If broiler-breeder producers are not using separate drinkers and drinking lines for each gender, they run the risk of spilling more water and subjecting their birds to the health risks associated with wet floors and wet litter.
Rob Steiner, account manager for Ziggity Systems, gave an overview of why outfitting barns with gender-specific water lines and drinkers is important while speaking at the “Broiler Breeder Watering: Benefits Using Dedicated Male and Female Drinker Lines” Tech Talk on January 25 at the International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE), in Atlanta, Georgia.
Steiner said most broiler-breeder producers want four main things from their watering systems. Those are:
- Hygienic, pathogen-free water for both the male and female birds
- Adequate water ingestion to accompany the birds’ feed intake
- Dry environmental conditions
- The best production results as possible.
To achieve those desired results, it is important to install dedicated male and female drinker lines with gender-specific drinkers.
With dedicated drinker lines, it assures broilers get hydrated through what Steiner refers to as “heads-up drinking.”
“In order for (chickens) to ingest water, they have to use gravity. Birds can’t swallow, so making sure that the drinker is placed in a position above the bird’s head so that during the drinking process, they are actually ingesting water, is really, really important,” said Steiner.
“If the drinker lines are too low, the birds will come in at the wrong angle. Gravity will now become the enemy because (the water) is going to go onto the floor, not into the bird. It’s really critical with a nipple-type system, and it’s really critical with breeders, because your males and females are at different heights.”
With gender-specific lines and drinkers, that means more water is going into the bird and less of it is going onto the floor.
“As a poultry producer, water is your friend only if it goes into the bird. If it’s wasted, it becomes your biggest enemy,” he said.
Drinker flow rates
Just as it is important to make sure the drinkers are at correct heights, the water needs to be pressurized relative to the size of the chickens’ beaks. Less water pressure should be applied to the birds with smaller beaks, while larger beaks can have a higher pressure. Just be careful not to get the pressure too high.
“If you are too aggressive on pressure, you oversupply. Water goes on the floor and creates the wet floor challenges we are trying to avoid,” Steiner said.
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