People who have a chicken coop in the country house or in the courtyard of a private house know how important it is to periodically disinfect it. It is on this procedure that prevents the emergence and development of pathogens that the health of layers and broilers largely depends.
What is chicken coop disinfection?
This is an extremely necessary measure to minimize the number of diseases in adults and young birds, as well as significantly improve the quality of meat and eggs. This procedure is recommended at least once a year. In addition, you need to ensure that every six months a deep preventive cleaning is carried out in the chicken coop. Ideally, redevelopment of premises intended for keeping poultry should be carried out at least once a quarter.
Why is disinfection necessary?
As a result of the activity of poultry, a huge amount of litter remains. It mixes with feathers, leftover food and hay, and then settles on the floor and perches of the chicken coop. In order to prevent diseases of laying hens and for the safe growth of chickens, it is necessary to regularly disinfect the chicken coop in winter.
How to perform this procedure?
For greater convenience of the poultry breeder, disinfection of farm buildings intended for breeding and keeping livestock should be carried out during the absence of laying hens. For this period it is better to resettle them in a separate warm and dry room. Having got rid of the bird, you can begin to clean the room.
Preparatory stage
It should be understood that the disinfection of the chicken coop should be carried out in special clothing, which can then be returned to dry cleaning. All work is preferably carried out with gloves and a protective mask. To remove litter, you can use hard brushes, brooms and a scoop. After removing the remnants of birds from the floor of the chicken coop, you need to sweep out all the garbage accumulated there.
To clean the floor, walls and perches, you can use a mild non-toxic disinfectant for chicken coop. Many experienced poultry farmers recommend using ordinary apple cider vinegar diluted with water in a 3: 2 ratio. Before treating the chicken coop with this solution, the walls and perches are washed twice with clean water. Such a sequence of actions will allow for deep cleaning and will guarantee no unpleasant odors.
Final stage
When selecting disinfectants, it is necessary to take into account the main features of birds. So, chlorine-containing preparations for a long time disappear and often cause irritation of the nasopharynx of laying hens. Actively used earlier formalin has a sharp corrosive odor, which is felt even through a respirator. Therefore, those who chose it as a disinfector are recommended to process the premises in a special suit for chemical protection. In addition, formalin is prohibited in many European countries. Some poultry farmers use special quartz chicken house disinfection lamps. It is believed that they kill all pathogenic microflora.
Most popular poultry disinfection products
To process the chicken coop in the country, you can use the effective and inexpensive preparation of domestic production “Glutex”. It is made on the basis of glyoxal, glutaraldehyde and didecyldimethylammonium chloride, and is therefore ideally suited for the disinfection of rooms intended for keeping birds and animals. This product is available in the form of a concentrated liquid in a saturated green tint.The solution prepared from it has a fungicidal, virucidal and bactericidal effect. It does not cause allergic reactions and does not destroy tissue and metal surfaces.
Before using this tool, it is necessary to conduct a thorough mechanical cleaning of the room. When calculating the flow rate of a weakly concentrated solution, the size of the chicken coop must be taken into account. For each square meter of area, about 0.3 liters of diluted preparation will be required.
Another equally effective tool used for processing poultry houses is “Delegol”. The composition of this drug includes components such as orthophenylphenol, isopropanol, lactic acid and parachloromethacresol. It is a clear, easily soluble liquid of a pleasant bluish tint.
How is chicken coop disinfected in the presence of a bird?
Immediately make a reservation that this procedure is called reorganization. It is aimed not at the complete destruction of pathogenic microorganisms, but at a significant reduction in their concentration. During its implementation, it is important not to harm the layers. Therefore, such a disinfection of the chicken coop is carried out by means of low doses of gentle preparations. Usually it is repeated no more than once a month. In addition to the fact that the inventory and walls of the room are sprayed with a special solution, it is advisable to perform air cleaning during the renovation, which prevents the development of fungi and pulmonary diseases. This can be done with the help of sulfur or iodine blocks, when set on fire, steam spreads around the room, killing pathogenic bacteria. After a half-hour treatment, the chicken coop needs to be well ventilated.
In addition to the above checkers, “Ecocide” can be used to purify air in the presence of a bird. When determining the amount of this product, it is necessary to take into account the size of the chicken coop. Irrigation with cold fog or a 0.5% solution is based on thirty milliliters per cubic meter.
How to keep the coop clean between cleanings?
In order to always have order in the house, you need to follow a few simple rules. Experienced owners recommend equipping the chicken coop with special boards for collecting litter. They need to be placed under removable perches.
The floor in the room should be covered with a layer of sand. It is much more convenient and practical than hay and pine shavings. It is also advisable to periodically wipe the walls and perches from the dust accumulated on them.
Useful Tips for Beginner Breeders
First of all, it is necessary to ensure the presence of the so-called quarantine zone, in which all recently purchased chickens will be placed. Beginners should be examined and treated with antiparasitic agents. In the hot season, it is advisable to wash birds in a 25% solution of creolin.
Feet of the bird should be inspected regularly for ticks. The presence of these parasites can be recognized by the fact that plaque appears on the skin of infected birds, which looks like powder. Untimely removal of ticks can cause growths.
At least once a month, it is recommended to add anthelmintic drugs to the wet mash intended for feeding adults.
How to get rid of chicken fleas?
Unlike ticks, peroids live on the skin of birds. They feed on feathers, down and dead particles of the epithelium. The size of these insects reaches two millimeters, so they can be viewed with the naked eye. Hens infected with fleas become very restless, they begin to pull out their own plumage and constantly strive to fall out in dust or sand.
The only effective way to get rid of these small parasites is to treat the house with special tools. This can be done not only medicinally, but also for preventive purposes, without waiting for the appearance of the first symptoms indicating the presence of a cannibal.
It should be understood that folk methods do not always bring the desired result. Therefore, it is better not to waste time picking potato or carrot tops, but to immediately use modern chemicals. Especially effective is the combination of sulfur and α-cypermethrin. This mixture is guaranteed to help destroy all the parasites that live in the chicken coop, including flies, lice, ticks and fleas. And the best result is fumigation, not a wash, during which many surfaces are left without proper treatment. The fog easily penetrates into any inaccessible places and kills not only adult parasites, but also their larvae.
How is this process carried out in a poultry farm?
If an ordinary winter chicken coop can be disinfected independently, then here you can not do without the help of qualified specialists. Also, this requires the presence of special equipment and a “free-busy” production cycle, in which all birds are removed from the premises for a period of four to seven days.
Such disinfection of the chicken coop is an integral part of the technological process, since most of the livestock needs serious measures aimed at the destruction of infectious pathogens. In large farms, everything follows a similar pattern. Pre-swept and cleaned from litter the room is thoroughly washed with high-pressure apparatuses. Usually they are filled with hot water or blowing agents. After that, all concrete surfaces are treated with freshly slaked lime, and the floor, walls and equipment are subjected to wet disinfection.
Then, litter and the necessary equipment are brought into a carefully dried and ventilated room. At the final stage, the house is treated with special aerosols and closes for at least a day. After this time, laboratory control is carried out, according to the results of which a decision can be made to repeat the final stage of disinfection.
