What is the best formula for chicken feeds?

What is the best formula for chicken feeds? What if they are not mixed well

There is no particular formulation due the different and available breeds like layers, broilers, locals, and kuroilers among others. The birds are also fed according to the age and the type as well. However, the feeds should contain a certain percentage of proteins depending on the purpose of the birds; either meat or eggs? Because layers are purposely egg lying birds, they don’t need too much energy. They need as low as 15 per cent of proteins and have between 2750 to 2800 kilo calories.

Broilers can need as much 22 per cent of proteins and they should have between 100 to 3200 kilo calories because they are specifically meant for meat which requires a faster growth.

Kuroilers are duo purposes birds that can either be reared for meat or eggs. These ones need about 16.5 per cent of proteins and 2700 to 2800 kilo calories.

In this case the quality of feeds also matters a lot. Meaning, you will have to only go to certified dealers for feeds or take feeds for testing in recommended laboratories. This will help you distinguish between fake and genuine feeds. This is because if the birds are fed with inappropriate or poorly mixed feeds, they will be affected.

Among the effects that will come up after feeding birds on bad food include; low egg production, low growth rate and diseases; this can be as a result of contaminated feeds with bacteria or worms. There is also an aspect of loss of money due to wasted feeds.

Answered by Samuel Ssewagudde, a veterinary doctor affiliated to Genesis East Africa

Note this
Making sense of all the different varieties of chicken feed can be very confusing for first time and even semi-experienced chicken keepers. “Mash”, “grower feed”, “medicated or unmedicated”, there is so much jargon on the chicken menu it can genuinely be quite overwhelming.

Source: Backyard Chicken Coops

What is the treatment for cypress fruit mite?

Pest management tactics commonly used to control plantation forest pests include:
Physical management which may include the use of prescribed fire or light traps to reduce insect population levels; mechanical control which involves collection and destruction of the pupa and adult stages of the insect pest, especially during the early stages of an outbreak; Cultural management which includes thinning, management of surrounding natural forests, regulation of plantation density and taking steps necessary to maintain high quality.

Source: Agricultural Research Extension Network (ARENET)

What is the cause of swine fever?

Swine fever is a virus causes a lethal haemorraghic disease in domestic pigs. It is a viral disease that can cause death of animals within as quickly as a week after infection.

The swine fever virus is endemic to sub-Saharan Africa and it exists in the wild through a cycle of infection between ticks and wild pigs or bush pigs. The disease can be spread through interactions of wild pigs with domestic pigs, using infected equipments on the non- infected animals, people moving to infected farms to non-infected farms, giving pigs left overs that contain pieces pork that was got from an infected animal.

Swine fever symptoms include high fever or temperature. A gradually loss of appetite, and they may become depressed. A change in colour to white-skinned or an extreme of blueish-purple and haemorrhages become apparent on the ears and abdomen.
Infected pigs normally lie huddled together and shivering; they breathe abnormally, and sometimes develop a cough.

General body weakness and if forced to stand, they appear unsteady; there is foam that comes out of the mouth and mucus from the nose.

Within a few days of infection, they enter a comatose state and then die. In pregnant sows (females), spontaneous abortions occur. In milder infections, affected pigs lose weight, becoming thin, and develop signs of pneumonia, skin ulcers, and swollen joints.

The virus has 80 per cent of killer rate. So in case it storms your farm, immediately isolate the infected animals, burn and bury the dead animals. Get rid of all the animals on the farm (sell them for meat) and after, disinfect the farm at least three times and give the farm a resting period of three months.

Create a bio security to prevent the virus from affecting your farm. This calls for fencing and installing a gate to prevent unnecessary access to the farm. Create zones (clean and dirty zone). The clean zone is where the pigs are kept and eat from then dirty zone is where people should stop. Special clothes and shoes should be worn at the farm and everybody accessing the farm should disinfect their legs (worn shoes) and hands as well. All equipments used should be disinfected.

Answered by Samuel Ssewagudde, a veterinary doctor affiliated to Genesis East Africa

How can I control wilting of leaves in my seven-month-old Eucalyptus trees?
Moisture stress due to the long periods of drought. Poor soil conditions and lack of nutrients can inhibit root development showing many symptoms: shoot die back etc.
If it is bacterial wilt, the symptoms include leaf drop, death of stems and reduced growth rate and trees eventually die, then there is no cure.
Consult your local forest experts to establish the causes of wilting and for control measures.

What type of cassava can I plant in brown loam soils in Tororo? Where is the nearest point I can find the cuttings?
NASE 14 is the latest high yielding cassava variety released from the research institutues and is being promoted countrywide . It is resistant to Cassava Brown Streak Disease and can do well in brown loam, sandy loam and loam soils.
Please note that our organisation has a multiplication site of more than 20 acres of this variety and planted by technical staff from NARO.

What should be the size of a compost manure pit?
Normally, three pits are used to make compost. Turning from one pit to another faciltates uniform decomposition and thorough mixing of the material.
Prepare three pits two metres long by 1.5 metres wide and 0.5 metres deep in a cool shady place.

I recently got two indigenous cows. I need to know the best method of crossbreeding

Indigenous cattle are hardy but they have low milk and meat production levels. Exotic breed are high yielders but are not hardy.
To get best results you can cross the two types. Methods include: artificial insemination, multiple ovulation and embryo transfer, natural mating.

Source: Agricultural Research Extension Network (ARENET)