PoultryTalk.com

No.2 12/01/2012 Factors Effecting Fertility

This is a massive subject, do not worry i will keep it simple.

Hen’s first.

As far as hens are concerned 99% of the time if a hen lays an egg she has done her job with the germinal disc on the Yolk either fertilised or not at that stage. The hen if suffering from some of the following conditions to be mentioned may affect the ability of the sperm to fertilise the ova. The conditions at the top of the funnel in the hens laying tract can affect the life span of the sperm. Thus determining how many eggs are fertilised in a clutch.

For both cocks and hens, vitamin and mineral deficiencies are often behind infertility.

Cocks.

Most of the following conditions effecting fertility applies to hens too unless otherwise stated.

The obvious ones first, old age, too young, illness, bacteria, viruses or parasites. Injury’s to limbs.

Many of these condition cause stress which in many cases is enough to make cock birds sterile and hens less receptive to sperm or not in condition to lay.

Question, how many cases can you count of a cock bird not filling a single egg in an establishment then moving to another one and filling eggs. Same can be said for hens.

This is often stress from the environment the bird is in, being moved takes the stress away thus fertility returns.

In humans all too often couples try for a child for years, they give up trying, the stress is of and bingo they conceive.

Same in many animals too.

A biggy that most people do not realise is liquid calcium will make cocks sterile.

In the last year over 40 cases of people with infertility problems discovered that the liquid calcium they used all but killed their season.

I CANNOT SAY THIS STRONGLY ENOUGH, GET RID OF IT!

Question, in nature documentaries have you ever heard the narrator saying “and you know the hens are ready to breed because they are going to a source of calcium” NEVER. We have been fooled into buying a product with no evidence it works and plenty of evidence it does more harm than good.

A hen will take every ounce of calcium out of its bones to put a shell around the egg so strong is the need to reproduce.

When giving liquid calcium cocks and hens have no choice but take it in screwing up the fertility in the cock birds.

A hen will go for calcium if it needs it. A balanced diet, cuttle fish and grit is plenty for birds to replenish calcium.

In the poultry industry our hens would lay over 310 eggs per year regularly. Twice a year we would provide grit and that was mainly for digesting food in the gizzard not to boost calcium. The balanced diet was enough.

The story with liquid calcium making the shells too strong for the chicks to pip out is rubbish. The chick is weak because of the imbalance of nutrients in the yolk with too much calcium drawn up from the yolk where the developing chick draws its nutrients from. I will in the near future explain dead in shell and how at different stages the chick will switch off and die due to lack of various nutrients and missing trace elements.

Birds have to be receptive to each other and mate, stimulated by light, feeding and other factors like stimulation of other birds in some species to come into breeding condition and be fertile.( producing sperm).

In breeding can cause infertility.

Again in the poultry industry we select for various traits depending if it is meat or egg productions but always egg numbers, fertility, hatchability, liveability. Without these the industry would grind to a halt.

We as a hobby select for size shape, feather quality depending on variety. Never egg numbers, hatchability, liveability or fertility.

We even keep breeding with the best if only a few eggs are laid just because they look how we want them to.

All these factors effect fertility, it’s a wonder we ever get full eggs.

In the wild they do well without our help.

The secret to fertility is...................... taking the stress off the birds.

Environment, health with balanced nutrition and stimulation with light naturally or artificially.

There are some natural stimulants to aid fertility like hemp.

More info on these are available on the web site.

There will soon be testimonies on the site from people who have turned their fertility problems around after using liquid calcium.

I make no medical claims, the proof is in the pudding.

Next week The ANSWER TO FRENCH MOULT then GOING LIGHT EXPLAINED.

To receive a new article weekly on various topics sign up to the web site www.allcreatureshealthcheck.com

Any comments or input on articles are welcome. Our hobby needs to be maintained and grow! Feel free to pass this on.

All the best in the Fancy.

Colin.