Layer feed: calcium, phosphorus, particle size and the shell
Every night, a layer deposits 2 grams of calcium around an egg, the equivalent of all the calcium in her skeleton every twelve days. If the feed does not bring it to her at the right time and in the right form, she takes it from her bones, then the shell gets thinner, then the eggs break at collection, then laying falls. This lesson covers what is particular about layer feed: the quantity of calcium according to age and heat, the size of the shell pieces and why it matters, phosphorus and its balance with calcium, then reading the shell as the dashboard of the formula. With, at the end, the calculation of what 2% broken eggs cost on 2,000 hens.
14 min read · 5-question quiz at the end
By Abdul Hussein ChoumanFounder of NEXTEKCI · Agnibilékrou hatchery since 2006This lesson is part of Level 11 — Making feed on the farm. It opens to registered students who have passed the level 10 exam. Levels 1 to 5 and the tracks remain readable by everyone.
- ✓Explain how the shell is formed and why the layer needs calcium in coarse pieces available at night
- ✓Set the calcium rate of the feed according to age and intake, with the calculation of grams per hen per day
- ✓Set available phosphorus and its ratio to calcium, and adapt the formula to the heat
- ✓Read the shell (weight, thickness, appearance) to detect a formula defect before breakage