{"id":28388,"date":"2026-08-20T14:24:04","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T07:24:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.poultryindonesia.com\/?p=28388"},"modified":"2026-08-20T15:40:32","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T08:40:32","slug":"comfortable-chicks-maximum-production-results","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.poultryindonesia.com\/en\/comfortable-chicks-maximum-production-results\/","title":{"rendered":"Comfortable Chicks, Maximum Production Results"},"content":{"rendered":"
Keeping chicks well cared for and comfortable begins from the moment they hatch. What happens from hatch through the end of the first week will have a major impact on the performance, health, and uniformity of the entire flock. Therefore, ensuring optimal conditions during holding, transportation, and placement is essential. Good communication among the hatchery, transport provider, and farm team will help ensure that chicks have the best opportunity to achieve optimal performance.<\/strong><\/h6>\n
Hidden Advantage: Residual Yolk<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
Newly hatched chicks carry a natural reserve of nutrients and water in their yolk sac. This reserve can support their needs for up to three days after hatching. Therefore, chicks can be transported to various regions around the world and can still tolerate a short delay before placement in the house.<\/h6>\n
Narrowing the hatch window will improve uniformity in access to feed and drinking water, ultimately improving uniformity at placement. Excessively long periods without feed can increase the risk of dehydration and reduce early growth potential. The sooner chicks are placed and gain access to feed and water, the better the outcome. Feed intake stimulates gastrointestinal development and accelerates yolk sac absorption, supporting better early growth, which is crucial for broiler performance.<\/h6>\n
Various systems have been developed to provide chicks with feed and water immediately after or close to the time of hatching. These systems include hatching directly in the rearing house and the use of specialized hatchers that provide feed and water inside the trays.<\/h6>\n
In broilers, each system has its advantages and disadvantages. Depending on specific conditions and local regulatory requirements, these systems can provide effective solutions. However, in breeder chickens, early feeding systems and hatching in the rearing house are generally not feasible because chicks must undergo sexing and usually need to be transported to the rearing facility.<\/h6>\n
Chicks that have been fed before transportation produce more metabolic heat due to activation of the digestive system. This increases intestinal activity and moisture output, resulting in wetter feces that can weaken transport boxes. During long journeys, this condition can also increase the risk of intestinal damage and even mortality. In some countries, animal transportation regulations for fed animals are much stricter than those for animals that have not been fed.<\/h6>\n
At every stage, chicks must be managed under the highest possible biosecurity standards. Avoid mixing flocks from different hatcheries in the same transport vehicle and use environmentally controlled vehicles whenever possible.<\/h6>\n
What About Temperature?<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
\"\"Newly hatched chicks are not yet capable of fully regulating their body temperature. Their body temperature is strongly influenced by the surrounding environmental temperature. Nevertheless, chicks produce metabolic heat and will therefore adjust their behavior to regulate the microclimate around them.<\/h6>\n
When they feel cold, chicks huddle together to share body heat. Conversely, when they feel hot, they move apart from one another and pant. Ideally, chick body temperature should be maintained at around 39.4\u201340.6\u00b0C (103\u2013105\u00b0F). It can be easily measured using a Braun Thermoscan\u00ae thermometer at the cloacal (vent) area. Monitoring chick temperature during holding, transportation (where possible), and upon arrival at the farm will provide an indication of the environmental temperature required to maintain body temperature within the ideal range, as well as the temperature uniformity within the holding area and transport vehicle.<\/h6>\n
Poor temperature control can lead to overheating and dehydration or, conversely, chilling, both of which can reduce chick quality. In general, chilling has a greater impact on mortality during the first seven days than overheating. During transportation, however, because chicks generate metabolic heat inside the boxes, the risk of chilling is relatively lower. Nevertheless, excessive efforts to prevent chilling can often result in overheating.<\/h6>\n
The First Few Days: Building the Foundation for Performance<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
Once chicks arrive at the farm, the primary goal is to achieve optimal early development and good uniformity. The house must be preheated so that the floor and air temperatures are appropriate before the chicks arrive. Cold or wet floors can cause chicks to lose body heat at placement.<\/h6>\n
Chicks must be able to find feed and water immediately after placement. The use of chick paper, additional feeders, and additional drinkers can help facilitate access. Provide fresh, high-quality crumble feed in small but frequent amounts (\u201clittle and often\u201d) to encourage feed intake.<\/h6>\n
image<\/strong><\/a><\/h6>\n
Drinking water should be cool, clean, and fresh to optimize water intake. To help chicks find feed and water more easily, use high-intensity lighting for a long duration\u201423 hours of light per day\u2014at least during the first two days. Afterward, dark periods can be gradually introduced and light intensity slowly reduced.<\/h6>\n
Placement success can be evaluated by observing chick behavior. Chicks should be evenly distributed throughout the brooding area, with approximately one-third sleeping, one-third eating, and one-third drinking. Crop-fill checks should be conducted to determine the percentage of chicks that have consumed feed and water. This should be checked at least two hours after placement and again at 24 hours after placement, with a target of 95% of chicks having filled crops within the first 24 hours.<\/h6>\n
The Key to Success Lies in Chick Comfort<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
Chick comfort from hatching through post-placement is the foundation for subsequent flock performance, both in broilers and breeders. Determining whether chicks remain comfortable throughout the supply chain requires good communication and consistent monitoring, particularly of their behavior.<\/h6>\n
Program success can be evaluated through various parameters, including mortality, flock uniformity, chick weight, chick body temperature, crop-fill rate, and seven-day body weight. Together, these indicators provide an overview of the success of chick management from hatching through the early rearing period.<\/h6>\n
For more information, visit the Info Center at<\/strong> www.aviagen.com<\/a><\/span><\/span> or scan the QR code.<\/strong><\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Keeping chicks well cared for and comfortable begins from the moment they hatch. What happens from hatch through the end of the first week will have a major impact on the performance, health, and uniformity of the entire flock. Therefore, ensuring optimal conditions during holding, transportation, and placement is essential. Good communication among the hatchery, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":28381,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[37],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\t\n