Treatment FAQ

what is poultry litter treatment?

by Dr. Ole Kilback Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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Poultry Litter Treatment

  • Defends against harmful bacteria
  • Dries and conditions litter beds
  • Non-corrosive
  • Controls ammonia
  • Can be applied with birds present
  • How to use our products for healthy backyard birds

Poultry Litter Treatment (PLT) is a dry granular additive used extensively by the poultry industry for poultry house ammonia control, litter acidification, and on-farm HACCP programs for pathogen reduc- tion and in the prevention of many bacterial or stress-related poultry conditions.

Full Answer

What are the benefits of poultry litter treatment?

Poultry Litter Treatment 1 Defends against harmful bacteria 2 Dries and conditions litter beds 3 Non-corrosive 4 Controls ammonia 5 Can be applied with birds present 6 How to use our products for healthy backyard birds More ...

What is the best litter acidifier for poultry?

PLT ®-Poultry Litter Treatment has proven to be the most effective and economical litter acidifier available. PLT lowers litter pH and creates a beneficial environment in the poultry house by controlling ammonia released from the litter. The ammonia bound by PLT reduces environmental emissions and increases the nutrient value of poultry manure.

Why keep litter dry on a poultry farm?

Keeping litter dry is a critical part of overall management on every poultry farm. Litter conditions influence bird performance, which in turn affects profits of growers and integrators.

What is litter life for poultry?

Litter Life - Poultry Litter Amendment. Litter Life is a non-corrosive liquid poultry litter treatment that provides unsurpassed ammonia control and forms a biological barrier for poultry houses and litter beds.

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Why litter process is used for poultry?

Poultry litter consists of bedding material (shavings, rice hulls, etc.), manure, feathers, and other components. Dry litter is important for the health and welfare of birds, as well as the people who work in the houses. When litter begins to retain moisture it will clump together, which is referred to as caking.

What is poultry litter soil?

Poultry litter is an excellent, low cost fertilizer if used properly. Land application of litter returns nutrients and organic matter to the soil, building soil fertility and quality. In addition to the macronutrients, N, P and K, poultry manure contains calcium, magnesium, sulfur, and micronutrients.

Which litter is best for poultry?

In general, the best litter is wood shavings from a softwood, such as pine, spruce, or hemlock (with pine being the preferred option). However, this material has become expensive to use as litter in poultry housing due to the dramatic increase in demand in the last few years.

What is the cost of poultry litter?

Currently broiler litter sells on average for $10 per ton. Three tons of broiler litter per acre (which would deliver approximately 150 lbs N) purchased for $30, supplies the same nutrients (N-P-K) in an equivalent commercial fertilizer application costing $179 - a $149 per acre savings.

How do you use poultry litter?

Poultry litter makes good use as animal feed for cattle and fish. There are many nutrients in poultry litter that are beneficial for cattle and are already present in their diet. Poultry litter can be mixed with cattle feed to bulk it out, or use as an alternative.

Is chicken litter better than fertilizer?

A West Virginia study in a mixed grass/clover pasture fertilized with poultry litter found increased crude protein and higher digestible nutrients as well as higher phosphorus and potassium contents than pasture fertilized with commercial fertilizer.

How often should poultry litter be changed?

Quality control and management will help keeping it in good condition. However, once in two months is not bad and aside from that always change the litter whenever it gets wet or dusty even if it happens the next day after changing it the previous day, you must change them because they can affect you birds.

Can sand be used as poultry litter?

Aesthetically, sand looks cleaner than other litter option and is cleaner; the Auburn University researchers found coliform counts, including E. coli, significantly lower in sand than in wood shavings. Sand continues to be recommended by poultry experts and veterinarians today.

How do you manage litter in a poultry house?

Practical ways to improve litter condition where it is used for successive broiler flocks.Remove litter caking as soon as the house is empty. Controlling litter moisture starts the day after the previous flock goes out. ... Keep the house warm. ... Keep fans running. ... Eliminate house leaks. ... Run the fans when pre-heating.

What is turning of litter?

Litter turning is a practice that may help reduce moisture content within the litter by accelerating the drying process when it is combined with effective ventilation. However, information and research about the practice and the effects it could have on the health and well-being of meat chickens (broilers) are minimal.

How much manure does a chicken produce per day?

For each pound of feed consumed, a chicken will produce approximately 0.5 pound of fresh manure with a moisture content of about 75 percent.

How much chicken litter do you put per acre?

two tons per acreThe typical application rate is two tons per acre which fits nicely with the P2O5 needs of a two-year corn/soybean rotation. Like all manure sources, the moisture content of the poultry litter greatly influences the amount of nutrients per ton.

Why is littering important for poultry?

Keeping litter dry is a critical part of overall management on every poultry farm. Litter conditions influence bird performance, which in turn affects profits of growers and integrators. Dry litter helps control ammonia levels, provides a healthy flock environment, and reduces condemnations due to hock and footpad burns and breast blisters.

How long does a litter treatment last?

However, it is difficult to control pH over an entire flock, in part because litter treatments only last 10 to 14 days in most cases, and reapplication with birds in the house is impractical (Wheeler et al., 2008).

What pH should litter be?

However, sensors can help producers accurately manage ammonia levels. Litter pH affects ammonia release and should be below 7 to reduce volatilisation. However, litter not treated with an acidifying agent will often have a pH near 8 or slightly higher.

What are the two practices that help control ammonia volatilisation?

Adequate ventilation and use of litter amendments are two practices that help control ammonia volatilisation (Payne, 2012). Unfortunately, growers often underestimate ammonia levels if they depend on their eyes and noses for detection.

Why is it important to keep litter clean?

Keeping litter in good condition and avoiding caking are extremely important because of the high cost of litter, and because disposal of this litter is becoming more of an environmental issue. In some areas, many growers still practice a traditional total cleanout once a year.

What is partial house cleanout?

Partial house cleanout is removing a limited amount of litter from the middle of a house when needed and redistributing the remaining litter throughout the house.

How much water does a broiler drink?

Broilers drink about two pounds of water for every pound of feed consumed, or more than 50,000 gallons per 20,000-bird house each flock. Only about 20 per cent of the water consumed is used for growth; most of it eventually reaches the litter as manure.

What is the best way to reduce moisture in litter?

If you’ve already attempted to reduce the level of moisture in your litter to no avail, you have two more treatment options, one of which is Lime. Quicklime, which is calcium oxide, and hydrated lime, which is calcium hydroxide, are the two common forms of lime you will find in garden or home improvement retail stores.

How to prevent ammonia from leaking into chicken coop?

Especially with backyard chickens that range during the day, consider moving your water dispenser outside the chicken coop to prevent water spillage.

What is the best bedding for chickens?

Especially if you use pine shavings in a deep litter setup, which is the best bedding for chickens. You need to have ventilation near the ceiling of your coop so that when moisture is released, it can rise and exit the coop along with the hot air that carries it.

What is the smell of chicken urine?

When manure becomes wet, the nitrogen within decomposes (known as volatilization), and produces a gas called ammonia, which gives off a pungent smell.

How to make sure your bird won't play in the water dispenser?

If you’re stuck using a trough style water dispenser, make sure the lip sits as tall as the back of your shortest bird in the flock , that way they won’t play in it or splash it around. Also verify that rainwater hasn’t been coming in any vents, windows or leaking through the roof.

Can lime be used on chickens?

Lime is also a caustic material, albeit dry, which should be used with caution and proper personal protective equipment such as masks, goggles, and gloves. Overusing lime in your chicken run and coop can cause skin irritation and chemical burns on the feet of chickens, so use it sparingly.

Can chickens have ammonia?

Ammonia can pose a direct health issue to your backyard chickens, but when it gets out of hand, it can offend even the most tolerant of human olfactory senses, especially your neighbor’s. Fear not, for as usual, science has an explanation and a solution to mitigating ammonia through your poultry litter treatment.

Why is littering important?

Proper timing of litter application is essential for efficient use of nutrients and pollution prevention. Litter should be applied as near to field crop planting dates and as close to the vegetative growth of the plant as possible.

What gas is released from litter?

However, if litter lays exposed on the soil surface, considerable NH4-N may be released to the air as ammonia ( NH3) gas. Ammonium worked into the soil is subject to nitrification (rapid conversion to NO3-N).

What nutrients are in poultry manure?

In addition to the macronutrients, N, P and K, poultry manure contains calcium, magnesium, sulfur, and micronutrients. Land application of poultry manure should be managed to recycle plant nutrients rather than for disposal.

Is poultry manure good for fertilizer?

Using Poultry Litter as Fertilizer. Poultry litter is an excellent, low cost fertilizer if used properly. Land application of litter returns nutrients and organic matter to the soil, building soil fertility and quality. In addition to the macronutrients, N, P and K, poultry manure contains calcium, magnesium, sulfur, and micronutrients.

Does poultry litter affect Bermuda grass?

Table 2 compares the effects of poultry litter and commercial nitrogen fertilizer on the production of Bermuda grass in southeastern Oklahoma. Poultry litter not only increased forage yields but also increased protein content over control and commercial fertilizer plots.

Can poultry litter be used in soil?

Crop Nutrient Requirement. Poultry litter should not be applied to soil beyond the limits of the growing crop’s nutrient needs. This will ensure efficient use of manure nutrients and minimize nutrient leaching or runoff into the surface and ground water systems.

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