anything that may bring unwanted pathogens to the farm or flock. Any equipment coming into the poultry house needs to be clean: between flaps we want to make sure we have a good sanitation programme in place. • Litter moisture: This is a major aspect of cage-free produc- tion. It’s important to keep the litter moisture low to keep parasites, pathogens and unwanted bacteria under control.
Optimum environment and management There are a multitude of factors that can lead to a pathogenic infection in poultry. Disease situations can be influenced by how birds are managed. That is why it is important to provide an optimum bird environment with good flock management practices. The acronym ‘FLAWS’ has commonly served as a reminder to check Feed, Light, Air, Water and Space. • Feeding: This is not only about nutrition but also how birds are fed, if they’re being fed enough or too little. • Lighting: This can affect the birds’ production and perfor- mance. Make sure the appropriate programme and lighting levels are being used. • Air: Consistency of air quality needs to be maintained. This means ensuring it’s not too hot or too cold, and that there’s no ammonia in the house. These factors can lead to respirato- ry issues. Also keep in mind humidity, as this can affect litter moisture and pathogens. • Water: As discussed above, the need for water sanitation and the availability of clean and fresh drinking water are both critical. • Space: Birds need an appropriate amount of floor space. In cage-free flocks there may be migration issues of birds
moving to the front of the house where they end up crowded and with little space. This disrupts their normal behavioural patterns. To ensure everything in FLAWS is properly implemented, a farm needs to hire well-trained flock managers. There are a lot of resources available to a producer to help maintain the health and wellbeing of birds, such as primary breeders, nu- trition consultants and vaccine companies. All of them can contribute to a good poultry management programme. One last thing to bear in mind with regard to management is beak trimming. If the beak isn’t trimmed properly, there will be a lot more feather pecking which leads to feather loss. Feather loss is a hugely detrimental to health. If the birds stay well-feathered, they remain healthier. It’s a major issue in old- er flocks because they can get skin scratches which can lead to bacterial infections, such as erysipelas, clostridial dermati- tis or colibacillosis. This is also why there is high, late-cycle mortality and we attempt to treat these flocks using non-an- tibiotic treatments or by re-vaccinating with live E. coli vaccine to control colibacillosis.
Moving forward Looking to the future, we’re going to be seeing less and less use of antibiotics. That’s why the above factors are becoming more important in modern poultry rearing and management. Achieving good gut health is a primary goal in ensuring the health and wellbeing of poultry and, together with a professional nutrition programme, proper resources and optimum management, we can help these birds achieve their maximum potential.
A recent survey revealed that 43% of con- sumers “always” or “often” buy poultry and eggs from birds raised without antibiotics.
▶ POULTRY WORLD | No. 5/6, 2021 27
PHOTO: HANS BANUS
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