Design And Construction Of A Battery Cage (2nd Edition)

1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
The production of eggs for human consumption is based on several technologies, based on the knowledge and experience gathered for more than a century. Until recently, the battery cage production system was believed to be the most intensive, most efficient and most appropriate for rearing laying hens (Kabakchiev, 2010). The development of this system has also gained many opponents, who denied it from the point of view of animal welfare.

The poultry egg industry in Nigeria has developed rapidly over the past few decades. Until 1960, laying chickens were reared in open barns located in the corners of farmyards. Production in closed barns began in the early 1960s, when poultry farming began to become a full-time operation. The battery cage system was introduced into Nigeria in the mid-1980s, and barns without open side curtain walls were first built in 1984 by several poultry farmers. Since then, commercial egg production systems have moved toward bigger farms and a large part of the egg production costs can be reduced through the automation of facilities. Since 1980, there has been a change from full-time poultry farms to poultry factories (Green et al, 2010). With the modernization of the egg production system, specialization in hatching, rearing, egg grading, and packing has taken place and vertically and horizontally integrated systems have been established (Green et al, 2010).

Housing system is an important factor that influences the production performance and some egg quality parameters.

Different production systems are available in laying hens’ husbandry such as conventional, enriched cage, and free range systems.

1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT
When chicks grow up, you may need to transfer them to a cage. Cage raising is better for a commercial farm because it saves space and feed. Moreover, the chickens are separated from the manure, cage raising reduces the spread of disease and the risk of infection.

Nowadays, more and more farms are choosing to buy battery cages to raise chickens. According to incomplete statistics of customer data, from 2018 to 2019 alone (Yousaf et al, 2019), thousands of buyers imported chicken battery cages from China. It also shows that the farmer’s demand for cage farming is gradually increasing, and cage farming has become a major trend in poultry breeding. Importing battery cage costs lots of money, this study was carryout to build a battery cage with locally made material (Green et al, 2010).

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The objectives of this study are:

1. 1. To build a type of intensive poultry housing system in which chickens are kept in compartment units.
   2. To provide a means of making eggs roll from the back to the front of the cage for easy collection
   3. To minimize waste from poultry birds

1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
This scope of this work is on building system for poultry farming which involves the arrangement of similarly-looking cages in rows and columns.

Also, the rows and columns of the battery cage are closely knit together with the same dividing walls as the cells of a battery.  Battery cage is associated with poultry farming, but one can also use it to keep other animals. What differentiates the chicken battery cage from most other cages is that its floors slope from back to front.

1.5 ADVANTAGES OF BATTERY CAGE
The following economic advantages to battery cages (Appleby et al., 2014):

1. 1. 1. It is easier to care for the pullets; no birds are underfoot.
      2. Floor eggs are eliminated.
      3. Eggs are cleaner.
      4. Culling is expedited.
      5. In most instances, less feed is required to produce a dozen eggs.
      6. Broodiness is eliminated.
      7. More pullets may be housed in a given house floor space.
      8. Internal parasites are eliminated.
      9. Labor requirements are generally much reduced

1.6 DISADVANTAGES OF THE BATTERY CAGE
The disadvantages of battery cages are:

1. 1. The handling of manure may be a problem.
   2. Generally, flies become a greater nuisance.
   3. The investment per pullet may be higher than in the case of floor operations.
   4. There is a slightly higher percentage of blood spots in the eggs.