mat.
3. If the content is cellular, the metal surface is burned with a blowtorch.
4. Surfaces made of stone and concrete are treated with lime (copper sulfate can be added to it to prevent the development of fungal infections).
5. The entire chicken coop is sprayed with a disinfectant solution, according to the instructions.
6. The room is ventilated.
7. Drinkers and feeders are washed.

Ventilation

Special attention should be paid to ventilation. Bird droppings contain harmful ammonia fumes, so access to fresh air is vital for birds.

Ventilation can be done in several ways:

• Install a window, but under no circumstances should you create a draft. The optimal place for a window is under the door.
• A couple of holes are made on the roof, one with a large pipe in it, the other with a smaller one. This option is more suitable for the winter period.
• Installation of ventilation system. This method is more common on poultry farms.

Walk

To properly organize walking, you must adhere to the following recommendations:

1. When keeping chickens in a chicken coop, walking is organized. Usually the enclosure is built on the south side.
2. To do this, the area is fenced with a net (for example, chain-link).
3. For laying hens the height is 2 meters, for meat breeds 1.8 meters is sufficient.
4. In the walking yard there are drinkers and feeders, and a container with fine gravel.

ATTENTION! In the fresh air, food quickly deteriorates, especially wet mash. Feeders should be washed immediately after the chickens have had their fill.

The productivity of chickens in the fresh air increases, they lay eggs more often, and the meat is of high quality.

Walking can also be free. Chickens go out for a walk whenever they want and also come back. This method allows the farmer to save on feed, but the garden will be at risk.

Brooders for raising chickens

Chicks that are born are quite sensitive to the environment. Temperature fluctuations, changes in humidity, low lighting, and drafts are unacceptable for them. A brooder will help solve all these problems. Design Features:

1. Small dimensions, length – meter, width and height – 0.5 meters.
2. Made from dense material to provide thermal insulation. Shouldn't get wet.
3. A removable pallet is added to the structure, which is filled with a layer of sand. This will make it easier to change the layer contaminated with droppings.
4. Feeders and drinkers are equipped in such a way that chickens cannot turn them over or trample inside.
5. 40 or 60 W incandescent lamps are installed.
6. The temperature is maintained at about 20-26°C.

With a brooder size of 100x50x50, the population can be up to 60 chicks.

Litter processing

With proper maintenance and proper feeding, chicken droppings are rich in microelements. A large amount of it is a poisonous suspension. Processing chicken manure is an important task that needs the right solution.

The best option is to make compost. To do this, the droppings are mixed with various plant wastes (residues of vegetables and fruits, leaves, weeds), straw, sawdust, peat, shavings. Fresh plants cannot be used for compost.

REFERENCE! Peat is used only if the compost will mature for a year and will have time to decompose.

When a new wildlife lover masters a garden, he will think about obtaining animal products. Breeding chickens at home for beginners is the first experience in commercial production of meat and eggs. Chickens are the most tolerant of lack of care, almost omnivorous and friendly. This is an almost waste-free production - droppings, eggs, meat, feathers - everything goes into production.

First of all, it is necessary to determine whether the poultry flock will be kept seasonal or year-round. For summer time, a light shelter and a walking area are enough. In winter you will need a warm shed. In the summer, in order to eat eggs, you need to buy pullets. For beginners, raising chickens at home year-round determines the quality of the chickens. It is better to buy a batch of day-old chicks at a poultry farm with a guarantee that the livestock will be purebred and zoned.

If kept on the floor, the room should have an area of ​​5 chickens per 1 square meter. The temperature should not be lower than 5-7 degrees. The room should be warm, bright, dry, egg production depends on this. At night, regardless of the season, chickens should be kept indoors, equipped with perches. On the roost, each chicken is given 20 cm and they should all be placed at the same level.

When kept in cages, the bird develops faster, lays eggs and gains weight. 5-7 individuals are placed in one cage. A rooster is needed in the herd if fertilized eggs are needed in the future to hatch chicks. In country life, a rooster is needed for beauty and a vibrant announcement of a new day.

A walking area for chickens is necessary; they should be in the fresh air. A canopy is needed so that the herd can shelter from the rain.

For beginners raising chickens at home, it is important to decide on the number and place of residence of the birds.

What breeds of chickens are suitable for home breeding?

Not all chicken breeds are suitable for backyard farming. Therefore, you need to choose chickens for home breeding taking into account the specifics of keeping, simple or purebred. Simple ones are less demanding in terms of food balance and living conditions. There are meat or egg breeds. Thus, meat broilers can be raised within a season for full slaughter with a carcass weight of 3-4 kg. They lay abundantly, but during the molting period they can be killed, the soup will be rich. For personal backyards, it is recommended to breed chickens of egg breeds:

• Russians are white;
• Red Whitetails;
• Leghorns

We bought day-old chicks, what next?

You need to take a large warm box. Day-old chicks will tap their nose on the wall, if it is cardboard or foam, prick themselves and die. Cover the bottom with newspapers and place a drinking bowl and feeder on them. Place an incandescent lamp on a tripod on top, adjusting the height so that it is 30 C on the floor. The brood is placed at the bottom of the box and illuminated on the first day, even at night; later daylight hours are reduced from 17 hours to 8 hours.

Food and drink should always be available. Remove the newspaper with litter 2 times a day. If the chickens do a “heap and a lot”, they are cold, and the lower ones can be crushed. If you are spread out away from the light, it’s hot. From the fifth day, the temperature is reduced to 26 degrees and every week by another 3 degrees, so up to 18. The chickens are transferred from the box to the litter, gradually increasing the area.

By 4 months, chicks are slightly smaller in size than an adult chicken, and at 5 months they begin to lay eggs.

While the chickens were growing up in a cramped but warm room for the first two months, they were built. A chicken house can become a decoration for your estate. The main thing is that it should be without cracks so that there is no draft. The floor is covered with a thick layer of sawdust or straw.

Feeders with three compartments are arranged:

• dry food;
• mineral supplements;
• mash.

The feeder should be separated by rod bars so that the bird can peck and not trample the food. A drinking bowl is installed separately. It is necessary to arrange an ash-sand bath in an old trough. By the time the hens mature, nests should be prepared - deep boxes lined with dry grass with a depression. Install them in a secluded place for a nest of 3 hens.

For summer maintenance, the house can be built from plywood with a walking area fenced with a chain-link mesh. For winter, you need an insulated, ventilated, heated room with electric lighting and a walking area. With good care, chickens lay eggs in winter as in summer.

Chicken diet

Any rural woman will tell you how to raise chickens at home. But one neighbor sells her excess eggs all year round, and the other scolds her lazy people. To recoup the cost of maintaining a livestock, good care and balance are required from birth.

Chickens need twice as much water as feed. Therefore, there must be fresh water in the drinking bowl. For the first time, day-old infants need to be given a 5% glucose solution.

The food is poured onto pieces of cardboard until seven days of age, then feeders are installed, preferably hanging ones. The first feeding of the chicks consists of:

• fine crushed grains;
• hard-boiled egg;
• dry low-fat cottage cheese.

Later, eggs are no longer given; cottage cheese contains calcium and promotes feathering. From the second day, the addition of finely chopped greens to the food is encouraged. In winter, when there is no clover, you can germinate cereals and add greens to the feed.

From day 3, the mash can be prepared using yogurt or meat broth. They feed only fresh mash, after an hour the remains are thrown away, the feeder is washed and rinsed with potassium permanganate. A weak pinkish solution of potassium permanganate should be given to chickens in the morning twice a week. Five-day-old ones are already viable. They gradually increase the amount of food, add vitamins, fish oil, and from the first day they need fine gravel, eggshells, and coarse sand. Until two months of age, only crushed cereals are used from cereals.

for an adult chicken it is necessary in the composition:

• corn – 40%;
• wheat bran – 8%;
• barley flour – 20%;
• sunflower cake – 10%;
• fish meal, meat and bone meal 1:1 – 10%;
• feed yeast – 3%;
• mineral supplements, table salt – 5%.

This mixture in pure form and as a mash is given 2-3 times a day. For good stomach function, chickens must be fed dry grain; it is better if there are fewer films on oats and rye.

Homemade eggs always taste different from factory eggs due to the variety of food available. The presence of carotene contributes an orange color, this is due to the large amount of vitamin greens in the diet of laying hens.

You cannot overfeed a laying hen; it will be difficult for her to lay eggs and her insides will become fat. Instead of shelling, the eggs will begin to become covered with a thin film and spill out, contaminating the nest. This circumstance will allow the birds to learn the taste of the product, and pecking will begin in the future.

The laying hen needs to be fed:

• mash – 65-75 g;
• dry grain mixture – 30-45 g;
• sprouted cereals – 10-12 g;
• root vegetables – 20-25 g;
• fish oil, yeast, gravel, shell 1-2 g.

You can add table scraps to the food to diversify the menu. The more ingredients in the food, the tastier the egg. The menu depends on the season. However, if you visit the base, the chickens can feed on vitamins all year round - often wilted greens and fruits are thrown into waste containers. Chickens especially like mangoes and oranges.

The golden age of a laying hen is up to 15 months, later she lays eggs less often and the meat becomes coarser. By this time, a new brood of chickens will be ready - this is how backyard chickens are raised. Usually the first eggs are laid by pullets at the age of 110-120 days.

Signs of disease

It is necessary to warn that for beginners raising chickens at home, know the main signs. Despite good hygienic conditions, the disease can be spread by pigeons, food-stealers, and rodents. Sick birds are immediately visible. They are lethargic, do not go to the feeder, do not stand up, and have convulsions. A sick bird should be immediately separated from the flock.

A sign of vitamin deficiency is lethargy and lack of appetite. Feed her with greens, irradiate her with ultraviolet lamps, give her fish oil and everything will work out. It's scarier to deal with chicken cannibalism. If a wound appears on the body of a bird, it will attract the attention of its companions. Therefore, the light in the chicken coop should not be bright; a muted and reddish color hides fresh wounds.

You need to be on your guard, expect pecking and understand the causes of this disease:

• chickens peck their fingers into the blood - they are hungry:
• they peck at the head - a hierarchy is being established;
• pecking of the cloaca - when it is inflamed from improper feeding;
• when the cloaca is inflamed and falls out from carrying very large eggs;
• pluck feathers - there are few minerals in the food;
• the presence of insects - feather eaters, lice, ticks.

Video about raising chickens at home

Today, due to the availability of feed, minimal maintenance costs and the use of incubators for rapid maturation, poultry breeding is a promising branch of livestock farming. For this reason, many owners of private plots give preference to poultry farming as a business that is quite profitable and easy to organize, as well as profitable in terms of selling products. Even if you have a small plot, you can organize a poultry farm that can generate significant income.

For poultry farming, it is traditional to raise chickens at home. These birds are unpretentious in food. They do not require the construction of special premises, but the arrangement of a poultry house, in which the poultry population will be kept during the cold season, will have to be done at the first stage of organizing a “chicken” business. In the question: “Which chickens are best to breed?” you should focus on the market needs in your region. It depends on what breed of chickens it will be profitable to raise - meat, egg-laying or meat-egg.

In poultry farming, the second most popular breeding is the raising of geese and ducks. This is explained by its easy maintenance, especially in the summer, since this type of poultry can easily get by on pasture in the form of various grains. The main condition for its breeding is the presence of nearby bodies of water and places for grazing. A significant bonus is the speed with which these birds gain weight.

The dietary properties of turkey meat are known to everyone and it is very similar to chicken. Turkeys and guinea fowl are raised for their tasty, high-quality meat and eggs. And although they are not as productive as chickens, their breeding is compensated by high demand. It’s not for nothing that the guinea fowl is called the royal bird for its taste.

The ability of quail eggs to increase immunity and remove radionuclides from the human body makes them a valuable and indispensable product in the daily diet. Thanks to the demand for quail products and the high precocity of these small birds, all costs for breeding quails pay off very quickly.

Dishes made from pheasants and pigeons are considered elite cuisine, so raising these birds is of great interest to many amateur poultry farmers who are sensitive to modern trends in the consumer market.

Whatever the choice of poultry for breeding, an important point in its rearing is the correct organization of all technological processes. In this case, it is impossible to do without poultry farming equipment. Depending on the scale of your poultry farm, you will need various feeders, drinkers, incubators, devices for heating chicks and cleaning the premises.