In order for the chickens to carry a sufficient number of eggs, it is necessary to organize a proper diet, an important part of which are vitamins for egg production. If a bird is fed only with food, it will not receive the right amount of nutrients, so poultry farmers should know what kind of food and vitamin supplements are needed for pets and when.
What vitamins do chickens need to increase egg production?
Minerals and vitamins are biological catalysts of metabolism and other processes that occur in the body of any living creature. Their lack violates the functionality of the internal systems, which leads not only to a decrease in egg production, but also to severe pathologies leading to the death of the animal.
Water soluble vitamins:
- IN 1. Lack of thiamine leads to loss of appetite, a decrease in egg production and further death. It normalizes the functionality of the endocrine and nervous systems of the chicken. Without thiamine, the muscle system is affected, hatchability is reduced, and the fertilization process is impaired.
- AT 2. Due to the absence of riboflavin, paralysis occurs, the bird does not grow, eggs are absent, because the vitamin accelerates all metabolic processes, restores tissue respiration and allows the body to absorb important amino acids more easily. And this affects fertility.
- AT 6. Adermin deficiency reduces egg production and hatchability. If it is enough in the diet, then growth is stimulated, skin and eye diseases are prevented.
- AT 12. Growth is weakened, anemia occurs. The bird does not need much cyanocobalamin, but amino acids do not form without it, and the protein obtained through plant feed does not become complete. This affects embryonic development, hatchability and egg production.
- Choline. Increases egg productivity. Without it, the liver is covered with fat, reduced vitality. Vitamin B4 should be administered to hens in small doses.
- Pantothenic acid. With a shortage, tissues are affected, dermatitis occurs. It is especially important to add to the diet during the embryonic period, since without this substance hatching decreases.
- Biotin. In the absence of skin diseases of chickens, the hatchability of eggs is significantly reduced. Vitamin B7 must be administered artificially, as it is in a difficult to reach formula in feed. The exceptions are oats, green beans, grass and bone, fishmeal.
- Folic acid. The lack is characterized by anemia, weakened growth, poor plumage, decreased egg production. Chickens B9 are partially obtained due to microbial synthesis. When a layer is fed with clover, alfalfa or grass meal, the protein level rises. In this case, the body needs more folic acid.
Fat-soluble vitamins:
- With a lack Vitamin A productivity decreases, there is no growth, the body weakens. It is possible to determine A-vitamin deficiency by examining the yolk of an egg - it becomes pale. Egg size is also decreasing. Especially lack of vitamin affects the visual organs - the cornea becomes overdried. Layers in this case are at risk of frequent morbidity.
- If not Group D, egg production decreases, rickets occur. Vitamin A influences bone formation, resulting in chicken bones becoming brittle and the eggshell loose. The main source is the sun's rays, so hens need to walk outside.
- Deficit vitamin e leads to a softening of the chicken brain, a decrease in immunity, weakening of muscle tissue and disorders of the nervous system. With enough vitamin E, the chicken lays eggs that are fertilized.
- With shortage vitamin K the level of blood coagulation worsens, internal bleeding occurs. Phylloquinone is synthesized by microorganisms and green vegetation. Deficiency rarely leads to morbidity, but reduces hatchability and egg production. Often, K-vitamin deficiency occurs against the background of feeding spoiled silage and hay.
Minerals:
- Calcium - The most important element without which the shell and skeletal system become weak. Determining the shortage is simple - the laying hen lays eggs with a very thin shell, eating it.
- Magnesium - its absence is characterized by a sharp decrease in egg productivity and sudden death of the chicken, weak bone system, and a deterioration in appetite.
- Without phosphorus eggshell is not formed normally, rickets occurs. It helps to absorb calcium, without which the diet of laying hens is impossible.
- a lack of iodine leads to an increase in goiter, which compresses the larynx, making breathing difficult. After the studies, it turned out that in chickens that were injected with iodine, egg production increased by one and a half times.
- Without gland anemia develops, laying hens stop laying eggs.
- Lack of manganese - bones are anatomically deformed, eggs become thin-walled, their number decreases.
- Deficit zinc leads to a deterioration in the condition of the skeletal system and a violation of the plumage process, against which the shell becomes thin.
The lack of each trace element slowly destroys the internal organs, but their overabundance can also lead to pathological processes. Therefore, it is important that the diet of vitamin food is balanced. You need to know that in winter the number of trace elements should be increased.
Complex vitamin preparations
Complex vitamin premixes are most often used in the winter, when there is a lack of herbs and other products. They are aimed at strengthening the immune system, increasing the body's resistance to viruses and infections, and restoring productivity. Giving chickens drugs should be strictly in accordance with the instructions.
Most popular remedies:
- Vitvod It is produced in the form of a solution that is injected to a layer or injected into water. Contains vitamins A, D3, and E. For prevention, the solution is administered subcutaneously or intramuscularly 1 time per month, for therapeutic purposes - twice a month. For oral administration, the liquid is added to water or food 1 time per day for 3 days.
- Wittree available in the form of an oil solution. It contains vitamins D3, A, E. Introduce the chicken intramuscularly or orally (through the beak). The liquid is added to the food once a day for 2-3 months. For preventive purposes, for 1 layer, 1-2 drops should be administered, for treatment - 3-6 drops.
- Vitamin and mineral supplement "Zdravur Lay." It consists of vitamins D, E, A, K, B2, B3, B5, B4, B6, B12, H, sodium and other minerals. The drug is rich in amino acids and important enzymes, which has a positive effect on the immune system and performance. Add to the chilled food daily 1 gram per 1 head.
- Ryabachka. It contains vitamin premix - N, A, B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, B6, B12, E, D3, K. Trace elements - iodine, iron, manganese, copper, cobalt, zinc, selenium, amino acids. Daily dosage for one laying hen: during prophylaxis - 0.5 grams, during therapy - 1 gram. The mixture is mixed with an equal amount of flour or bran, and then introduced into the general feed.
- Mineral complex Agroservice consists of proteins, vitamins and minerals - copper, zinc, iodine, cobalt, manganese, iron, selenium, phosphorus, calcium, etc. The daily dosage for 1 unit is 10 grams.
- Broiler house-keeper (from the producer KapitalProk). Contains vitamins, copper, iron, manganese, cobalt, zinc, selenium, iodine. The recommended daily dose for 1 laying hen is 1 gram.
- Sun. The drug is based on vitamins and minerals (cobalt, iodine, zinc, iron, copper, manganese, selenium). You can give chickens from birth, which will provide good egg production in the future. For 1 layer, from 0.1 to 1 gram is needed, depending on the degree of deterioration of the laying of eggs. Before adding to the feed, the contents of the package are combined in equal proportions with flour or bran. The feed must be chilled.
Minerals
Minerals are used to improve egg production, especially in the winter and when chickens are in locked rooms. They contain the shock number of calcium and other elements.
Today they are sold in specialized stores, but it is better to do them yourself. You can use the following:
- Give the chalk in large pieces, and the chickens will peck it on their own. But you can add chalk powder to the feed.
- Use home or store eggshells, but before giving them to the birds, be sure to interpret and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes at high temperature. This will avoid infection.
- You can crush seashells.
- Sand is also used, which is rich in minerals.
- Extinguish the lime, and let it stand for two weeks. Then add river sand and pour it into the feeder.
- It is allowed to give crushed stones, gravel, wood ash.
What fortified foods are given to laying hens?
There are many fortified foods for prawns, which are not only approved for consumption, but also recommended. But each food has its own characteristics.
Cereals
The main food product of poultry is grain crops, and they are different, therefore, the rules of diversity must be observed. If you mix several species and give such food at the same time, then nothing good will come of it.
The most useful cereals:
- Wheat should be included in the menu and make up 75-80% of the total grain mass, since it contains proteins and vitamins E, B.
- Barley is considered very nutritious, as it is based on carbohydrates. In all seasons they give in dry form, except for winter - you have to germinate.
- Oats are composed of fiber and fat, which prevents plucking feathers from each other. Giving should be steamed and sprouted.
- Rye is rich in proteins, but other useful substances are contained in small quantities, so it is not recommended to feed the bird constantly with this cereal.
- Chickens love corn, and this is justified, since cereal contains many substances necessary for egg production. The grains are pre-crushed, as their size clogs the esophagus. Corn can lead to obesity, so it is given in small doses.
Root vegetables and vegetables
What and how to give:
- Sugar beet or feed raw. Grate the root crop and add to the general feed mixture. Composition:
- vitamins - C, retinol, thiamine, riboflavin, tocopherol, pyridoxine, nicotinic acid, pantothenic, folic acid;
- minerals - iodine, manganese, zinc, iron, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, potassium;
- other - organic acids, flavonoids, pectin, betacyanins.
- Raw carrots - give in a similar way. It contains a group of vitamins B, A, E, C, PP, D. Also, magnesium, sodium, potassium, lithium, phosphorus and much more.
- Raw cabbage. This vegetable can be suspended, finely chopped or thrown whole leaves. The composition is very rich, but most of all vitamin C and B, calcium, iron, potassium, manganese, fluorine.
- Potatoes - exclusively in a well-boiled form, as raw contains toxins. When you boil the tubers, chop them and let the birds cool. Ingredients: vitamins C, K, A, E, B, minerals - sodium, potassium, magnesium, etc.
Bean Grain
From legumes, it is recommended to give beans, soy, black and white varieties, lentils. But it is undesirable to eat this food in its raw form, as it contains toxins. If it is thoroughly boiled (until fully cooked), then harmful substances will be in the water. Beans contain vitamins PP, C, B, many minerals, amino acids, proteins and fiber.
Beans are initially soaked for 40 minutes in water, then boiled. You can give as an independent dish or add to another food.
Mealy Meals
Some chickens do not tolerate certain products, so they produce mealy food, that is, flour. To do this, you can use oats, barley, wheat, soy, amaranth, corn.
Take grains, grind to a powder and add to any food.
Read more about the diet of laying hens here.
Protein Food and Worms
Protein food contains a large number of amino acids that fill the body with energy and are its building material. Such foods include products of plant and animal origin:
- peas and beans;
- sunflower seeds;
- rapeseed seeds;
- linen;
- sesame;
- cottage cheese;
- meat and fish offal (crushed);
- fish and meat flour;
- bone flour;
- serum.
Feeding layers of fish is undesirable, because the eggs will acquire a fishy smell. It is acceptable to add these offal in small portions 1-2 times a week.
Earthworms are protein foods. They contain up to 28% protein, fats, etc., which is necessary to increase egg productivity.
Hens easily peck worms, so they can simply be poured into the territory of the chicken coop. And to breed them, it is enough to use any material of an organic nature. This can be cleaning from potatoes, carrots, beets and other vegetables, root crops, horse manure, torn weeds, fallen leaves, paper. And you do not need to allocate a lot of space for reproduction, since this process occurs in a short time.
Nutritional supplements
Food additives include different types of flour, which were discussed above, but you can add the following:
- coniferous flour - obtained from dry branches by grinding;
- probiotics - strengthen immunity, restore the microflora of the stomach;
- seaweed (dry) - strengthens the eggshell;
- fish oil - improves productivity;
- not filtered apple cider vinegar - strengthens the whole body (added to water).
Greenery
Not a single layer can do without greenery. It must be present in the diet of all chickens. You can give alfalfa, fresh vegetable leaves, grain crops, dandelion and any grass.
Before serving, the greens are finely chopped with a knife. If possible, it is permissible to let the chickens go on an independent walk.
Other products
The list of products that can be given to increase egg production:
- Pure water. Without it, dehydration occurs in a laying hen, which negatively affects productivity.
- Breadcrumbs. Fresh bread, especially yeast bread, cannot be given, as fermentation occurs in the stomach. Rusks can be given in dry form, after crushing or soaking for a short time in water. But note that the bread must be dried thoroughly and not contain moldy areas.
- Pumpkin, squash, radish, squash. Gourds are cut and put into the chicken coop.
Give laying hens to increase the egg production of compound feed: KK-1, PK-1, Premix.
Harvesting vitamins for the winter
Some vitamins can be prepared for the winter since summer or autumn:
- Potatoes, beets, carrots and other vegetables that can be stored for a long time. Be sure to follow the safety rules so that the vegetables are not subjected to rot, drying and the development of diseases.
- Herbs. They can be dried in advance, and added in the crushed form to feed in winter. Also, herbs can be dried in bunches, and then hang them near the layers.
What food should not be given to laying hens?
There are food products that are strictly prohibited to laying birds:
- A large amount of salt. It turns out that it is enough for chickens to consume ordinary water, which contains a salt of 0.25% maximum. If salt is added to food, this will lead to intoxication.
- Solanaceous vegetables - tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant.If you give the fruit unripe or throw the leaf part, the bird will receive a shock amount of toxin - solanine.
- Citrus crops lead to allergic reactions, but not in all types of chickens.
- Onion contains thiosulfate, which is a toxic substance. It leads to anemia and death.
- Beans in dried form. It is also undesirable to give these crops undercooked. But if you boil them qualitatively, toxins are destroyed.
- Dry rice clogs the intestines.
- Apple seeds have an impact on chickens of cyanide, which leads to death. Therefore, if you introduce apples that are rich in iron into the diet, be sure to get rid of the seed part.
- Human food - sausages, salted fish, smoked meats and the like.
Raw eggs are very rich in useful substances, but laying hens are forbidden to give them. The reason is simple - cannibalism arises.
Choosing vitamins to increase egg production, it is necessary to take into account the age of the laying hen, the characteristics of the breed (some of them cannot tolerate certain products), the testimony of the veterinarian (possible diseases), climatic conditions. Based on this, you can make a balanced diet, and if necessary, seek the advice of a specialist.
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