Different Types of Poultry Houses/Buildings
Poultry houses are of great importance, In general, the intensification of poultry farming has been towards large commercial. Indeed, the birds are unlikely to perform satisfactorily if the housing is poor.
In a tropical environment, an ideal poultry house should not be a completely closed structure. it is needed in terms of buildings and equipment.
Definition of Poultry Building/Housing
Poultry Building & Housing are constructions considered essential to protect the birds from turbulent winds, dust, cold, direct sunlight, rain,and predators. Poultry Building & Housing are also provided to accommodate feeds and farm equipment.
Poultry Building & Housing should be well ventilated, dry cleaned, and spacious. It should also be of alow cost and made In the tropical environment.
In addition, an ideal poultry house should not be a completely closed structure. from locally available building materials.
Types of Poultry Buildings/Houses
There are many types of houses used by poultry farmers, but only four types that are commonly used shall be discussed here.
1. The Full-Sided Wall Poultry House
This is common in temperate regions where the temperatures are extremely low. In the tropics, this type of house is used for brooding day-old chicks.
The house is completely insulated by building up the bricks/blocks to the height of the house. Small windows/air spaces are created to allow the free flow of air (ventilation).
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2. The Open-Sided Poultry House
Open-Sided poultry house is used for rearing adult birds. It can be used for younger birds provided the open sides are covered with plastic or jute materials to conserve heat.
An Open-Sided poultry house is commonly found in the tropical world. However, it is recommended that in a hot environment where there is high humidity and temperature, the poultry house should be the open-sided type to allow free flow of air.
3. The Portable Colony Cage
This type of house is cheap to make. It can be roofed with zinc or asbestos with enough over- hangs to protect rain from splashing into the cages and the sides covered with a wire net.
In order to ensure coolness at all times, portable colony cages should be placed under shade trees in a secured place. A colony cage measuring 4m long, 1.5m wide, and 1.8m high can accommodate 60 broilers or 40 layers. If it is made of planks, the wooden legs should be protected against termites and ants.
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4. The Fold Unit
This is commonly used to house local chickens or chickens reared on the range. It is made of wire mesh just like the two slanting sides.
These units are usually placed directly on the grassed ground. This enables birds to eat grasses and the unit can be moved from one place to another on regular basis.
However, there is a great restriction on the movement of birds in the folding unit. The fold system also protects young chicks against predators and loss from kites.
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