How to raise chickens with the highest survival rate?

Newly-born chicks are small in size and weak in resistance. Farmers should do a good job in managing the chicks to improve their survival rate. Generally, chicks do not become fully functional until they are 3-4 weeks old. If you want to have the highest survival rate of raising chickens, you must master the following four points:

1. Keep the light on

Chicks within 1 week of age can be exposed to light 24 hours a day and active for 10-20 minutes before and after each feeding. After a week, if the weather is fine and the temperature permits, you can use natural light during the day, preferably once a day in the sun. Before the age of 20 days, the chicks can be active for 6-7 hours a day. After the age of 20 days, they can be active all day on sunny days, but they should take a shading rest for 2-3 hours in the hot season at noon.

2. Water supply and food

Before the chicks start to eat, they can first drink 0.01-0.02% potassium permanganate aqueous solution (light red), then feed 8% sucrose water, and finally feed. Young chicks should have free feed at any time, and gradually reduce the number of feedings in the future.

3. Temperature management

Generally speaking, chicks should be placed in an environment with relatively stable temperature when they are born. When the chicks are 1-3 days old, the room temperature should be controlled at 33-35 °C; when the chicks are 4-7 days old, the room temperature should be controlled at 31-33 °C. It is advisable to control the room temperature at 27-31 ℃ when the age is 2-4 weeks old; control the room temperature at 20-27 ℃ when the age is 5-6 weeks; and control the room temperature at 18-21 ℃ when the age is above 7 weeks.

4. Disease prevention

Antibiotics can be used alternately in the drinking water or feed of 3-20-day-old chicks to prevent pullorum and chronic respiratory diseases in chicks. After one week of medication, switch to other drugs at intervals of 2-3 days. The 10-day-old was first immunized with the Newcastle disease II vaccine. The method was as follows: after the vaccine was diluted 10 times, one drop was dropped through the nose with a dropper.