Poultry Farming: Factors To Consider Before Starting The Farm

By Spy Uganda

Poultry  farming in Uganda is carried out because of different and various reasons. Some people do poultry because of eggs while others do poultry for the meat. It can be done on a small scale or large scale depending on how much money one has and it is done majorly for commercial reasons.

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Factors To Consider Before Starting A Poultry Farm

Poultry farming is quite large as it involves a lot of things like layers and broilers. This involves different sectors and these sectors are the ones that help you decide which factors to follow when setting up your desired poultry business  and these factors are listed below:

1. Location Of The Farm

This is the first step into setting up a poultry farm. You need to look for a place that is very conducive and market-wise reliable. The location of the farm should be easily accessed in terms of labour and transportation. Select a farm area that has a good location and is security-wise safe.

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2. The Budget

You should also consider the amount of money that you have before setting up a poultry farm. The budget that you have will determine how big or small your poultry farm will be and whether you will be able to set it up easily or not.

But just in case the money budgeted for is minimal, you can outsource funds from friends or get a loan from the bank to cater for the construction of the chicken houses.

3. Select The Poultry Sector

The poultry sector is quote wide and before you start thinking about joining the poultry business, you need to find the sector that you desire to work in. these sectors include meat, egg processing, egg production, meat and poultry feed production. All sectors are profitable but you have to get one that you are well versed with.

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Factors To Consider When Choosing Right Breed

There are several factors that one can consider when choosing the chicken that is to be used for laying eggs and these include the following:

• Purchase healthy chicken and look at the catalogues before purchasing the chicken. This will help you get healthy chicken that will give you high-quality eggs.
• The chicken breed that is chosen for laying should have a high quality and good capability of laying eggs.
• Ask for recommendations from poultry farmers that have been in the business for the best breeds to the rear for commercial purposes.

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Diseases That Attack Poultry

There are several diseases that attack poultry and these include the following:

1. Avian Influenza

This is also known as bird flu and it is caused by the virus. It is majorly caused by insects or birds and it attacks the nostrils. It causes the swelling of the face, the blue comb and loss of appetite in the birds. There is no clear treatment but the infected birds can be isolated till they get better.

2. Newcastle Disease

This affects birds of all ages and is spread through the air. It is characterized with difficulty in breathing, facial swelling and twisting of the neck. Its treated using antibiotics.

3. The Laryngotracheitis

This normally attacks the older chicken and it is caused by the misuse of vaccines in broilers. It can be spread from the infected chickens to others to others through contaminated clothes, shoes and other things.

The chickens that are infected always have watery eyes and they have difficulty in breathing, have cough and they sneeze a lot. It can be treated using antibiotics and there is also a vaccine that can help in preventing it.