basic understanding of backyard chicken farming

1. The introduction
Negara kita berada pada persimpangan kritikal, dan terdapat keperluan mendesak untuk
sistem makanan transformasi yang boleh memastikan menampung keperluan penduduk
miskin. Selalunya pekebun kecil mempunyai akses terhad sumber tanah kecilan. Mereka
yang tinggal di lokasi terpencil, serta wanita yang tidak bekerja , kanak-kanak dan remaja
mempunyai masa yang cukup untuk menceburi dalam bidang ini. Sistem pengeluaran ayam
di belakang rumah , seperti yang diamalkan kebanyakkan penduduk luar bandar dunia, boleh
membawa perubahan transformatif di negara berpendapatan rendah dan sederhana. Walaupun
pengeluaran ayam di belakang rumah mempunyai produktiviti yang rendah, ia masih
memainkan peranan penting dalam pengeluaran makanan dan pemakanan penduduk luar
bandar yang hidup dalam ekosistem yang rapuh. Ayam belakang rumah telah diiktiraf
sebagai alat untuk membasmi kemiskinan selain memastikan keselamatan makanan dan
pemakanan bagi golongan miskin luar bandar. Daging ayam dan telur adalah sumber protein,
mineral dan vitamin yang paling murah dan terbaik. Pengenalan plasma nutfah ayam
belakang rumah yang lebih baik telah meningkatkan produktiviti dan dengan itu
meningkatkan pendapatan dan keselamatan pemakanan isi rumah miskin.
Backyard chickens are practiced in all developing countries and play an important role in
poor rural households. Poultry is a scarce source of animal protein in the form of meat
and eggs. They can also be sold or bartered for immediate family needs, such as
medicine, clothing, or school fees. Backyard chickens aid in pest control, provide fertilizer,
convert food waste into high-quality protein, and are necessary for religious and
social ceremonies.
In resource-poor areas, backyard chicken poultry are owned by non-working womens.
And are often an integral part of female-led households. Backyard poultry farming is an
available and accessible form of animal husbandry in rural and resource-poor areas,

2. and is therefore an important source of economic, food and nutritional security for the
poorest households. It always will significantly improve the livelihoods and food security of
women, children and the elderly, in particular.
The statistics
Backyard poultry production systems have been integrated into people's lives for thousands
of years, providing income and food and nutrition security to the
rural poor. Backyard chickens make up 50-80% of all poultry in some developing countries.
Local poultry accounts for 80% of sub-Saharan Africa's poultry production,
and Nigeria is known for having her 180 million free-range chickens. India has 317
million backyard chickens, an increase of 45% over the last few decades and now accounting
for 35% of the total chickenpopulation (20th Livestock Census, Government of India).
More details
Backyard poultry farms account for about 70-80% of China's total poultry population. In
Vietnam, most poor people keep poultry for meat and extra income. Backyard poultry
converts waste products such as kitchen waste, vegetable waste, green grass, earthworms,
and insects into high-quality animal protein for human consumption. It is recognized as an
entry point into production systems and is associated with breaking out of the poverty trap.
Backyard chickens are excellent rearing by the native or improved poultry in your backyard.
The number of birds depends on the natural food base available. We can provide the chicken
supplementary feeding as needed. As the supplementary feedings are expensive, we must try
to reduce them as much as possible. The birds are housed in locally built chicken coops

3. only at night and the chickens are released and cleaned during the day time. Backyard poultry
production is commonly associated with integrated farming system models that include crops,
vegetables, fisheries, and other livestock. Animal health precautions and biosecurity
are minimized in this system.
Mortality from disease and predators is high. Chickens are consumed at home and
surplus chickens are sold locally. Surplus males, weighing 2.5 to 3 kg, are eaten or
sold at the market, and females are bred for further herd expansion. A native hen will lay 120
to 180 eggs in a year when she incubates 12 to 16 times. Native or native birds have very
high hatching efficiency, incubating 10-12 eggs at a time. In general, native birds produce
less and are further reduced by disease and predators.
Importance of backyard chicken farming
1. Backyard poultry can survive in harsh and un-favourable climatic conditions. They
are more resilient to climate change and better adapted to different environments.
2. Poultry converts food scraps, vegetable scraps, green grass and other waste products
into high-quality animal protein.
3. Backyard poultry farming requires minimal initial investment.
4. Provides employment and additional income to poor farmers, women,
unemployed youth hand elderly families.
5. Backyard poultry eggs and meat are more expensive than commercial poultry.
6. Poultry products are a source of high quality animal protein and therefore a source of
food and food security for vulnerable communities.
7. Backyard poultry farming is well integrated with other farming businesses.

4. 8. Backyard poultry manure is a rich source of soil nutrients and can
be used to improve soil fertility.
9. Women's Empowerment: Backyard poultry farms are commonly owned and managed
by women at home. The sense of ownership and income from
backyard chickens empowers rural women.
10. Biodiversity Conservation: Backyard hens consist of native or landrace birds
that are well adapted to the local climate and resistant to disease. Native chickens
have high genetic and phenotypic diversity. This can be used as a base resource to
make your backyard chickens even more productive.
Involvement of Women
Backyard poultry in low- and middle-income countries are largely raised and owned by
women in rural households. The fact that women own most of the poultry in their backyards
highlights their importance as a means of improving their livelihoods. male-headed
households typically have multiple sources of income. Women's earnings often make a
greater contribution than men's to improving household health, education and nutrition, and
have a positive impact on household food security.
With this in mind, it was recommended to make backyard poultry development programs
more female-friendly in order to promote female participation. The status and participation
of women farmers in household chores has also positively and significantly improved. Better
backyard poultry management has led to larger flocks, higher household incomes, improved
household food security and empowered women to make decisions.

5. In Bangladesh, raising improved chickens for table eggs as part of a backyard production
system has improved the economic status of women in rural areas. Similarly, in Bhutan,
backyard chickens also serve as a home protein source for pregnant and postpartum women.
This helps reduce food insecurity, alleviate poverty and promote gender
equality. Enhancing women's empowerment through backyard poultry farming can therefore
make a significant contribution to alleviating poverty, improving food security and promoting
gender equality.
Challenges in Backyard Poultry Production Systems
1. Lack of availability of improved facilities: Backyard poultry is raised by poor rural
farmers in remote and disadvantaged areas. These areas are generally less developed
and also experience extreme weather conditions. In addition, backyard poultry
production is lower than commercial poultry production. Therefore, it does not attract
investment from industry. Farmers rely on state agencies to supply chicks. Rural
farmers in these areas lack infrastructure, such as electricity, which results in high
chick mortality due to bad weather. Therefore, the timely provision of enriched
germplasm will go a long way in improving backyard chicken farming productivity
worldwide. It is experienced, bird survival in backyard poultry was increased by
delivering adult chicks (4-6 weeks old) to farmers. Agricultural research
should also be carried out on the improved germplasm before it is introduced
into farmers' fields.
2. Lack of Skills: Backyard poultry farming has been practiced by farmers for many
years, but there is a constant need to improve the knowledge and skills of rural

6. farmers. Improved poultry germplasm requires scientific management practices to
realize its full genetic potential. The success of the Bangladeshi model of improving
backyard poultry production has largely contributed to the upskilling of farmers prior
to the introduction of improved poultry. Therefore, farmers, especially women, need
to undergo various training modules such as husbandry, housing, nutrition and health
care.
3. Disease, predation and biosecurity threats: In developing countries, backyard chickens
make up the majority of livestock that farmers maintain with minimal effort. Birds
raised with minimal biosecurity are vulnerable to disease outbreaks due to exposure to
wild birds, pests and predators. Also, some diseases, such as Newcastle disease (ND)
and highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), are zoonotic in nature and can have
fatal consequences in poultry and humans. to 100% mortality. Similarly, HPAI has
been found to adversely affect backyard herd size, livelihoods, and household food
security. In BPPS, predation is also responsible for chick and adult losses, which can
reach 50-70%. Vaccination by trained community animal health workers is proposed
as an important strategy to reduce the disease burden of his ND in backyard poultry.
While it is very difficult to implement full biosecurity measures in backyard poultry
production systems, disease knowledge, vaccination, and proper housing can greatly
reduce losses to households. In India, proposed the biosecurity strategy for backyard
poultry including daily cleaning of the utensils with ash, offering potable drinking
water to birds, preparation of feed with boiled water, daily change of drinking water
in the trough, a sprinkling of detergent water left after washing of clothes in the
scavenging area, disposal of carcasses by garden burial, washing of the eggs, and
storage of the eggs in a cold temperature maintained by indigenous structures.

7. 4. Lack of veterinary health services: Although the requirement for veterinary health
services in BPPS Is low, it is not easily available when required. In developing
countries, because of a lack of resources and infrastructure in remote areas, cold chain
facilities and vaccines are also not available to the farmers. All these adversely impact
farmers' access to information regarding disease outbreaks, biosecurity measures, and
timely availability of medicines and vaccines. To address these issues, it was
suggested to form networks of community animal health workers, where training and
information are exchanged between veterinarians and communities regarding
vaccinations and disease control. Involving women in skills and training programs can
have a positive impact on disease control and vaccination in backyard poultry
production.
5. Lack of access to markets: Backyard poultry farming is mainly done in rural
areas that are far from or poorly connected to markets. Products from this
system are natural or organic, but the lack of market access prevents farmers from
buying them at a premium price. Poultry and eggs from this system are usually sold
at local markets in villages and towns where farmers cannot get a better price. The
availability of meat and eggs increased considerably when introduced into villages.