How to make a broiler cage with your own hands
Growing broiler-type chickens presented in various photos and videos is a rather profitable activity, you can build an excellent business on it, ensuring yourself and your family a comfortable existence and the availability of fresh chicken meat every day. You need to start manufacturing small, that is, organize a small home-type poultry farm, make cages for broilers with your own hands in order to save initial financial investments.
DIY broiler cages
Before proceeding with the purchase of poultry and starting to grow farm broilers in cages, you need to decide where the chicken coop, what kind of net and equipment you need and also understand how to make cages for broilers with your own hands. This will be discussed further. There is always a small amount of timber on the farm, plus the manufacture of a drinker will be added, which is easy to make yourself. The net is purchased so that its size corresponds to the number of intended heads.
Requirements for chicken cages
Broiler chicken cages are not just metal fences, they are rooms in which the bird should feel comfortable and comfortable. poultry farmers recommend adhering to all the rules, such as:
- Stocking density
- Constant access to water
- No drafts
- Adequate lighting
- Warm litter on the floor, etc.
If we are talking about a large poultry farm, then the content of the heads is block, the size of the blocks or tiers can be simply huge, and in the industrial economy they are thinking over a system of automatic filling of feeders and drinkers in order to simplify the process of caring for birds as much as possible.
In the conditions of home breeding of chickens, you can use more primitive cages, for example, batteries - a special structure of cages for chickens and find drawings of spacious cages for broilers. Based on the feedback from farmers, such a device helps to save on mixed feedas well as on bedding. Also, the battery helps to save space in the room with the birds, while the person caring for the bird can freely take care of the broilers, that is, change the water, add feed to the feeder or replace a leaky one. bedding On the floor.
What cells are used in home farms
To make a broiler cage with your own hands, you need to use the standards that are used in poultry farming. Do-it-yourself types of broiler cages are used, which differ in number and stocking density.
- Cage for 4 - 10 heads
- For 12 - 20 individuals
- For 20 - 40 chickens
Provided that the cage is made with their own hands as an economy, many make the mistake of making equipment too bulky, trying to place as many birds in it as possible, making huge feeders and drinking bowls when a simple design is suitable for several heads.This should not be done, since during use when broilers live in cages, it turns out that such a cage structure is extremely inconvenient. Therefore, it is recommended to build cells over several blocks or batteries.
When planning a model, it is necessary to take into account the fact that chickens are heat-loving birds, that is, in winter they require additional heating... It is recommended to take this fact into account at the planning stage of the broiler cage. Also keep in mind that it is better to start breeding birds in spring, and in winter, on the contrary, it is better to thin out the rows of broilers, leaving the strongest and most persistent, a maximum of 12-15 individuals.
Cell material
Since several individuals live in a do-it-yourself broiler cage at once, it is worth considering that their total mass may not be small. For this reason, the first thing to take care of is that the structure must be sturdy. For this, reinforcement is added to the base, it will hold strength. The standard thickness of the base should be at least 2 centimeters, with lateral reinforcement being strictly required. If everything is done correctly, then the cage will be able to withstand up to 30-40 kilograms. For the walls of the cage, a material that is not as thick is chosen from which homemade cells are made in broiler cages.
The material list looks like this:
- Metal mesh, metal sheets with mesh
- Metal plates for reinforcement
- Plywood, rails for its fastening
- Screws and nails
We will not list what tools will be needed to work on the cells, since, usually, such a tool is in every man's house.
Detailed description of works
When you have a ready-made drawing of the cages in your hands, where the needs of the birds and the ease of caring for them are thought out, you can start directly working on cutting and assembling parts. It is worth saying that the drawings can be developed independently, or you can find on the Internet those that will best meet your requirements, it can be either a photo or a video instruction.
Stages of work:
- We create racks, there should be at least 6 of them, based on the following standard parameters: length - 150 centimeters, height - 7 cm, width - at least 2 cm;
- When the racks are ready, you can start connecting work, that is, assemble them into a frame. In this case, several racks will be used: two with dimensions of 5 by 2 cm, six with dimensions of 3 by 2 and three with dimensions of 10 by 3 centimeters;
- Sidewalls are usually made from plywood or wooden beams, as it is not expensive and easy. Focus on size 31 by 58 cm, their number should be 9;
- Be sure to take into account when building a container for collecting garbage and waste; in poultry farming, for this purpose, pallets from a woven lattice with a metal profile are used, they are durable and convenient to use. The size of one pallet - length - 31 cm, height - 21 cm, width - at least 68 cm;
- We proceed to the formation of the roof, it is also made of plywood or wood, although a thin sheet of metal can also be used. Product dimensions should be as follows: 80 x 150 cm;
- Please note that the part of the cage that faces the person must be covered with a net so that the bird can feed through these holes.
Advice from experienced poultry farmers. Those who have been breeding and raising chickens for several years recommend equipping broiler cages with wheels. This will greatly facilitate the process of cleaning the birds, as well as make the structure maneuverable, that is, more convenient.
To organize the feeding and consumption of water by chickens, it is recommended to buy ready-made designs of feeders and drinkers, especially since their price is not high. You just have to install them in the right place, securing them on sturdy brackets.
What you need to know about keeping chickens in cages
Now you know where to start breeding and growing broilers, namely how to make a cage for chickens with your own hands, what it should be.We will find out what the pros and cons can accompany the cage growing of domestic broilers.
Pros:
- These cells, formed into batteries, help to save space, which is important for home breeding of broilers;
- Caring for birds is greatly simplified, since the system provides a removable tray for droppings and other waste;
- Ease of assembly - if you follow the drawings and instructions, you can easily assemble the cage, since it is not difficult for any household man;
- These cages prevent chickens from coming into contact with other poultry, allowing for a healthy broiler population.
- Feeding is simplified as much as possible, since the process of filling the feeders and drinkers takes place from the outside of the structure
- In conditions cellular content it is possible to breed both day old chickens and adult layers
- The appearance of such structures is neat and compact.
Minuses:
- It is worth saying that, despite the ease of assembly, the process takes a lot of time, you need to have a lot of free time in stock.
- You will need to independently think about how the cage will be heated, as well as make lighting.
Now you know how to make a broiler cage yourself at home, without using the services of professionals. The content of cells and the manufacture of equipment can be viewed on video. Of course, only you will make the decision whether to buy ready-made cells or try your own hand.