Small scale backyard poultry farming forms the backbone of the Philippines poultry industry. Every Filipino family grows three, five, ten or twenty chicken in their backyard. These help supplement the family’s protein needs but some can also be sold to provide additional income for the family. The small scale poultry producers account for the biggest share of chickens produced in the country every year. The following tips provide a guide on how to make backyard poultry farming in the Philippines work so as to maximize on your profitability.
Choose the Right Backyard Chicken Breeds
Many small scale poultry farmers in the Philippines have a casual approach to backyard chicken farming. They have an “anything-goes” attitude when it comes to breed selection for their backyard poultry farming ventures.
However, proper consideration should be put into choosing the right backyard chicken breeds. While there are many breeds that can do well in your backyard, you have to pick one that is suited for your needs. Since the chickens will be largely foraging for their food, you can start by picking breeds that can do well in a free range environment. Are you planning to raise your backyard chickens for meat or eggs? If you are raising them for eggs, then you must choose good layers that will give you a constant supply of fresh eggs. Even the temperament of the chicken matters especially if you have small kids who will likely be playing with the chickens.
Backyard Chicken Coops
Backyard chicken coops aren’t too complicated. They are generally smaller and simpler in design but they must still provide good shelter and protection for your chickens. The backyard chicken coops must be big enough to offer your birds sufficient space, allowing them room to flap their wings, walk around and create comfortable laying nests inside the coops.
The backyard chicken coops must be hygienic and well ventilated. The flooring should be changeable with materials such as wood chips or sawdust used on the flooring. They must have excellent ventilation and must be roomy enough to allow humans in to perform cleaning work.
The chicken coops must also be well insulated to provide warmth for the chickens. For extra warmth, you can provide heat lamps along with more nesting materials. Some of the key factors to keep in mind when building a new coop include proper site selection, good drainage, low noise, ease of access as well the number of chickens that you are planning to keep.
It is also important to observe the local zoning regulations. These may prevent you from keeping a rooster especially if you live in an urban setting. A good quality coop will provide your birds with an optimal shelter from heat, cold and the rains.
Chicken Feeders and Drinkers
You must provide your chickens with proper feeders and drinkers. There is a great variety of these that you can buy for your poultry depending on your particular requirements. When buying your feeders and drinkers, keep in mind the design of the chicken coop and the number of birds that you are planning to keep.
The feeders and drinkers that you choose should provide your birds with enough space to access clean water and food at all times without overcrowding or injuries. The feeders and drinkers should be easy to clean and to replenish with fresh food and water. The feeders and drinkers should also be positioned where they cannot be accessed easily by wild birds or other foraging chickens outside your backyard farm.
Know the right kinds of feeds to give your birds, be they meat chickens or layers. The type of feed also depends on the age of birds that you are raising. Chicks, for example, must be fed on the poultry feed crumbles that are protein-rich and with high energy content.
Point of lay pullets will be consuming between 80 and 100 grams every day while a grown hen must be given between 250 and 300ml of water every day. You must therefore have a very reliable water drinker system to prevent your chickens from becoming dehydrated.
The Health of the Backyard Birds and Husbandry
Check the birds on a regular basis so as to ensure that they are in good health. Learn how to detect symptoms of disease or stress. It is also important that you learn how to hold the birds properly and safely. Check the birds routinely for any sign of parasites such as lice and mites. Make sure that you isolate weak or sick birds. Monitor the visual appearance of the birds to identify any signs of common diseases so as to seek early intervention. You should also watch out for any aggressive or antisocial behavior.
Hygiene
Remove manure and clean the litter on a regular basis. You can use the old manure for composting. Ensure you also clean the feeders and drinkers on a regular basis before you replenish with fresh feeds.
These are some of the main opportunities in the poultry value chain that savvy entrepreneurs can leverage. To be an entrepreneur that can benefit from the Philippine poultry value chain, there are certain attributes that you may need to have. These are attributes that easily be acquired. You don’t have to be a “born entrepreneur”. You can easily entrepreneur your way out of the financial doldrums. These qualities include the following:-
- You must have a sense of initiative.
- You have to be a go-getter or a seeker of opportunities by carefully scanning the needs of your environment.
- You must have the persistence to be able to sustain the growth of your business.
- You must be a well-informed entrepreneur. Make sure that you constantly seek out important information about the niche that you are investing in.
- You must have a high regard for good quality: Have the commitment to continuously improve on your quality standards.
- Have a commitment to work contract especially when you are servicing a market or offering supplies.
- You must be an excellent planner and have a strong efficiency orientation in your approach to work. Success in any business requires an eye for efficiency.
- To be successful as an entrepreneur in the Philippines or anywhere else, you must have the drive and the self-confidence to go after your dreams.
- Success in entrepreneurship requires some powers for persuasion. Use the power of influence strategy in order to build your business and foster effective networking.