Post by Predator on Jan 28, 2004 14:52:09 GMT -5
Natural Molting
Molting is a normal process of feathered species. Wild birds usually shed and renew old, worn plumage before the beginning of cold weather and their migratory flights. Since they lay only a few eggs, molting and reproduction are not usually associated.
Domesticated chickens bred for high egg production have a different molting pattern. A natural molt does not normally occur until the end of an extended, intensive laying period. Chickens that have been laying heavily for one year or longer molt easily in the fall since this is the natural molting season. If they finish their intensive year in the spring, they do not molt easily and may wait until the fall.
A chicken loses feathers from various sections of its body in a definite pattern. The order is: head; neck; feather tracks of the breast, thighs and back; wing and tail feathers. Some birds molt more slowly than others; some molt earlier. A good high producing flock tends to molt late and rapidly.
Decreasing day-length is the normal trigger for molting. Therefore, lighting programs for egg production flocks should provide either constant or increasing day-length. Stresses caused by temporary feed or water shortage, disease, cold temperatures, or sudden changes in the lighting program can cause a partial or premature molt.
Force Molting
Force molting is a method of extending the productive life of a laying hen. It forces her to take a vacation and come back ready to go. Force molting causes production to stop and body weight to be reduced. Properly molted hens can be returned to good levels of production in seven to eight weeks. Molted hens will seldom reach the high levels of production received from pullets, but will peak five to eight percent below the original level.
The most common approach is to force molt once after the hens have been laying about 14 months. They can be molted at this time and sold after 21 to 22 months from first lay.
The force molting procedure has been used as many as three times in the life of a flock. When three molts are planned, the first one is usually done after the hens have been laying for 12 months, the second after 18 to 19 months from first lay, and the third after 22 to 23 months. The hens are then sold after 26 to 28 months of production. This many molts for one flock can only be successful with the very best of hens. It is not recommended until after you have had some experience with force molting.
Two other alternatives are to molt twice in the life of a flock or not molt at all. Each molt can be expected to extend the productive life of the flock from four to six months. This assumes that the hens stay healthy and force molting is done properly.
In general, flocks that perform well as pullets perform correspondingly well as molted hens. Flocks that produce poorly during the pullet year stand a better chance of equaling or bettering their first-cycle egg production. However, this will be at a lower level than high-performance flocks.
Cost and availability of good replacement pullets, egg prices, fowl prices and success with force molting are some factors that need to be considered in the use of molting. Home flock owners tend to keep hens until production is very low. Force molting might improve performance if hens are going to be kept for longer than 14 months of lay. Whether or not a flock owners uses force molting depends on an evaluation of its merits under particular conditions. Some flock owners may find it never pays and others may profitably molt every flock on a routine basis. Because of the wide range of circumstances that can influence the decision, it is unwise to make general statements recommending continuous use of the practice or, on the other hand, to completely condemn its use.
Force Molting Procedure
Many procedures for force molting are available. There is not enough space to discuss them all. Most of these procedures have a common way to induce molt, which is to remove or limit light, feed and/or water. There is an endless number of versions based on the length of each phase of the program and the quality and quantity of feed given.
A good molting method is simple and easy to follow. It should not require many changes of ration. It must cause the entire flock to go rapidly out of production, and must keep it out of production long enough to allow an adequate period of rest. Finally, it should rapidly bring the flock back into production after the rest period.
The adequate length of the rest period is debatable. Most flocks are back to 50 percent production in the seventh, eighth or ninth week after the start of the molt. Rest periods as short as three weeks and as long as 12 weeks have been tried. The short molting periods do not allow adequate rest, and the longer periods keep hens out of production too long for good economics. However, there may be special reasons why the long or short molt is more useful than the normal molt.
The "California Method" works quite well in Nebraska except for cold weather molting. Adjustments needed for cold weather molting will be discussed later. The "California Method" is as follows:
For a rapid molt (return to 50 percent production in less than 6 weeks).
On day one, turn off artificial light in open housing or reduce lighting to eight hours in windowless housing.
Remove all feed for 10 days. Do not remove water.
Provide oyster shell during the 10 days.
After the 10 days of no feed, full-feed a regular laying ration and turn lights back to the normal program.
For normal molting (return to 50 percent production in six to eight weeks).
On day one, turn off artificial lighting in open housing or reduce lighting to eight hours in windowless housing.
Remove all feed for 10 days. Do not remove water.
Oyster shell feeding is optional.
Starting the 11th day, full-feed cracked grain for two or three weeks.
At the end of the grain feeding period, feed a normal laying ration and turn the lights back on.
For slow molting (return to 50 percent production in nine or more weeks).
On day one, turn off artificial lighting in open housing or reduce lighting to eight hours in windowless housing.
Remove all feed for 10 days. Do not remove water.
Do not feed shell.
Starting the 11th day, full-feed cracked grain for four or more weeks.
When ready to bring the flock back into production, feed a normal laying ration and turn the lights back on.
The only adjustment in these procedures that is important for force molting in Nebraska's weather when the temperature falls below 40°F is to reduce the severity of the feed restriction. Weather below this temperature is a stress in itself. Under these conditions, feed should be removed for no longer than five days. Three days may be adequate if the temperature is below 32°F in the house.
Hens should always be confined during the force molt period. Increased mortality can be expected and may be quite high in winter time molting. The fall season is the best for molting if your hens are in the proper stage of their life cycle.
Molting is a normal process of feathered species. Wild birds usually shed and renew old, worn plumage before the beginning of cold weather and their migratory flights. Since they lay only a few eggs, molting and reproduction are not usually associated.
Domesticated chickens bred for high egg production have a different molting pattern. A natural molt does not normally occur until the end of an extended, intensive laying period. Chickens that have been laying heavily for one year or longer molt easily in the fall since this is the natural molting season. If they finish their intensive year in the spring, they do not molt easily and may wait until the fall.
A chicken loses feathers from various sections of its body in a definite pattern. The order is: head; neck; feather tracks of the breast, thighs and back; wing and tail feathers. Some birds molt more slowly than others; some molt earlier. A good high producing flock tends to molt late and rapidly.
Decreasing day-length is the normal trigger for molting. Therefore, lighting programs for egg production flocks should provide either constant or increasing day-length. Stresses caused by temporary feed or water shortage, disease, cold temperatures, or sudden changes in the lighting program can cause a partial or premature molt.
Force Molting
Force molting is a method of extending the productive life of a laying hen. It forces her to take a vacation and come back ready to go. Force molting causes production to stop and body weight to be reduced. Properly molted hens can be returned to good levels of production in seven to eight weeks. Molted hens will seldom reach the high levels of production received from pullets, but will peak five to eight percent below the original level.
The most common approach is to force molt once after the hens have been laying about 14 months. They can be molted at this time and sold after 21 to 22 months from first lay.
The force molting procedure has been used as many as three times in the life of a flock. When three molts are planned, the first one is usually done after the hens have been laying for 12 months, the second after 18 to 19 months from first lay, and the third after 22 to 23 months. The hens are then sold after 26 to 28 months of production. This many molts for one flock can only be successful with the very best of hens. It is not recommended until after you have had some experience with force molting.
Two other alternatives are to molt twice in the life of a flock or not molt at all. Each molt can be expected to extend the productive life of the flock from four to six months. This assumes that the hens stay healthy and force molting is done properly.
In general, flocks that perform well as pullets perform correspondingly well as molted hens. Flocks that produce poorly during the pullet year stand a better chance of equaling or bettering their first-cycle egg production. However, this will be at a lower level than high-performance flocks.
Cost and availability of good replacement pullets, egg prices, fowl prices and success with force molting are some factors that need to be considered in the use of molting. Home flock owners tend to keep hens until production is very low. Force molting might improve performance if hens are going to be kept for longer than 14 months of lay. Whether or not a flock owners uses force molting depends on an evaluation of its merits under particular conditions. Some flock owners may find it never pays and others may profitably molt every flock on a routine basis. Because of the wide range of circumstances that can influence the decision, it is unwise to make general statements recommending continuous use of the practice or, on the other hand, to completely condemn its use.
Force Molting Procedure
Many procedures for force molting are available. There is not enough space to discuss them all. Most of these procedures have a common way to induce molt, which is to remove or limit light, feed and/or water. There is an endless number of versions based on the length of each phase of the program and the quality and quantity of feed given.
A good molting method is simple and easy to follow. It should not require many changes of ration. It must cause the entire flock to go rapidly out of production, and must keep it out of production long enough to allow an adequate period of rest. Finally, it should rapidly bring the flock back into production after the rest period.
The adequate length of the rest period is debatable. Most flocks are back to 50 percent production in the seventh, eighth or ninth week after the start of the molt. Rest periods as short as three weeks and as long as 12 weeks have been tried. The short molting periods do not allow adequate rest, and the longer periods keep hens out of production too long for good economics. However, there may be special reasons why the long or short molt is more useful than the normal molt.
The "California Method" works quite well in Nebraska except for cold weather molting. Adjustments needed for cold weather molting will be discussed later. The "California Method" is as follows:
For a rapid molt (return to 50 percent production in less than 6 weeks).
On day one, turn off artificial light in open housing or reduce lighting to eight hours in windowless housing.
Remove all feed for 10 days. Do not remove water.
Provide oyster shell during the 10 days.
After the 10 days of no feed, full-feed a regular laying ration and turn lights back to the normal program.
For normal molting (return to 50 percent production in six to eight weeks).
On day one, turn off artificial lighting in open housing or reduce lighting to eight hours in windowless housing.
Remove all feed for 10 days. Do not remove water.
Oyster shell feeding is optional.
Starting the 11th day, full-feed cracked grain for two or three weeks.
At the end of the grain feeding period, feed a normal laying ration and turn the lights back on.
For slow molting (return to 50 percent production in nine or more weeks).
On day one, turn off artificial lighting in open housing or reduce lighting to eight hours in windowless housing.
Remove all feed for 10 days. Do not remove water.
Do not feed shell.
Starting the 11th day, full-feed cracked grain for four or more weeks.
When ready to bring the flock back into production, feed a normal laying ration and turn the lights back on.
The only adjustment in these procedures that is important for force molting in Nebraska's weather when the temperature falls below 40°F is to reduce the severity of the feed restriction. Weather below this temperature is a stress in itself. Under these conditions, feed should be removed for no longer than five days. Three days may be adequate if the temperature is below 32°F in the house.
Hens should always be confined during the force molt period. Increased mortality can be expected and may be quite high in winter time molting. The fall season is the best for molting if your hens are in the proper stage of their life cycle.