Poultry Housing 2024 PDF

POULTRY HOUSING Aim: 1. Protect birds from environmental extremes. 2. Protect birds from predators. 3. Large number of birds could be kept in one place with easier management and handling as one group. 4. Provide birds with their optimal requirements. 5. keeping the costs and labor as l...

POULTRY HOUSING Aim: 1. Protect birds from environmental extremes. 2. Protect birds from predators. 3. Large number of birds could be kept in one place with easier management and handling as one group. 4. Provide birds with their optimal requirements. 5. keeping the costs and labor as low as possible. 6. Provide better and easier control of diseases and parasites. 7. In the humid areas, the poultry house should face either:- South: give more sunlight. East: Is good as south, so birds are more active and spend more time in the sunlight. N.B : In hot climate countries, the poultry houses should protected from the adverse environmental conditions by tress which serve as a wind break in winter and direct sunlight in summer. 8. The area where poultry house is established, the soil should of low water table, otherwise, the house should be placed in sloping hill side to provide a good drainage.  System of poultry housing depend on 1-Stocking density: A. Extensive. B. Intensive system: C. Semi-intensive  A- Extensive systems: Extensive systems e.g. free range system birds have more freedom to express their normal behavioral patterns and to have more contact with the surrounding environment with the least interference or alteration. Birds are housed during night in either fixed or movable buildings and they have a free access to a pasture in the morning Unlimited space/bird where 150-200 birds can be reared on one acre. The system is healthy. But there are some disadvantages as:- impossible to control the weather and disease spreading+ nutritional deficiencies and parasite infestation. a- Intensive system: Used for commercial poultry production in which not less than 20 kg up to 40 kg of body weight/m2 Birds are confined in their buildings allover their life and microclimatic factors are generally controlled to provide birds with the sufficient protection and supplies them with their requirements for maximum production. It may be deep litter system or slated floor system or battery system. C- Semi-intensive system In semi-intensive system more space area is allowed per bird compared to the intensive systems, but less control over the surrounding environment and microclimatic conditions is attempted This system is a midway between the intensive and extensive systems (stocking density) It generally provides birds with a suitable building surrounded by two or more areas of pasture opened in rotation. It may be fixed pen with outside run C- Semi-intensive system In semi-intensive system more space area is allowed per bird compared to the intensive systems, but less control over the surrounding environment and microclimatic conditions is attempted Stocking density in semi-intensive system: Broiler in floor system….> 8-12bird /M2, but in cage system………> 15-18 bird /m2 Layer in floor system….> 4-6 bird /M2, but in in cage system………> 8-10 bird /m2 Breeders in floor system….> 2-4 bird /M2…..in in cage system………> 1-2 pairs /m2 Semi-intensive systems for layers A. Folding unit system: It is unit consists of a covered in roost with slated floor of 4 M long. The unit is daily moved across the ground. Its capacity of 25-30 birds. There is no dripping board. The birds are kept away from parasites and bacteria as the droppings are removed away from the unit.  Semi-intensive systems B- Fixed pen with outside run: It is suitable where the space available is limited. The unit can keep up to 50 birds and consists of two compartments:- a- Roosting pen: of red bricks and cement. Floor area is 9-10 M for 50 birds. The floor is 15 cm above the run floor and of concrete. Wall height is 210-250 cm ( front) and 160-180 cm (behind). Having roost of 1 M long, 5 cm thickness and 30 cm height ( each bird has 20-25 cm).  B- Fixed pen with outside run b- Run: its area is 75-100 m2 for 50 birds.  Should be sunny and dry.  Dirty floor of 15 cm above the ground leve.  Surrounded by wire-netting fence at a height of 2- 2.5 M.  Contains feeding hoppers, water troughs and trap nests. II-According to type of surface on which the birds live: The flock could be kept either directly on the floor of the building (floor systems) or in cages (battery system( 1. Floor systems: 1.1. Deep litter system: either dirt floor or concrete floor covered with a suitable bedding material 1.2. Slatted floor system in which the slatted area constitutes either the whole floor area (totally slatted) or about one third or two thirds of the floor above which lies feeders and drinkers, while the remaining area is covered with litter (partially slatted with deep litter) 2. Battery system: could be arranged in the poultry house in different forms 1. flat deck 2. Californian 3. stair step and multi-tiers III- according to system of ventilation: Poultry houses could be defined as either: 1.Opened (conventional, or naturally ventilated houses) which are depend on the natural flow of wind for ventilation and they are mostly open sided buildings. 2.Closed (environmentally controlled or mechanically ventilated houses) in which the ventilation and the entire microclimatic environment inside the building is mechanically controlled. IV- Systems used during rearing and production: Multistage system: in egg production sector some poultry farms use dirt floor buildings (deep litter system) for rearing chicks and then transfer them to complete their life or other stages of their production cycle on different system (battery system) Single stage system in which birds could be kept on the same housing system during brooding, rearing and production General requirements for poultry housing Site selection: Poultry farm should be located away from nuisances such as highways, railroad, trucks and airports. On the meantime poultry farm should be in close proximity to the main road. Sufficient water supply of adequate quality should be considered before building the farm. Provision of an ample power supply with a standby generator to help in case of power being cutoff should be considered especially in automated buildings.  Materials used for construction of different buildings should be of adequate quality , not need high maintenance costs. The possibility of future use of solar collectors should be considered (southern exposure is needed). Buildings should be spaced at least 20 m apart to reduce the risk of multiple building fires, but close enough to the poultry-man house for easy and frequent check at night in bad weather. Sites around the buildings should be adequately prepared before houses are built and surroundings should be well drained to avoid run-off between houses.  Poultry farm should be constructed to provide an easy movement of vehicles. Clean and well planned roads with suitable dimensions should be provided inside the farm for easy connection among different buildings in the farm. Safety and comfort of poultry-men and their families should be taken into account. The farm should have fire protection for all buildings.  Equipments and other potentially dangerous areas should have sufficient safety precautions and must be away from children reach. All areas should be seeded with a low maintenance grass, especially around the undesirable features such as incinerators. Plants can also be used as windbreaks.  Building construction: FOUNDATION: Should be adequate and deep enough to support the building and to keep-out surface water The depth of the foundation depends on the thickness of the wall In 12 cm wall thickness, the depth of the foundation must be 40-45 cm In 25 cm thickness of the wall the depth of foundation is 50-120cm according type of the floor or ground. The thickness of foundation 25-30 cm and covered with 1-2 cm of tar to prevent the entrance of cold humidity inside the building. Floor Floor of modern poultry houses could be one of three types (dirt floor, concrete floor or slatted floor). Dirt floor covered with different litter materials could be used for broiler houses and for breeder stocks Concrete floor: is preferred than dirt floor as it is moisture proof, rat proof, durable and easily cleaned and disinfected. Different bedding materials could be used e.g. wood shavings, sawdust, and chopped straw of about 10 cm above the floor.  Slatted floors could be used for broiler breeder flocks to cover up to two thirds of the floor area, while the other third is dirt floor on which birds, this type of slatted floor gives cleaner hatching eggs. It could also be used for layers but not recommended for broilers to avoid breast blisters unless a plastic coated slates or wooden slates could be used instead of the metal slates to alleviate the pressure on the bird.  Dirt floor Concrete floor Plastic slatted floor Wire mesh floor  The floor could be totally slatted or mixed with a deep litter, in mixed systems slates could cover about 60% from the space area while the other 40% is deep litter. Slates should be 2.5- 5 cm wide and spaced about 2.5 cm apart from each others and run along the building, wire mesh could also be used for the same purpose with a mesh size of 2.5 × 5 cm.  The slatted floor should be constructed above a dropping pit of about 70 cm from the floor; the sides of the dropping pit should be surrounded by a wire mesh for better air movement above the dropping to keep them dry and also to prevent access of rodents and other insects to the dropping pit. Whether slatted or wire mesh floors are used it should be constructed in sections for easy removal and cleaning underneath. Totally slatted floor increases number of birds per square area to about two folds, hence giving the chance to keep more birds in a small space area. Wall It should be made of solid material to support the roof and withstand heavy wind, they also have to be easily cleaned and disinfected and also with suitable insulation. Side walls are generally made from concrete blocks (12- 25 cm thick) The height of the wall is varied from 3-3.5 meter according the type of roof and its style. Windows could be provided in the form of controllable hopper windows, they should have an external hood to function as light and wind trap and protected by nets.  For opened poultry houses which mainly depends on natural cross ventilation a continuous opened side walls used as both inlets and outlets, the base of the opened area should be about 120- 150 cm from the floor of the building, surrounded by a wooden frame and constitutes about 20% from the floor area. It is generally recommended that the opened area shouldn’t exceed half the wall area. The whole area of openings should be covered with wire net to prevent access of rodents and predators.  The length of the building should be maximum of 80 meter for easily supervision and management. If the length is more than 80 meters, the building should be divided into two parts for easily management. The wall should be lined internally with smooth layer of cement, so no cracks to avoid lodgment of bacteria or parasites.  Doors should be large enough to cope with the system used for cleaning and managing the building, side doors could be provided each 15- 30 m for long buildings for easy management, doors should open outside. Poultry buildings should have a height of about 3m from the floor, high buildings have improved and better air flow in hot season. The width of poultry buildings vary according to type of ventilation, for naturally ventilated buildings a width of about 10 m is recommended, while for environmentally controlled buildings a width of not more than 12.2 m is recommended for most types of ventilation systems. Roof: Metal roofs: of either aluminum or galvanized steel could generally be used for their low maintenance requirements, easy installation and durability. Corrugated asbestos sheets or wooden sheets could also be used as a roof material for different poultry houses Roofs should be insulated during construction to have R value of 8. Gable roof is the most recommended for opened type buildings, a good overhang of about 60 cm prevents rain from entering the building and a gutter should be provided for collection of rainwater.  Types of roofing material Asbestos sheets Asphaltic roofing material Roof white washed Spray polyurethane Rigid board Thatched roof insulation insulation  Equipment of poultry house Feeders It could be manually or automatically filled, they could be in the form of feeding troughs or tubular feeders, automatic chain feeders could also be used, The height of the feeding trough should be carefully regarded as their height should be just above the back of the birds, while for day-old chicks the troughs should be placed at the floor level. Feeders should be equally distributed in the building Drinkers Could also be manually filled trough, or automatic bell shape drinkers or nipples they should also be equally distributed in the building and provide enough space per bird (birds from 1 to 12 weeks of age need a space of 1.3 cm around the drinker per each bird, from 12 weeks of age and up they need about 2.6 cm/ bird), one nipple could be sufficient for 10 birds. The amount of water consumption for each bird depends upon its age Automatic bell-type drinkers Drinking nipple and cup  Automatic feeders have one loop of feeder chain and trough capable of feeding a given number of birds  A feeding control system to turn the feeders on and off  Feed monitoring systems are available to measure the amount of feed consumed by bird  It is important that, same amount of feed to be available at all locations along the feeder  Conveyor and Pan Feeder System The feed hopper in the house holds the feed before it goes out through the auger & into the feed pans Feed goes through the auger lines & drops into each feed pan for the chickens to eat  Tube Feeder Hanging type Feeder Linear Trough feeders Round bottom feeders Square bottom feeders Automatic feeder  Watering Fountain drinkers Automatic/bell drinkers Nipple drinkers  12-13 birds/nipple Feed-water delivery has been largely automated Small computer box Sensors A stand-by generator for emergency power supply to all houses in case of power failure  Housing requirements  Microclimates including:- 1. Ventilation 2. Temperature 3. Humidity 4. Light 1.Ventilation Urine is excreted from poultry in a solid form, while moisture is discarded from the body through the respiratory process. This means that poultry houses should be designed with an efficient and well designed ventilation system to remove the warm humid air Proper ventilation for poultry houses could be performed either naturally (in open sided houses) or artificially (by the aid of positive or negative pressure fans). Naturally ventilated poultry houses: This type of houses could also be defined as open- type poultry houses in which the orientation of the building plays an important and essential role in ventilation efficiency. Ventilation in opened building depends on presence of well designed and properly distributed air inlets and outlets. Air inlets are in the form of side windows which could be provided with curtains or other means to control their area.  Air outlet could be in the form of openings at roof level (roof ventilation), otherwise it could be side windows or opened areas in the oppositeside of the air inlets (cross ventilation) The longitudinal axis of this type of houses should be perpendicular on the prevailing wind direction to get the full advantage of air movement during the hot season. This is the most predominant system in EGYPT, especially for keeping broiler birds.  For designing such type of poultry houses the following criteria should be considered: The width of the building should not exceed 10 m. The length of the building could be of any convenient length providing that side doors are available each 15- 30 m for easy service and movement of the farm The height of the building should not be less than 3 m for better aeration especially in hot weather. Naturally ventilated buildings shouldn’t be located too close to each other to prevent spreading of diseases and to improve ventilation The suitable distance between buildings could be calculated from the following formula: D = 0.4 × H × (L) 0.5 Where: D= separation distance between both buildings H = height of the building in feet. L = length of the building in feet.  The total opened area should constitute about 20- 30% from the total floor area of the building. Windows or air openings should be about 120- 150 cm from the floor of the building, while another line of baffle windows could be constructed 30 cm from eaves of the building for more efficient ventilation in hot days.  The roof of the building could be gable type or horizontal, gable roof is more efficient in hot climate but the horizontal roof gives better chance for building for more expansion this type of roof could be isolated from outside using local available materials as straw or wood shavings and in hot days hosing with a considerable amount of water could be recommended to reduce the heat flow through it from direct sunrays to inside the building  Naturally ventilated buildings could be provided with positive pressure fans (suspended from the roof) or negative pressure fans in the sidewall to improve ventilation during extra hot days When the humidity is not high another means for evaporative cooling could also be used as sprinklers and foggers. Hopper windows (drop windows): are a common in poultry housing, especially in regions with hot climates. These windows are designed to open outward and upward from the bottom, allowing for effective ventilation while minimizing drafts and protecting birds from rain and Hopper window Environmentally controlled poultry houses: This type of houses could also be defined as closed- type poultry houses, which depend on mechanical fan ventilation (positive or negative pressure systems). In positive pressure system the air is forced into the house by using suitable fans and allowed to exit through specific outlets While in negative pressure system the air is sucked out of the building using exhausting fans and enters through especially designed air inlets.  The orientation of such a type of fan- ventilated poultry housing should be considered as to the wind will have the minimal effect on the ventilation system, which also could be provided by protecting the openings of fans, from outside the house, by hoods or overhanging structures. In any system where droppings accumulate under the bird as in deep pit house  Natural Ventilation  Natural outside air can easily flow into and out of the house  Ventilated shelter must be expose to the wind  Windbreaks reduce natural air movement, keep them 100 ft away  Increased air-exchange rates by installing fans  Proper building design & construction major factors which affect ventilation  Mechanical/ Forced Ventilation systems  All air movement is produced by fans and controlled by automatic environmental control mechanisms in the building  Positive pressure systems use fans to blow fresh air into the building, creating a slightly higher pressure inside the house  Pressure difference moves the stale air to escape through strategically placed exhaust vents or outlets  Negative-pressure ventilation: Exhaust fans expel air from the building & creates a partial vacuum inside that pulls air into the house evenly through all inlets, creating more uniform conditions in the house  Inlets are distributed around the periphery of the building  Having a tightly sealed house is critical for successful control of in-house conditions in negative-pressure ventilation  Tunnel ventilation  Most effective in tropical climate due to higher air exchange rate & faster air movement @ 2.5-3 m/sec  Fresh air enters the house at one end and pulled through the house in longitudinal direction by means of high-performance fans  Cross ventilation (fans on one side of the house and inlets on the other side –works best in houses of less than 10 m wide)  Sidewall ventilation: fans and inlets on same sidewalls  Attic inlet ventilation: fans are distributed at the side-walls, inlets are in the roof  Components of Mechanical Ventilation systems  Fans and openings: Control the amount of air exchange Effect air distribution and mixing  Heaters: provide supplemental heat during cold weather and brooding  Controls: to adjust ventilating rates (fan controls), supplemental heating rates, and the air velocity rates (fan controls), supplemental heating rates, and the air velocity through openings as weather, bird age and size change  Fans  Placed on the windward direction of the houses  Install slow speed, industrial fans 1m above the ground  Use 1x 620 mm rpm fan/1,000 layers  In EC houses: Important to determine how much air flow through the building which determine the no: of fans required  Air flow rate = cross sectional area of the house x required speed desired  A minimum of 1 m2 inlet area per 14 m3/h exhaust fan capacity is recommended  Openings Air inlets: to provide fresh air throughout the building, control direction of airflow, and maintain sufficient inlet air velocity Inlets for negative-pressure ventilation systems: continuous slots and discrete box or area inlets Continuous slot inlets have a rigid movable baffle for controlling the size of the opening, Bottom-hinged baffles are preferred. Continuous inlets may be positioned along both eaves Tunnel ventilation requires a separate set of inlets Unplanned inlets includes large openings such as doors, windows, and fans without shutters, which are not originally designed to be part of the ventilation system  2-Temperature  As the body temp. of poultry is higher than the surrounding environment (40-42 C), the birds should fed on good balanced rations with high energy producing foods. The following is the temp. suitable for birds at different ages:-  A- Brooding temperature  Day old to 3 weeks: The initial temp. should be of 35 C and reduced by 3 C/ week. B-Post-brooding temp. (older than 3 weeks)  In case of broiler houses, the temp. should be ranged from 18-21C.  C- Laying birds The temp. should ranged from 21-24C.  If the temp. below 21C, leading to reduction of 0.5 egg/hen/year/0.5 C.  If the temp. rises above 24 C, this leading to the birds eat less which leads to decrease in egg produced as well as reduction of the egg weights.  Heaters Heating system: from the hatching till the age of 4 weeks, the house should be well warmed either by different types of heaters :-  Electric or gas heater  Infra red lamps.  Heated air.  Supplemental heat is needed in natural & powered ventilated houses to maintain desired indoor temperatures during cold weather & brooding  are used for supplemental heating in poultry houses including radiant, space and make-up air heaters  Heaters  Supplemental heat is needed in natural & powered ventilated houses to maintain desired indoor temperatures during cold weather & brooding  Different types of heaters are used for supplemental heating in poultry houses including radiant, space and make-up air heaters BROODER HOUSE EQUIPMENTS  Brooders 1. Hover-type brooder :The mostly used, has the heat unit covered with a rounded sheet of metal to reflect the heat downward and they are usually suspended from the ceiling (about 90 cm from the litter) with the possibility to be easily raised, lowered or removed away at the end of the brooding period. 2. Infrared heaters: Thermostatically controlled electric brooders 3.Infra-red lamps transmit deeply penetrating heat rays that warm the chicks without heating the air in between. A 250 watt bulb provides enough warmth for 100 chicks when a reflector bulb is used. 4. Gas brooder using kerosene or gas as a source of heat-oil burners, provide a dependable, easily source of heat.  Brooders have different sizes and capacity (it is usual to use one canopy brooder for 500 chicks). A guard of about 50 cm high and about 150 cm away from the hover edge should be used to prevent chicks from wandering away from the source of heat. Brooders are usually distributed at the last or the rear third of the building where brooding is taking place.  Insulation  A well-insulated building is needed for EC houses It prevent condensation on the inside surfaces, reduce heat loss in cold weather, and reduce solar heat gain in warm weather  Cooling systems Cooling systems are numerous and vary according to the desirable degree of cooling, type of building and costs. Proper insulation of the building has an important role in reducing costs of cooling. The use of some reflective protection is recommended in hot weather  I- Ceiling fans: could be used for cooling birds; they should be suspended about 2.5 m above the birds and have a distance of 6 -15 m apart. and tilted about 8° from vertical to direct air down over birds, suspended fans should be protected to prevent injury of caretaker  Many interior cooling systems could be used to increase heat loss by convection or evaporation cooling systems II. Desert-type air cooler In hot dry climate using of desert- type air cooler is beneficial for small scale, naturally ventilated buildings  III. Evaporative cooling systems: Cooling systems must be controlled either thermostatically or manually; a set point of 29.5-32 C might be used for the fans, while for evaporative cooling system a temperature of 32- 35 is suitable as a set point.  Evaporative Cooling system SPRINKLING FOGGING PAD systems systems systems Naturally Power- Power- Very dry ventilated ventilated ventilated climates housing housing house Cooling the House: cooling effect by evaporation Sprinklers: Low pressure fogging Inject fine water particles Low cost fogging system Fogger Sprinkler Foggers: High pressure fogging Micro mist fog size (10-15µ) Fogger in true sense discharges fog not water Operated intermittently or designed to avoid excessive water High pressure and durable Stainless Steel Pipes are used  Pads cooling system  Evaporative cooling pads are used for cooling environmentally controlled buildings.  Pad systems should be designed for uniform wetting and recovery of water; they should be equipped with filters to remove particles which may clog the holes in the distribution line.  Pads can be located anywhere along the wall of the house or in a special structure attached to the building.  Cooled air entered the house, when it passes through the wet pads above which water runs through perforated pipes to the problem of wet litter Concrete coated bagasse pad, Aspen fiber, rubberised hogshair pad cellulose or fluted cardboard pads materials widely used as cooling pads Exterior view of a wood fibre evaporative cooling pad.  3- Humidity  The normal RH should be ranged from 60-70%.  If the humidity become lower than 60%, aggravate infection.  If the RH get higher than 70%, the birds loss their appetite, ……………..  4- Light  Development of reproductive organs is stimulated by increasing the period of day light. So, under natural conditions, stimulation of reproductive organs is stimulated in the spring and depressed in autumn.  From the previous fact, maximum productivity can be obtained by weekly increasing of light duration of about 20 min. up to a maximum of 16-18 hr. This attributed to stimulation of pituitary gland by light to secrete sex hormones.  Lighting Incandescent lights Fluorescent tube light Compact Fluorescent light Lighting system: Light bulbs should be kept clean and equally distributed to provide an intensity of about 40 lux for the first few days of broilers age or decreased to as low as 3 lux at the tenth day of age and up to the end of production cycle of broiler birds.  Automatic controls  To maintain the indoor temperature and provide air exchange as weather changes hourly and seasonally  Regulate the supplemental heating rate  Sold state controllers and computer systems capable of controlling the inlet and outlet opening and supplemental heaters Alarm systems It should be provided to detect the off-limits increase of the environment inside the building.  Intensive systems A- Deep litter system: The birds are kept on a litter to be removed once after the end of fattening period (at 7-8 weeks) or when reach a depth of 8-12 inches. Under this system, birds require 0.27-0.36m2 of floor space/bird.  Commencement of the process:- 1. First sprinkling of hydrated lime. 2. Spray the bedding materials (straw, shaving wood, saw dust or rice straw) to a depth of 5 inches. Straw is used at 15 kg/10 m2 with 5 cm thickness.  Commencement of the process 3- Chickens are allowed to enter. The droppings of the birds are gradually combine with the litter material to built up the litter and the bacterial action starts. 4- At about 2 months, the litter become deep litter and at 6 months, it become built-up deep litter. At 12 months, it becomes fully built-up deep litter. Periodically, extra litter materials may be added to maintain sufficient depth.  Commencement of the process 5- The deep litter pen should be started when the weather is dry. 6- The litter continue allover the laying period.  Management of bedding 1. The bedding should be turned every 2-3 days, specially in winter (if the bedding is dry, turning over is not important). 2. Remove any part of wet bedding and replace it with fresh bedding materials. 3. Add slaked lime (once in winter and twice in summer) at a rate of 50-100 kg/M to absorb humidity and to control ammonia.  Management of bedding 4- Good ventilation should be provided. 5-Movable roosts, drinkers and feeders should moved periodically all around in order to distribute the droppings and reduce water splashing over specific spots of ground. 6- It is better to have a slatted area over a dropping pet for perching and roosting and under the food and water troughs.  Management of bedding 7- Vaccinate the flock at the proper time against all diseases to avoid outbreaks. 8-Add broad spectrum antibiotics in the first week as a prophylaxis. 9-Control ammonia as far as possible (Sprinkling of slaked lime). Source of NH3: drippings+ bedding, liberate NH3. NH3 leads to irritation of m.m of upper resp. tract.  Advantages of deep litter system 1. Safety of birds and eggs against wild animals, flying birds and rodents. 2-Labour saving: there is no need to clean a pen out for a year. The only requirement is the regular stirring. 3-Valuable fertilizers: the birds can produce a large amount of fertilizers with high fertilizing power 3 times more than cattle. It contains 3% nitrogen; 20% protein, 2% phosphorous and 2% potash.  Advantages of deep litter system 4 In the deep litter system, provide worm to birds in winter (litter is an insulating agent). 5-Early maturity in male and female. Eggs produced and male give sperms at 65 days.  Disadvantages of deep litter 1. Need more sanitation. 2. High cost of heavy uses of straw or wood shaving as a bedding materials. 3. If an epidemics occurs, all birds should be destructed. 4. incidence of coccidiosis and worm infestation in case of bad management  Slatted floor system  It is a good system for housing of layers. The most concentrated method of housing can hold a birds at a density of up to 0.09 m2/bird.  The floor is made of either slates or wire mesh of 50-90 cm height from the ground. This area allows a year’s built up of dung.  The house usually of 10 m wide with a central passage way of 1.2 m wide. Nests is one or two tiers are placed on each side, Nest boxes: the nest boxes must be near the hens. The nests must be clean, well ventilated and provided with a soft floor.  Slatted floor system  The most common houses are those holding up to 5000 birds, but should be divided into units by simple wire partitions of 500 bird/each.  The correct ventilation and automatic methods of feeding and watering are of urgent needs due to high concentration of the birds.  Advantages: 1. No problems of wall cracking or wet litter 2. No problems of parasitic infestations. 3. low costs of housing and labour. 4. Eggs produced are clean.  Battery system  This system is mainly used for commercial egg production flocks.  In this system, the birds are maintained in cages 3-4 tiers to overcome the high price of the ground.  The cages may be single or multi-bird (2- 25) are used with a floor area of not more than 0.06 m2/bird.  Battery system  The following sizes of cages are used:- 1. Single bird cage, 23-31 cm depending on the bird breed. 2. 31-33 cm for single heavy bird or 2 light birds. 3. 36-38 cm for 2 heavy birds or 3 light birds.  The overall floor and air space is very low compared with other systems. So, perfect environmental control are of urgent need if the birds are to remain productive and healthy.  Battery system  The floor is of galvanized wire net with a slope from back to front so eggs are roll out of the cages to a receiving gutter as they laid.  Food and water troughs are outside the cages.  The whole structure are of metal So, 1. No parasitic infestation. 2. Easily cleaned and disinfected.  Battery system  The house should be:- 1. well ventilated and well lighted. 2. Well drained. 3. RH% maintained at 50% inside the house.  Battery system  Advantages :- 1. No litter problems. 2. No cannibalism. 3. Eggs produced are clean.  Disadvantages:- 1. Initial costs of building and cages are relatively high. 2. Cracking of eggs. 3. Cost replacement is high.  Laying cages  The most popular cage systems are those keeping 3-5 bird/cage.  The cages are 3 or 4 rows high. This multi-bird cage system give a total floor are not more than 0.06m2/bird.  Cages are usually 45X45 cm and the floor extends at least 15 cm in front to form an egg cradle. The dripping tray has a minimum clearance of 10 cm below the floor of the cage. Each bird has 10 cm of the trough space. Structure of Cage Floor slope: 1.5 inch per running 12 inch  Types of cages Based on the bird density Based on arrangement of cages  Single or individual bird cage  Battery cages (Vertical cages) (Only one bird in a cage)  Multiple bird cage  Stair-step cages (From 2 to 10 birds) a) Semi-stepped cages  Colony cages b) Fully-stepped cages (More than 11 birds per cage) Based on the number of rows Based on the type of bird reared  Single-deck  Brooder / chick cages  Double-deck  Grower cages  Triple-deck  Layer cages  Four-deck  Breeder cages  Individual cage Colony cages Battery cages  Types of the laying cages  The flat-deck system: It is a single tier cage of 4 cages with a double line of automatic feeders and egg collectors running between the inner and the outer cages. Cleaning can be achieved either by a scrapper system over a shallow pit or the droppings can fall into a deep pit. It is possible for one man to handle 20.000 birds. Slaked or vertical cages: One on the top to another of up to 3 rows or more Mechanically cleaned by scraper. Californian or stair step cages or deep pit cage: These cages are stepped to two or three tiers high. The drippings go into a large pit under the cages and cleaned out by tractor.  Laying cages  Feeding:- 1. Small units: simple filling of the hoppers through a narrow pathways is perfectly satisfactory. 2. Large units: Continuous troughs through out the tiers is filled either manually or automatically.  Laying cages  Drinkers: There are 3 arrangements for providing water to battery cages:- 1. Continuous troughs 2. Cups 3. Nipples Egg handling equipment Are in the form of moving belts which run in front of cages, they not only convey the eggs to a special room but they also count them as well. The automatic gatherer can also be attached to a washer, grader, Candler if desired.  Large poultry farms depend on automatic egg gathering to save time and labor. For small scale producers eggs could be collected manually in egg basket or egg flats. Hatching eggs should be collected manually, with special care, in baskets or egg flats 3 or 4 times daily, If the temperature inside the building approached 30 C eggs should be gathered hourly and placed in a cool clean room for 5-6 hours before storing.  Egg collection Conveyor belt system Egg grading machine  Nest boxes Nest boxes are generally used for floor systems of breeder flocks and it must be near the hen. Individual nests are mostly used in commercial bases; they could be made from different materials e.g. galvanized metal. Each nest box is large enough to hold one hen (30 cm wide× 30 cm high× 35 cm deep) the floor of the nest should be bedded with 2.5- 5 cm deep nest material.  The nest box should be provided with a perch in front of the box to keep the nest cleaned, well ventilated and provide with soft floor. One nest box can serve five birds and nest boxes could be arranged in double deck either at the side wall or in the middle of the building. Some common types of nest box: (from left to right) Wooden boxes with wood shaving as litter, Metal boxes with plastic rollaways  Type of nest Single nest Its dimensions 30x30x35 cm and used for 5 hens Community or family nest Its dimensions 200x50x35 cm and commonly used for 50 hens. Dropping pits: Dropping pits are used for slatted floor systems. They could be either shallow up to 80 cm above the floor of the building) or deep (about 2 m under the floor of the building) depending on frequency of evacuation and management program. Pits should be efficiently ventilated to prevent emission of toxic gases and protected to prevent access of rodents and flies.  A- Rearing of chickens 1. Single stage system: used for rearing chicks from the day old until birds enter laying period at 16-20 weeks age.  The chicks are kept on built-up litter  Floor space; 0.12 cm2-0.24 cm2 (according to breed either light or heavy)  Single stage rearing can also carried out in a special rearing battery cages.  This system require high standard of hygiene, good nutrition and management.  A- Rearing of chickens 2- Multi-stage system: The birds are reared in tier brooder, which consists of 2-3 compartments, one above the other. The size of the tier brooder is 3X1 M, taking about 5 chicks up to 4 weeks of age.  The base is of wire and drippings trays are provided underneath.  From the tier brooders, birds moved for rearing and laying in any other system as wire floored cages, deep litter, straw yard or free range system.  A- Rearing of chickens 3- Combined indoor and outdoor system: The birds are reared either on floor or in tier brooders up to 4 weeks, then transfer them to a hay box brooders. It consists of small covered compartment (1X1 M) and a run in front 3 M long. The box is made from solid wood sides, but the floors and roofs are of wire. At 8 weeks age, the birds are moved to range shelters till the laying. These shelters are cheap and of 3X2 M with a height of 1.7M (at the ridge and 0.85M at eaves. The unit can take 60 birds.