Week 1: temperature, water, feed, light, and the signs that say all is well

This lesson is part of The day-old chick: the first 30 days specialisation. It opens to every registered student, from free registration. Levels 1 to 5 and the tracks remain readable by everyone.

The first 72 hours are over: the chicks have drunk, eaten and slept in the warm. Now begins the week that makes the chicken. From day 1 to day 7, the white broiler chick multiplies its weight by four, its gut and its skeleton are built, and every degree too many or too few, every litre of water not drunk, every badly set hour of light is paid for right up to sale. In level 1, you learned to read how the chicks spread out and to check the crop. Here, as an expert, you run the week with a written programme, figures for each day and signs to check, on a flock of 2,000 chicks.

• ✓Apply the first-week programme day by day: temperature, water, feed, light, brooder guard
• ✓Calculate the water and feed expected for your flock each day and spot a gap the same day
• ✓Read the eight signs that say the start is succeeding, and act on the ones that are missing
• ✓Weigh on day 7, calculate the average and the uniformity, and judge the flock with the School's benchmarks

1. The week's programme, day by day
2. The temperature curve: why you lower it, and how
3. Water: the consumption that must rise every day
4. Feed and light: from trays to feeders, from 23 h to 20 h
5. The eight signs that say all is well
6. The day 7 weighing: the flock's first report card
7. Going further

• •The week 1 programme is written before arrival: temperature, water, feed, light, guard, day by day; the flock is compared to this programme every day.
• •Temperature under the brooder: 33-34 °C D1-3, then −0.5 °C a day down to 30-31 °C on D7; in hot weather, curtains open from 10 h and brooders off in the hot hours; you judge at night, by the spread.
• •Water rises every day: 40 L on D1, 100 L on D7 for 2,000 chicks (× 1.2 to 1.5 in hot weather); a drop is an alert to deal with within the hour; water-to-feed ratio 1.8 to 2.
• •Starter feed: 160 g per chick in the first week, that is 7 bags for 2,000, in small frequent amounts; trays D1-3, tube feeders from D3-4, trays removed D6-7; light 23 h then 20 h on D7.
• •D7 weighing: 50 to 100 birds, 3 places; target 4 times the arrival weight (160-180 g for 41 g), uniformity ≥ 80%; example: 8,400 g ÷ 50 = 168 g = 4.1 ×, 42 out of 50 within 151-185 g = 84%.