?? Bird is boss - What does this means?

Poultry has evolved beyond what was once thought possible, yet I get to see lots of people who still have to make it work under the most challenging conditions.

Today’s genetics are capable of wonderful things, but in exchange for lots of unforgivingness, and there are places where rearing modern birds can be far less than ideal.

We have to remain practical.

And the most practical thing you can do is put the birds in charge, by learning to follow its directions.

I’ve seen it way too many times, farmers lose their way as they make the huge effort of investing in automation, for example, when all of sudden all the decisions are entrusted to the machine.

So the machine is boss now. It knows best, right??

But not always, and we all understand and acknowledge this, right? Maybe it decalibrates over time, or something weird like that, right?

Meaning that the machine has its own boss, some tech guy who often lives in another country far away, and he’ll be back who knows when, right?

So who’s in charge and where are they right now?

In the meantime, the farmer is losing money.

Not very practical, I think.

So yeah, get the tech guy here asap and figure it out, but you still need to promote the birds, make them boss, and start following their orders.

Sometimes it’s not a machine.?

Sometimes the owner will leave clear orders to be followed to the letter by the farmer.?

Sometimes feed suppliers, hatchery people, or nosey neighbors will have an opinion about how it’s done.

Sometimes some foreign, foul-mouthed veterinarian, who’s hardly ever here, will tell you what to do, as if he knows.

We’re never there when it matters, and the one who truly knows what’s going on right now is the damn bird.

In the end, having the birds in charge is in no conflict with owners, consultants or technology.

Be practical and do as the birds say.

Marching orders

When it comes to the population:

Are they bundled together? They’re cold.

Are they scattered all over the place, panting? Hot.

They look comfy, chirpy, lively? There you go Goldilocks.

Are they eating and drinking? How much??

Are you sure how much they’re supposed to eat and drink today?

Is the house too loud or too quiet? Is that sneezing or coughing? Is that good air?

Put yourself in their place and see if you’d be comfortable.

Would you eat from those plates? Would you drink their water? Why not?

When it comes to the individuals:

Right there in the house, sample some birds for closer inspection, start with their heads.

In long-living birds, wattles and combs will say a lot about general health.

In any case, are the eyes round and lively?

Are airways and mouth free of mucus and such?

Any respiratory or other weird sounds?

As you’re crouching right there doing all this, how’s the air? How’s the smell?

How’s the litter? Caked? Wet?

Are you getting too dirty doing all this? Should you?

Would you be comfortable living like this?

Anyways, back to the individuals, check their legs.

Are you sure about the litter??

Do not get used to footpad lesions, just because it’s frequent doesn’t mean it’s normal, much less right…

Swollen hocks? Dehydrated scales??

Check their body for droopy dull feathers, which are another indicator of general health.

Are you 100% sure about that litter?

Any external parasites?

How about scratches? How old are the birds??

Are they breeder hens, where some roughing is expected? What’s admissible here?

Would you be ok with all this?

The birds will undoubtedly tell you if they’re ok with all this.

Check their droppings.

What do healthy droppings look like?

Can you tell a regular one from a cecal one?

You might want to open up a few of the regular looking birds, but that’s a story for another day…

Bottomline:?

You know what performance looks like, you know what comfort looks like, and one will follow the other.

Be empathetic, put yourself in the bird’s place, and appeal to common sense.

None of this is in conflict with leveraging technology and best practices, but don’t forget who you’re doing all this for.

Remain practical by checking often with the boss; if the birds are happy, you should be alright.

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