As I step into the front area of a broiler house, regular or 1 star Beter Leven, my journey of determining the style of the flock begins. The profile of the flock is evaluated, among other things, the climate of the barn, the quality of the litter, the behavior of the chicks and their health. I use my senses and test my results against previous knowledge and experience.
First stop: fixed card
The first stop on my journey is the stable map, where I take care of the age and loss of the herd, the amount of forage, and its weight. If there is a stable window, I peek inside to notice the behavior and distribution of chicks.
Then I turn to the boot box at the entrance to the stable. I notice the reaction of the flock to my entry (are the heads raised?), I notice the activity level (the chicks are at rest or are they on the feeding line?), and I hear the sounds of the barn (is there a cough?) I feel somewhat of the settled climate. This moment at the stable door lasts only a few seconds but defines the parameters of the stationary plate.
My journey continues and I entered the stable. After a short stop at the feed hopper (what do chicks eat?) I choose a path between the feed and water lines towards the back of the house (is there feed in the troughs?). Seated chicks enter the legs and move to the side (how easily do they move?).
garbage
In the empty open space I can see garbage. I squat at the height of the chick and evaluate the quality of the litter and compost (how is it digested?). Now that I have reached this level, I try to feel the temperature and the movement of air between the chicks. Then I quietly woke up and continued on my way.
While walking, I remain alert to noise and harmful behavior (are the chicks calm or startled?) and at the same time pay attention to the size, shape and position of the chicks. Every now and then I catch a chick and feel the harvest and the pectoral and look at the soles of the feet.
Finally, I pick out some chicks for further research and get them out of the house. My observations in the barn have greatly colored the barn picture, but it is important to see if the photo of my barn matches what the chicks inside say (what effect, am I missing something?). Additional diagnostics can provide the (necessary) finishing touch.
Only when I have passed all the stops through the stable and chicks can I say my stable picture is complete. So, the last, but not the most important question is: What does a stable image do with (future) technical results?
Chick image has become more important
I can now imagine you’re wondering what this has to do with “let’s say…you can see how healthy the BL1S chicks are?” is related. The path taken by the evaluation process for a regular broiler flock or Better Life 1 is similar in many respects, but it is often difficult to see what factors contribute to the home image in BL1S chicks. So the chick image became more important to me in evaluating the stable BL1S image. BL1S chicks can certainly look healthy, but just looking from the outside doesn’t show the whole picture.
Soon you will read more about the evaluation of BL1S chicks and their stable image.
Author: Dawn Reinhoudt, Poultry Vet Elanco
EM-NL-22-0134
