#FarmersTrendMay 23, 2017Difference Between Kuroiler, Kenbro, Rainbow Rooster and KARI Improved Chicken2017-05-23T10:53:33+00:00 #Trending, Poultry Farming

As kienyeji chickens become more and more popular in Kenya, more and more breeds are entering the market.These improved breeds have higher productivity than the local kienyeji breeds. They have been bred for certain purposes. As a farmer, it is important to take advantage of the different kienyeji chicken breed’s characteristics to fit your purposes. For example, If you are keeping chickens for meat, a rainbow rooster gains faster weight than the improved KARI and kuroiler breeds. Here are some of the improved kienyeji breeds;

KARI kienyeji: This was bred from a range of indigenous chickens in Kenya by KARI (now KARLO) Naivasha. There are five distinct types distinguished by their colours (Table 2)

Kuroiler: This breed entered Kenya from Uganda but originates from India

Kenbro: This is a Kenchick breed

The rainbow rooster: This is a multi-coloured breed originating from India .

Here is a summarized table showing different kienyeji chicken breeds with their characteristics:

Description	KARI kienyeji	Kuroiler	Kenbro	Rainbow rooster
Purpose	Eggs and meat	Eggs and meat	Eggs and meat	Eggs and meat
Maturity (months)	5.5	5	4-5	5
Average egg production (per month)	15-20	18-20	20-25	20-25
Average meat production	Cocks: 2.0-2.2kg	Cocks: 2.2-2.5 kg	Cocks: 2.2-2.5	Cocks: 3.0 kg
Hens: 1.5-1.8 kg	Hens: 1.8-2.2 kg	Hens:  1.9-2.2 kg	Hens: 1.9- 2.2 kg
Feeding	Normal	Medium	Heavy	Medium
Sitting characteristics	Multi-coloured ones are good sitters	Poor sitters	Does not sit	Does not sit
Decline in production (years)	Hens: 1.5 years	Hens: 1.5 years	Hens: 1.5 years	Hens: 1.5 years
Cocks: 1.3 years	Cocks: 1 year	Cocks: 1 year	Cocks: 1 year
Disease resistance compared to each other	High	Low	Low	High

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Improved KARI indigenous chickens come in five different colours; spotted, white, black, brown and multi-coloured. They have the following characteristics;

Colour	Visual Features	Sitting	Laying	Weight/ meat
Spotted	Good camouflage	Poor sitters. 25% will sit	Poor layer	Faster weight gain Highest quality meat with better muscle structure
White	With some black	White starts laying earlier.Good layers. More eggs. Larger eggs, so stronger chicks	Becomes heavier
Black	With brown front	Moderate
Brown
Multi-coloured	More indigenous	Better sitters. 75% birds sit	Moderate layers

When starting on improved indigenous chicken business, consider the above characteristics and choose the breed that best suits your purpose. Ensure that you get your breeds from certified breeders for pure breeds.
Much Regards

1. BROODING CHICK

NO	ITEM	UNIT	QUANTITY	UNIT PRICE	TOTAL PRICE
1.	Day old chicks	pieces	500	105	52,500
2.	Cardboards	pieces	15	550	8,250
3.	Brooder lamps	pieces	10	750	7,500
4.	Brooding jikos	Pieces	5	1500	7,500
5.	Chicks feeders	pieces	20	350	7,000
6.	Chicks drinkers	Pieces	20	350	7,000
	TOTAL				89,750

2. FEEDS

AGE (WEEKS)	FEED TYPE	AMOUNT/70 KG BAG	COST KSH	TOTAL COST
0-8 Weeks	Chick mash starter and chick mash	10 bags	3500	35,000
8-20 Weeks	Growers mash	50 bags	2500	125,000
20 and above	Layers mash	About 250 bags till end of laying	–	–
TOTAL				160,000

• OTHER EQUIPMENT

EQUIPMENT	QUANTITY	UNIT PRICE	TOTAL AMOUNT
Round Feeders	20	600	12,000
Round drinkers	20	600	12,000
Laying nests	Later made	–	–
Perches and roosts	–	–	5,000
Saw dust and n/paper	–	–	5,000
Egg trays	Later	–	–
TOTAL			34,000

• VACCINES

TREATMENT	FREQUENCY	UNIT PRICE	TOTAL AMOUNT
Gumboro	2	500/100	1000
Newcastle Disease	3	500/100	1500
Vitamins and	3	500/100	1500
Fowl pox	1	500/100	500
Other antibiotics	–	–	2000
Dewormers	–	–	1000
TOTAL	–	–	7500

• GRAND TOTAL

NO.	ITEM	COST
1.	BROODING CHICKS	89,750
2.	FEEDS	160,000
3.	OTHER EQUIPMENT	34,000
4.	VACCINES	7,500
5.	MISC.	10,000
	TOTAL	301,250

NB:

1. The above projection is for 500 commercial layers from day one till 5months of expected maturity

2. The prices are subject to change either upwards or downwards depending on the market prices which fluctuates so this is not the final figures.

The technology requires one to understand the basic anatomy and physiology of the hen and cock’s reproductive tract. One must also be technically competent in semen collection and deposition procedures to achieve effectiveness in producing fertilised eggs.

MINIMAL STRESS

Prior to semen collection, cocks must be trained. This is done by massaging the bird’s abdomen and back for about a minute for three consecutively days.

This is the most commonly used method since it is non-invasive and has minimal stress on the cock.

The procedure involves restraining the cock followed by gentle but rapid stroking of the abdomen and back region towards the tail (testes are located in this region).

Doing this stimulates the copulatory organ making it to protrude.

At this point, the handler should quickly push the tail of the cock up with one hand and at the same time, using the thumb and forefinger, gently squeeze the region surrounding the sides of the cloaca to “milk” semen from the ducts of the copulatory organ.

Semen should then be collected in a small tube or any cup-like container. This procedure is repeated twice once a day; an additional round may cause damage to the testes and cloacal region. The volume of semen that can be collected from a single cock ranges from about 0.7 to one millilitre, with a sperm concentration of three to four billion per ml.

However, the quantity of semen depends on genetics and environmental factors such as age, bodyweight, season and nutrition.

The degree to which the male will respond to the abdominal massage technique and the pressure applied on the ejaculatory ducts will also influence the quantity of semen produced.

Chicken semen begins to lose fertilising ability when stored for more than an hour. Therefore, it must be deposited in the hen within an hour of collection. In the case of short-term storage and transportation of the semen, it is necessary to use liquid cold (four degrees celcius) storage to maintain spermatozoa viability for up to 24 hours.

Vaginal insemination is commonly used for semen deposition as there are less risks of injury to the hen.

Preliminary stroking and massaging of the back and abdomen is required to stimulate the hen. This is followed by applying pressure to the left side of its abdomen around the vent causing evertion of the cloaca hence protrusion of the vaginal orifice.

An inseminator containing the semen is inserted 2.5cm deep into this opening for semen to be deposited. As the semen is expelled by the inseminator, pressure around the vent is released so that the oviduct can return to its normal position and draw the semen inwards to the utero-vaginal junction.

LATE AFTERNOON

Inseminators such as straws, syringes or plastic tubes may be used. During insemination, the volume of semen required per hen is about 0.1ml, which contains about 100 to 200 million sperms. It is best to inseminate hens in the late afternoon between 2pm and 4pm since in the morning, hens may have an egg in the oviduct, making it difficult for the sperm to swim up to the ovary.

A significant feature of the reproductive physiology of the hen is the ability to store fertile spermatozoa for up to 14 days in the sperm storage tubules located at the utero-vaginal junction.

The tubules release the semen, slowly over time, which swim to the fertilisation site and allows hens to be inseminated consecutively for two days for the first time, and thereafter at regular intervals of 14 days.

Twenty-four hours after insemination, egg-breakout analysis is carried out to determine egg fertility.Much Regards

James M