Ostrich farming

Comprehensive detail on ostrich farming

1. OSTRICH FARMING Submitted to: Sir Javeed Submitted by : ABDUL WAHAB

2. Contents: Intro to ostrich farming Breeds Habitat Brooding rearing managenent Breeding management Feeding management Laying management Incubation of eggs Quality of meat

3. Intro to ostrich farming: Ostriches are of the Ratite family, which means flightless bird and it is the largest bird in the world. The Ostrich is native to Africa, yet present in countries all over the world. Adult males are eight to nine feet in height and weigh 350-400 pounds. Females will weigh up to 300-350 pounds. A male Ostrich is called a rooster or a cock and a female Ostrich is called a hen.

4. Conti… Farming originated in South Africa(Karoo and Eastern Cape regions) in the 1860’s In early 1900’s there were many large farms throughout Australia. In 1914,following a world wide fall, the ostrich virtually disappeared from Australian agriculture but interest was revived in the late 1970’s. Douglass a pioneer in ostrich farming and also patented the first ostrich incubator (“The Eclipse”) in 1869.

5. Conti…. Ostrich are raised for Meat, Leather as well as for Egg purpose. Especially good for their meat. Eggs are edible but they are mainly used for breeding and art purposes. One pair of mature ostrich is worth about 8 ostrich eggs One adult ostrich yields around 100 kg of meat 100 kg meat is worth about 9 eggs One adult ostrich consumes about 35 kg of feed per day.

6. Breeds: Maasai Ostrich is Pink Necked with more quills. It’s the largest and can lay up to 40 eggs in one laying season. Somali Ostrich is Blue Necked with fewer quills that are far apart. Lays fewer eggs in two seasons/ March & August about 30 eggs. The have  smaller carcass.  Black necked Ostrich smaller in size and mainly found in temperate regions in Europe & South   Africa.

7. Conti… Crosses of Maasai & Somali Ostrich have a faster growth rate, higher mature weight, better quill spacing than the Somali ostrich.  Arabian Ostrich Southern Ostrich is the black necked ostrich. Found mainly in temperate regions especially South Africa.

8. Inhabitats: The towering birds live in sandy and arid habitats, particularly in open country. Common environments for these birds include savannas, woodlands, desert, plains, semi desert, dry grasslands and scrubs. These birds are also prevalent in environments that completely lack trees. Ostriches frequently bathe and swim, and typically stay in areas that are not far from reliable bodies of water. 

9. General Management Tips for Housing: Temperature should be located inside shelter to condition birds to enter the shelters freely. Feeder and waterers should be in open type and adjustable so that they can kept at chest height of the birds. Clean the waterers daily. Ensure proper mineral and vitamins in the feed for healthy growth of chicks and to void leg deformities. Commercial feed is absolutely essential.

10. Conti… Each ostrich require 60-80 square feet space inside the house. Birds require at least 1 acre floor space with six feet high chain link fence. Birds produce hide, leather or feather are sold at high price. Build a house according to the number of ostrich and your farming place.

11. Brooding rearing managenent: High mortality in ostrich chicks occur due to improper brooding and poor early management practices and these points should be kept in mind for brooding rearing management: Chicks should not be allowed to get soaking wet. It must be kept dry and sanitary at all times Should be designed for effective ventilation and ease in cleaning. Concrete floors in brooding units make them easy to clean.

12. Conti… Temperature at chick level should be 88 to 92 F during the first 10 days of life, then 80 to 85 F until they are 3 weeks of age. From 3 through 8 weeks the ideal temperature is between 70 and 80 F. If chicks are placed on litter material such as wood shaving, rice hulls, or washed builder's sand, the litter should be covered with burlap for the first 7 to 10 days to keep chicks from eating litter and developing intestinal obstruction problems.

13. Breeding management: Ostrich hens become sexually mature when they are between two and three years old, males usually a year later.  In the Northern hemisphere the breeding season runs from March till October. In the Southern Hemisphere the breeding season runs from August till February. The increase in day-length is the determining factor for the start of the breeding-season.

14. Conti… At the beginning of the breeding season, males show a distinctive reddening of the shins, the beak and the rims of the eyes.  The intensity of the reddening is correlated with the virility of the male, and consequently with the fertility rate of the eggs. Sometimes they fill their esophagus with air so that their neck looks like an inflated balloon. They then make a low monotonous booming sound.

15. Feeding management: FEEDING YOUNG CHICKS: Shallow food containers should be arranged all over the floor to make the food easy to find. It is also possible to use long narrow troughs or to spread the food initially or empty bags.  Mixing of chopped greens grated carrots and/or chopped hard-boiled eggs on or in the dry feed ration. Even coloring the food green is supposed to have a positive effect on the birds feeding.

16. Conti… Young chicks prefer roughly ground meal to pellets. Generally the birds like moistened feed better than dry meal. Chopped stinging nettle leaves can he given as a supplement and without limitation.

17. Conti… Feeding roughage: They like fresh greens. Fresh greens stimulate appetite, chopped greens like stinging nettles, clover, Lucerne or cabbage should be given three to four times a day in addition to the chick meal. The birds pluck the leaves off the bunches and the remaining stalks can be removed later. Such roughage, whether fresh or dried, must be ground or finely chopped.

18. Conti… For young chicks the length of chaff should be approximately 6mm but always less than the length of the small toe of the birds. The quantity of roughage in the ration can be increased with the age of the birds, and at the age of ten weeks may amount to up to 20% of the dry feed mass. 

19. Conti.. GRAZING AND RUNS From the age of two or three weeks grazing on a Lucerne or clover range is a viable alternative to greens feed. From the age of two weeks on chick's benefit from a run in the sunlight as it promotes the formation of vitamin D in the bird's body, which is important for bone growth. Exercise is very important. From about one week old chicks should be allowed space to run to exercise their legs and promote healthy growth

20. Conti… Drinking Water: First food on their second or third day the chicks should be offered drinking water. There should be one water container for every three food containers. The half size Agee preserving jar is a good size for the first two weeks. Whether the chicks are kept in a shelter or in a paddock, water intake, faeces and urine should be monitored closely.

21. Conti… The urine should be white.  Water containers for chicks must be cleaned daily and refilled with fresh water. Chicks and growers should never drink stale, warm water. Accordingly, water containers should not be exposed to direct sunlight and birds should not be kept on poorly drained range

22. Conti… Feeding related problems of Ostriches Generally poorly balanced rations (low food conversion rate, erratic weight gains, poor growth of feathers, bone and joint deformation in the legs, diminished resistance against infections) insufficient roughage in the rations (excessive ingestion of foreign matter like pebbles, branches and sand leading to impaction in stomach and intestine), too much fiber or too long fibers for chicks (impaction in stomach and intestine), insufficient supply of minerals (ingestion of soil and sand leading to impaction in stomach or intestine.

23. Conti… Roughage chopped too long for chicks (impaction in stomach and intestine). Too finely ground feeds (problems during ingestion, wastage of food, increased intake of foreign matter. Too large quantities of fresh greens for hungry chicks and adolescent birds (over- loading of the digestive tract, leading to impaction in stomach and intestine) or chronic diarrhea, Feeding stale food stuffs to chicks (impaction in stomach and intestine), Too much water intake by chicks (diarrhea)

24. Laying management: Well-nourished ostrich hens begin laying at approximately 2 years of age and are reported to have a productive life of more than 30 years. Egg production is variable but can exceed 70 eggs per year. Juvenile hens and cocks should be reared separately from 1 year of age to sexual maturity. Mature hens and cocks should be separated after the breeding season. Eggs are usually infertile during the early part of the breeding season. This is usually caused by infertility in the cock.

25. Conti… Breeding cocks should receive 16 hours of light per day beginning 3 to 4 weeks before being penned with their hens. Day length must never be shortened and light intensity must never be decreased during the laying cycle. The breeding pen for each cock and his two to four hens should be 1 to 3 acres in size and well drained. Birds in larger enclosures are more difficult to manage.

26. Conti… Eggs also will be more difficult to find and collect. Ideally, there should be a 6 to 8-foot-wide lane between pens to prevent fighting between cocks. Egg Production: Begin lay at 2 years of age Produce eggs for 30 years Produce 40-70 eggs per year Fertility rate 80% Incubation time to hatch 39 to 44 days Hatchability rate 80% Livability 80%

27. Incubation of eggs: Incubation parameters: In nature both males and females brood the eggs, hens during the day, cocks during night. The eggs are in contact with the parent bird's bare skin.  The temperature at the top of the egg is always higher than at the bottom.  When changing shifts, the eggs are turned and aired. 

28. Conti… Incubation of an ostrich egg takes 42 days on the average. In artificial incubation the temperature has to be around 97.5 degrees F.  Towards the end of incubation the temperature may be a bit lower since the embryo also produces heat at a later stage of development. Relative humidity is set between 20 and 35%.

29. Conti… Embryonic development: Eggs should be placed in the incubator with the air gap upwards. Eggs must be turned 2 to 8 times daily. This helps avoiding build-up of waste products inside the egg. The embryonic development can be followed by candling the egg, with a torchlight for instance.  Candling is usually done once a week.  

30. Conti… Hatching: The temperature in the hatcher has to be 2 - 3 degrees C lower and the R.H. slightly higher.  Eggs are transferred to the hatcher room at 39 days or as soon as internal pipping can be heard.This happens when the fully formed embryo breaks through the membrane into the air sac for its first breath of air. 

31. Conti… Incubator room: The environment (temperature, relative humidity) of the incubator room has to be controllable.  The room should be ventilated, exhausting air directly to the outside rather than re-circulating the same air. All parts of the room should be washable.  No visitors must be allowed, and a foot bath and hygienic clothing for the personnel is necessary. Before introducing eggs the incubator and all equipment must be cleaned and disinfected, using hot water and a disinfective soap or Vircon.

32. Quality of meat: You can find no better meat in existence today than ostrich meat. When it is combining great taste with healthiness. Ostrich is a red meat and is lower in cholesterol, calories and fat than chicken or turkey. It still remains high in protein and iron. Due to this meat having good nutrients, it comes highly recommended as the leading protein source from the American Heart Association, the American Diabetic Association and the American Cancer Association.

33. Conti… Ostrich meat has a pH balance that is ideal, so this meat doesn't harbor harmful bacteria such as salmonella or E. coli like chicken and other meats do. The combination of good taste, great flavor and nutrition and the veritable ease in cooking is the reason ostrich meat is found on the menus of several of America’s finest restaurants.