Why vitamins are so necessary for chickens
Vitamins for chickens are one of the winged food components. Any poultry should receive them, regardless of age, health status and rearing goals. Much depends on the quality of nutrition: egg production, the quality of the yolk, fertility and, of course, the quality of meat. Any experienced poultry farmer knows that feeding without vitamins will make poultry unprofitable, so he considers vitamin supplements in his monthly financial costs.
Vitamins for laying hens
It is worthwhile to understand this issue in more detail, find out what vitamins are already contained in food, and what needs to be added to the diet artificially.
Reasons for the need for vitamins
Much depends on how vitaminized the poultry feed is. The importance of vitamins can be compared only with water and food, without which, as you know, no living creature can live. First of all, it is necessary to enrich bird food during the winter months, when birds do not have access to grass.
For at least a third of the calendar year, layers feed exclusively on dry food, this should not be the case. Normally, for this period, special fortified supplements and feed are purchased, which will not allow immunity to decrease or lose in terms of egg production: the yolk will be small, liquid and pale.
As soon as the slightest deviation in the behavior of the hazel grouse became noticeable, if it has noticeably weakened or lost weight, it is necessary to immediately revise its diet: it is likely that a mistake was made in its preparation - there are not enough vitamin supplements in the bird menu. Also, the situation should be alerted when the chicken refuses its direct duties: it does not want to hatch eggs or has become poorly laid. This may also indicate that the chicken's diet lacks vitamins and minerals.
If the owner has taken care in advance that the poultry receives all the necessary food components, it will thank you with a good offspring, its meat will subsequently be tender, juicy and tasty.
Additional meals in winter
Winter is the most difficult period for chickens, since in winter there is the greatest deficiency of nutrients. This is also noticeable for the owner of the bird, since the egg production rate is deteriorating, the general condition of the laying hens can be described as lethargic and weak. Based on this, the introduction of fortified food into the diet of layers is a prerequisite for poultry farming.
The fact is that with a poor diet, the chicken's immunity falls: it can get sick, internal organs - liver, heart - weaken, and feathers also fall out. In the summertime, nutrition takes place according to a different scheme: nutrients are extracted from greenery. In winter, obtaining such food becomes impossible. In addition, you need to prepare in advance for the cold season:
- insulate the house;
- buy feed;
- buy specialized vitamins for laying hens in winter.
The health of the chickens directly depends on how high-quality and balanced the nutrition will be, whether they will get sick and die. Judging by the feedback from farmers, with a rationally designed menu, the hen produces more eggs in one clutch.
Worms are a source of vitamins
Many poultry farmers claim that common earthworms contain the necessary amount of vitamins and minerals that poultry needs. In addition, they are a valuable source of protein, which layers also need. This source of vitamins for laying hens will not cost a penny, since absolutely every person can breed worms, this does not require financial costs or special skills. All you need is:
- high quality soil;
- sufficient hydration.
If these conditions are met, a constant source of vitamins for laying hens during the warm season is guaranteed.
Of course, in the winter you still have to buy ready-made vitamin feed in specialized veterinary stores.
Nutritional supplements
Previously, it was said that ordinary earthworms are a significant source of essential nutrients for the laying hen, so we must do our best to ensure that the hen eats them as much as possible. However, worms alone will not work, because vitamins need to be taken care of all year round, that is, all 12 months, including winter.
How can you help a hen in winter, how to enrich her diet? In addition to the fact that you can buy ready-made dry fortified food, you should pay attention to the following components:
- sprouted wheat grains;
- live yeast (they are boiled in water or beer, then cooled and given to the bird);
- capsules fish oil or pure fat;
- dried grass, harvested in advance in season.
Procurement of vitamins in advance
As for yeast and fish oil, these components are not in short supply, they can be bought at any time of the year in a regular store or pharmacy. However, it must be remembered that poultry also needs other food ingredients: protein and complex carbohydrates.
It is possible to check whether the bird receives a sufficient amount of vitamins by the quality of the shell. If it is firm, then everything is fine. Otherwise, you need to reconsider the diet: it is possible that the bird is given an insufficient amount of calcium.
Green food is dried at the end of the summer period. Moreover, all greens, including inflorescences, must be thoroughly dried in the sun and only then ground to the state of bird food, ground flour. Until new greens grow, grass flour will be a complete source of nutrients. In addition, it is worth noting the importance of ground needles in the diet of chickens. It is also first dried and then ground into flour.
Vegetables are also dried in the spring, after which they become an integral part of the diet when crushed. Particular attention should be paid to the following:
- carrot;
- cabbage leaves;
- beet.
Despite the simplicity and general availability of these components, they are ideal for a chicken diet, compensate for the deficiency of vitamins and minerals.
Ready-made vitamin complexes
The easiest way to fill the lack of trace elements with the help of multivitamins, since their composition is thought out to the smallest detail, satisfying all the nutritional needs of the bird. Today the market of ready-made vitamin complexes for chickens is widely represented and has more than a dozen brands. However, among this set, several of the most effective and suitable according to the criterion of price-quality-content of useful microelements can be distinguished:
- Undevit;
- Trivit;
- Chiktonik.
Taking the above drugs, regardless of the name and content, will prevent the development of vitamin deficiency (even in spring), and will also strengthen the bird's immunity, increase resistance to viruses and bacteria.It is especially important to consume such complexes in winter, during the treatment of the disease and for some time after it, in order to help the body recover.
The regimen should be appropriate for the age of the bird, as well as the instructions in the package. You cannot decide how many times to give drugs to a bird yourself.
Natural sources of micronutrients
The opinion that microelements are contained only in purchased vitamins is erroneous. In fact, they are found in many affordable and inexpensive foods that can be added to the diet of chickens. Let's find out what is included in this list:
- a piece of chalk;
- crushed shell rock;
- limestone;
- wood ash breast;
- ground chicken egg shell.
All of these ingredients in the above foods contribute to a healthier chicken. Also, mineralized nutrition strengthens the quality of eggs, including shells. With a sufficient calcium content in the food, it will be solid, which will allow the chicken to form normally in the egg (the egg yolk will be large, perhaps even the presence of 2 yolks in one egg), and will also be a favorable factor for egg production.
In the diet, you can safely add not only the shell of chicken eggs, but also the eggs themselves, white and yolk. The only exceptions are raw eggs, they are strictly prohibited for feeding to chickens, as they can provoke development cannibalism.
Now you know why it is so important to add vitamins for laying hens to their daily meals. Also, now you are informed which foods are a valuable source of fortified nutrients, what you need to do to prevent the onset of vitamin deficiency symptoms. If all recommendations are followed, poultry will stay healthy, lay more eggs, and produce tasty, healthy meat.