A Study on Backyard Chicken Farming and Management at Sakhipur,Tangail

Abstract

The rural populace of Bangladesh depends largely on backyard chickens for protein. From February 17th to May 28th, 2022, this research intended to examine the management system and production performance of backyard chickens in the Sakhipur Upazila, Tangail. The goal of the study was to learn more about the present condition of backyard chicken farming, including data on raising, feeding, housing, breeding, live weight, stocking density, sickness incidence, marketing, vaccination, and other management methods. Through a conducted questionnaire, data were gathered at random from 30 households in the Sakhipur Upazila and statistically evaluated. Farmers in the study region were mostly low producers, about 63.3%, with flock sizes averaging 13. Most (93.3%) of the chickens were raised in the housing of the farmers and 6.67% of chickens were raised in the poultry houses made on fallow land. About 70% of farmers did not use any litter materials in their poultry houses. Litter materials used by the farmers were ash (16.67%), rice husk (6.67%), sand (3.33%), and sawdust (3.33%). About 50% of farmers provided broken rice and rice polish,13.33% provided steamed rice, and 26.67% provided rice and wheat bran as chicken feed. Additionally, 10% of the farmers provided ready feed. Almost all the poultry raisers reared their poultry through a scavenging system (80%). In 66.67% of the households, women were the main poultry raisers. Most (83.3%) of the farmers did not vaccinate their poultry. Diseases were present at about 93.3% of farms where the mortality rate was about 30.83%. Fowlpox and Newcastle disease was identified as the major threat to the backyard poultry. The disease was diagnosed by clinical signs and symptoms in most(85.71)% of the case. There were hardly any biosecurity measures taken by the farmers as most of them have no idea about it. The average body weight of an adult chicken was around 996 gm and the market price of an adult chicken was on average BDT 468. Egg production of chicken was on average 44.8 eggs per hen per year and the market price of an egg was BDT 11.83. All of the farmers used broody hens for incubation and about 37 chicks hatched per hen per year. Farmers sell their live birds to the nearest market and also to broker and middleman who comes to their house for buying chicken.