CIRCULAR 394-MAY 1962 Cooperative Extension Work in Agriculture and Home Economics College of Tropical Agriculture, University of Hawaii, Honolulu 14, Hawaii United States Department of Agriculture Cooperating Y. Baron Goto, Director, Hawaii Cooperative Extension Service Distributed in Furtherance of the Acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, 1914
POULTRY DOUSES IN HAWAII SILAS L. McHENRY State Specialist in Poultry Science GOOD HOUSING PAYS THE cost of housing and equipment for poultry production in Hawaii is relatively small compared with the cost of feed, chicks, and other items. Roughly, housing and equipment costs 1 or 2 cents per dozen eggs or pound of meat. The moderate climate of this state makes insulation and tight walls generally unnecessary. For these reasons, it pays to build the type of house and buy the kind of equipment that will provide maximum bird comfort for maximum egg production or weight gains, and permit the most efficient use of labor. When selecting the type of housing and equipment to use, then, labor efficiency, initial investment per bird, and production costs per dozen eggs or pound of meat are the most important factors to consider. A few more eggs per hen, a little faster weight gains in broilers, or better feed conversion will pay for a better house. Improved labor efficiency saves the wages of employees or permits increased volume and income. Well constructed houses will last longer, so that annual cost for depreciation may be less than for cheaply constructed buildings. 1
Fig. 1. Saw-tooth roof construction. TYPE OF HOUSE SEVERAL STYLES of poultry houses have been built in Hawaii. Although the climate is moderate, some protection from the weather is necessary. Since the amount of wind and rain varies in different areas of the state, some modifications in each type of housing must be made. The year-round warm climate plus high humidity in many sections of Hawaii has made parasite control and litter management difficult. For that reason, wire floors have been used on most poultry farms, particularly for laying hens. In areas of low rainfall, there is some question regarding the need for wire floors, especially since the new drugs for disease and parasite control have become available. New broiler houses in Hawaii are being built with concrete, wood, or earth floors. Some new flock replacement houses and laying houses are being built with part litter and part wire floors. Since lumber and other building materials must be shipped across the ocean, construction costs in Hawaii are higher than in many other parts of the country. Therefore, poultry houses need to be designed to use a minimum amount of building materials per bird housed, consistent with good construction practices. The high cost and scarcity of land necessitate careful planning of the farm layout to conserve space. A house size for a minimum of 3,000 layers or 10,000 broilers is advisable to keep construction costs low, increase labor efficiency, and use the least amount of land area. A flock of 5,000 laying hens (plus flock replacements and egg processing) or 30,000 broilers is now considered the minimum size for a one-family enterprise. Saw-tooth roof houses (Figure I) have a series of straight roofs, staggered to give light and ventilation. This type of house allows more efficient use of land, requires less labor in caring for the birds, ancl keeps the house drier. One disadvantage of having all the hens under one saw-tooth roof is the greater possibility of spreading dis.:ase from old birds to pullets starting production. As in conventional type houses, manure removal may be difficult if no mechanical means is employed. 2
Fig. 2. Two-foot spacing between rows permits access to water troughs. Fig. 3. Concrete aisle between rows is convenient for feeding. SIZES OF CAGES THREE TYPES of cages or pens for laying hens are used in Hawaii. These types are.grouped according to size: I. Small cages. These are 16 to 20 inches deep and 8 to 24 inches wide. They house I to 6 Leghorn pullets per cage. With larger birds, more room is usually a llowed-one less bird or one size larger cage. Small cages have the following advantages: better disease control, easier culling, and lower mortality. Disadva ntages are: higher construction cost, greater land area requirement, and higher labor cost. 2. Medium-sized (colony) cages. These are 2 or 3 feet deep and 4 to 6 feet long, with sloping floor for eggs to roll out and 0.6 to 1.0 square foot of floor space per bird. One popular size is 3 x 5 feet, housing 20 Leghorn pullets (Figures 3, 4, and 5). The colony cage with automatic feeder has the advantage of more birds per square foot of floor space under roof and per acre of Janel (because of less aisle space), plus less labor needed. Its disadvantages are: higher mortality, more difficulty in handling the birds, and more cracked eggs. 3
Fig. 4. Movable shade boards. 3. Large wire-floored pens. These are 6 to 8 feet deep and 10 to 40 feet long, usually with level floors and separate roll-away nests. About 0.8 to 1.0 square foot of floor space is provided per bird. Advantages are: lower construction cost and less land area. Disadvantages are the same as for colony cages plus floor eggs. Wire floors are generally built 3 feet above ground level. This is a convenient height for feeding, egg collection, and other chores. It is a fairly convenient height for cleaning out manure also. One popular type of wire-floored house in Hawaii is 24 x 250 feet in size, with a capacity of 4,000 layers at 0.8 square foot of floor space per bird. House capacity has been increased on some farms by adding a second row of automatic feeders at a higher level. Pens are 8 x 40 feet in size, on both sides of Fig. 5. Roll-out nests along a center aisle. 4
Fig. 6. Removable windbreaks hung on roof. an 8-foot aisle. Nests are located in the center aisle with entrance from the pens (Figure 5). A concrete walk down the center of the aisle has lips to guide an electric cart. Where this type of house is located on the windward side of the island, 6-inch wood slats spaced % inch apan have been used for the walls. This provides shade and sufficient ventilation without drafts. Houses located in a warmer, drier region have 3-inch wood slats spaced 1 inch apart on the outside walls and I-inch wire on the inside walls. Shade and wi ndbreaks can also be provided by removable sections of slat walls (Figures 6 and 7), or by boards tha t can be turned at different angles to deflect the sun or wind (Figure 4). They may also be constructed as a separate wall away from the poultry house a sufficient distance to permit a truck to drive alongside the house for manure removal. Fig. 7. Close-up view of removable windbreaks. 5
Fig. 8. Narrow house with concrete whee/track for feed or egg carts. LITTER FLOORS A FEW LAYING houses in Hawaii have concrete or wood floors covered with wood shavings or dried sugar cane litter. Nearly afl of these are located in arid or semi-arid regions. Some houses have combination wire and wood floors. One farm has poultry houses with automatic feeders, waterers, and multiple roosts located over a pit containing a mechanical manure cleaner which removes all droppings from it frequently. Fans, wide doors at the ends, and adjustable windbreaks on both sides of the building insure good environmental conditions for the birds. The houses have concrete floors and a capacity for 5,000 birds. The advantage of this type of house is that a large number of birds can be cared for with a minimum amount of work and still provide maximum comfort for them. Initial investment cost per bird is higher than for the colony cages being built in Hawaii. Other disadvantages include: difficulty in culling, greater risk of parasites and co :cidiosis, and operating at less than l maximum capacity because young birds should not be placed in the same J.. pen as the older birds. 1 One type of laying house has a 6-foot wire floor on each side of a 12-foot wood floor section. There is a water trough along each outside wall, an automatic feeder clown the center of each wire floor section, and community nests through the center of the litter area. From 1-yg to 2 square feet of floor space is allowed per hen. Better results have been obtained with 2 square feet per bird. A similar type of house has a 20-foot-wide wood floor plus a JO-foot-wide wire-floor sun porch. Most of the reeders and water troughs are located over the wire floor. 6
AUTOMATION MECHANICAL equipment will usually pay for itself through savings in wages or increased size of flock. 'When building new poultry houses, provision should be made for installing labor-saving equipment even if limited capital prohibits buying the equipment when the houses are being built. Automation in the H awaiian poultry industry includes bulk feed bins (Figure '9) and augers; automatic feeders or motorized feed carts; egg conveyor belts or battery-powered egg carts; mechanical manure-cleaning equipment; automatic water systems with solenoid valves and medication facilities; electric time clocks for regulating electric lights and automatic feeders; mechanical egg graders and cleaners. A bulk feed bin with a uger will save considerable labor, particularly if combined with an automatic feeder or powered feed cart (Figure I 0). To use a powered feed cart, a concrete walk is needed between the bulk feed bin and the poultry houses, and also inside the houses between the rows of cages. v\then building new concrete walks, a center groove can be made to guide the center front wheel of a cart. A concrete lip on each side of the concrete walk, just enough distance apart for wheels of the cart, may be constructed to hold the rear wheels of the cart in Fig. 9'. Bulk feed bins. Fig. 10. Electric feed cart.
place and leave both hands free for feeding. A metal funnel with rollers to roll along on top of the feeder troughs will also save labor, since it automatically levels the feed at the desired height as it rolls along, and permits the use of a larger scoop. In a litter-floor house, a carrier suspended from the ceiling is more convenient. Electric time clocks can be used to turn the automatic feeder and electric lights on and off. A solenoid value connected to a time clock can be used to turn the water on and off automatically. This is particularly helpful at night if continuous-flow water troughs are used. Automatic feeders can be placed between the backs of narrow-width cages to serve both rows, or down the center of larger pens. Feed can be augered from a bulk feed bin directly into the automatic feeder, thus eliminating all feed handling. Mechanical egg collecting saves labor also, but it presents additional problems of egg breakage and initial investment cost. For birds in cages, the automatic feeder and egg conveyor belts should be on opposite sides to reduce egg breakage. Either one can be placed between the backs of cages to serve both rows, while the other can be placed on the outside of the cages. If placed on the outside of the cages, the feeder or conveyor will require approximately twice the length of trough or l;>elt per 1,000 hens as would be required with one row between the backs of 2 rows of cages. For egg processing, an egg washer or egg cleaner may be used. One of these can be connected to a mechanical grader that will complete the egg handling operation automatically. Rolling carts, a slanting-top bench for filling cases of eggs, shelves in the work area for empty cases, shelves in the storage room for full cases, and other labor-saving features can be used advantageously. An efficient arrangement of equipment will save a lot of time and effort. 8
Fig. 11. Wire-fioor pens for raising laying fiock replacements. HOUSING FOR FLOCK REPLACEMENT PROPER CARE in raising pullets is even more important than good management for the layers. Healthy pullets at laying age will be able to lay at a high rate of production throughout the year. Labor costs in taking care of chicks and growing pullets for laying flock replacements are quite high, particularly where chicks are purchased monthly or often er. On some poultry farms, the growing birds live in three different places before they are placed in the laying cages. Chicks can be ra ised in one place with litter-floor brooding, or a combination of it and a wire floor. The 1 x l inch welded wire floor can be covered with felt building paper and litter until the chicks are 4 to 6 weeks of age. Then the building paper can be removed gradually, letting the litter fall through the wire. If desired, sections of y 2 -inch square wire can be laid over the I x I inch wire floor for the first few weeks of age, instead of the paper and litter. 9
Another satisfactory arrangement is separate starting and growing houses. The starter house can have either a Y2-inch square wire floor or a litter floor. A long house with a row of wire-floored pens on each side of a central aisle will enable the producer to take care of different ages of chicks conveniently (Figure 11). Heat for the chicks can be provided with hot-water pipes, infra-red bulbs, butane gas brooder stoves, or electric heating units. Some Hawaii poultrymen have a wood floor in the center part of the house, with a wire floor on each side. To prevent loss of litter, the wood floor is built a few inches lower than the wire floor. Chicks are brooded in the middle section, V-type water troughs are placed on each outside wall, and a mechanical feeder is placed in the center of each wire area. 10 BROILERS BROILER PRODUCTION is expanding rapidly in Hawaii. Integrated operators, contract growers and processors are replacing the individual producer who dressed and marketed his own birds from small flocks started every week or two. Increased volume has caused changes in types of housing and methods of management. Wider houses, larger pens, and litter-floor brooding are being used instead of small wire-floored pens. An "all in, all out" system of growing broilers is recommended for each producer. Considering climate and construction costs as well as bird ~omfort and labor efficiency, a 40-footwide house with gable roof and continuous ridge ventilator (always open) is recommended. Louvres in one gable end and an exhaust fan at the other end will provide forced ventilation. Double doors at the ends of the broiler house will provide additional ventilation and give room for a truck to be driven through for cleaning, adding litter, and loading chickens. A concrete floor, concrete block walls onethird to one-half way up the sides, and aluminum roof are desirable. A row of posts can be placed about 10 or 12 feet distant from each side wall, or a truss roof can be constructed to eliminate the need for any interior posts. Water pipes may be placed under the concrete floor or overhead along the rows of posts. Faucet
connections should be provided for at least two 8-foot water troughs per 1,000 broilers or their equivalent. Brooder stoves are normally placed in a row near the side wall. Two circles (4 rows) of automatic feeders are recommended in a house 40 feet wide, allowing 0.8 square foot of floor space per bird and 12 birds per linear foot of feeder space, or I square foot of floor space and l O birds per foot of feeder space. However, some recent experiments indicate that only Y2 as much feeder space is needed. PouLTRY HOUSES need to be reinforced to withstand strong winds. Concrete piers should be constructed below ground, and large enough to provide adequate anchorage. Each post should be anchored by a metal strap, extending at. least 6 inches into the concrete pier and bolted to the post. Rafters can be either nailed directly to the posts or studs (balloon construction) or braced together with l x 3 inch wood braces (platform construction). Supplemental -metal anchors or straps can be used to fasten purlins to rafters, and studs to the plate and sill (if these are used). A ridge pole, collar beams, ceiling joists, and additional roof bracing will make the house more resistant to wind damage. PREVENT WIND DAMAGE ACCORDING TO personal preference and the system of management used, poultry houses may be of various types. The basic principles of a good house are the same, however. The housing and equipment should provide for bird comfort and labor efficiency in order to reduce production cost per dozen eggs. In addition to deciding what type of poultry house to build, producers must consider the following points whenever they are just starting in the business, relocating, expanding, or mechanizing their farm operation: PLANNING CONSTRUCTION 11
How much land is needed for the maximum size flock expected in the future; How should the location of the buildings be planned; What kinds of lumber, equipment, and other materials are needed; Where can supplies be bought; and Where can needed financing be obtained. County Extension Agricultural Agents or poultry specialists of the University of Hawaii Cooperative Extension Service are available to advise the producer on these problems. 12
AVAILABLE LITERATURE This is a partial list of supplemenfary information available from other states. A list of references used in preparing this circular is available upon request. HILL, J. E., et. al. Cage Versus Floor Operation for the Production of Commercial Eggs. Mississippi State Expt. Sta. Bul. 551, 1957. KELLY, C. F. and W. 0. WILSON. A Basic Fryer House. University of California Ext. Ser. P. S. Leaf. 4, 1953. KING, DALE F. Laying Cages for Market Egg Production. Alabama Polytechnic Institute Expt. Sta. Cir. 110, 1952. MASSEY, J. H. Cage Layers. University of Georgia Ext. Cir. 439, 1958. MooRE, J. S. Housing and Equipment for Brooding and Growing Replacement Pullets. University of Florida Ext. Cir. 202, 1960. OTA, HAJIMA. House and Equipment for Laying Hens for Loose Housing. U.S. Dept. of Agr. Misc. Pub. 728, 1960. PARIS, D. B., et. al. Comparing Cage and Floor Methods of Egg Produc.tion. University of Kentucky Ext. Ser. Cir. 560, 1958. Planning Your Poultry Houses. Washington State University Ext. Bul. 468, 1952. RooNEY, W. F. and S. A. HART. Stretched-Wire Colony Cages for Poultry. University of California Ext. Leaf. 132, 1961. SKINNER, J. L. and M. L. VAUGHN. Comparing Modern Poultry Housing Systems. University of Nebraska Ext. Ser. Cir. 58-1412, 1958. Stretched-Wire Colony Cage Houses. University of California Dept. of Agr. Engr., Department Blueprint Plan C-247-3-1, 1960 (for sale). Other plans are available. WARREN, RICHARD and HALSTEAD COLBY. 1\1echanical Egg Collecting on the Farm. University of New Hampshire Ext. Cir. 353, 1959. WELCHERT, W. T. Poultry Housing and Equipment for Arizona. University of Arizona Ext. Ser. Cir. 250, 1957. WILSON, W. 0. and C. F. KELLY. If you Want a Wire-Cage Poultry Ranch. University of California Ext. Leaf. 43, 1954.
UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII COLLEGE OF TROPICAL AGRICULTURE HAWAII COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE LAURENCE H. SNYDER President of the University MORTON M. ROSENBERG Dean of the College of Tropical Agriculture and Director of the Hawaii Agricultural Experiment Station Y.. BARON GOTO Director of the Hawaii Cooperative Extension Service