(a) State 6 activities that could be carried out in the brooding of chicks (b) Explain each of the following management practices in poultry production i. d...

(a) Six activities carried out in the brooding of chicks

• Providing artificial heat/warmth for the chicks with a heat source (charcoal pot, electric bulb or gas brooder).
• Supplying clean, cool drinking water in shallow drinkers.
• Providing feed (chick starter/mash) in clean feeders.
• Spreading clean, dry litter/bedding on the floor and replacing wet litter.
• Providing adequate lighting and ventilation in the brooder house.
• Vaccinating and medicating the chicks and guarding them against predators and rodents.

(b) Management practices

• Deworming: the administration of anthelmintic drugs to animals to remove or destroy internal parasites (worms) living in the digestive tract, so as to improve health and productivity.
• Culling: the removal (and disposal) of unproductive, sick, deformed or unwanted birds from the flock so that only healthy, productive birds are kept.
• Debeaking: the trimming of part of the upper (and sometimes lower) beak of birds to prevent cannibalism, feather pecking, egg eating and feed wastage.
• Delousing: the treatment of birds with insecticides/pesticides to destroy external parasites such as lice and mites.

(c) Four signs of ill health in poultry

• Dullness and reduced activity, with the bird often isolating itself from the flock.
• Loss of appetite and reduced feed and water intake.
• Ruffled or rough feathers and a drooping appearance.
• Sudden drop in egg production, and diarrhoea with a soiled vent.

(d) Two organs of the circulatory system of farm animals

• The heart.
• The blood vessels (arteries, veins and capillaries).