AgSpeak Blog

Maintain Water Lines to Limit House Moisture Levels

In cold weather, there are many factors that create a good environment for animals. Since one of the primary essentials for life is air, ventilation may be what immediately comes to mind. We must maintain the oxygen levels in the barn since oxygen is inhaled by the animals and used to produce energy needed to […]

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Seasonal Audit – Minimum Ventilation

During winter we use minimum ventilation to balance fresh air intake with heat conservation. House tightness should be the first thing on your winter prep checklist. Heat lost through building air leaks causes the heaters to run excessively and waste fuel. Air leaks can also cause cold air drafts that can chill livestock, create cold […]

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Hybrid-Positive Pressure System: A New Design Concept

Hybrid-Positive Pressure System: A New Design Concept  Most poultry houses are designed using a negative pressure ventilation program, but free-range facilities must be thought about differently. Because free-range farms must provide outside access for birds, pop-doors are built into the walls. These doors are often required to be open for long periods of time, if […]

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Tips for Winter Brooding

Winter farming comes with a unique set of challenges, especially where litter and air quality are concerned. Respiratory diseases are common in winter when there is less ventilation, and their prevalence has only been increasing since the use of antibiotics has been on the decline. Brooding is arguably the most important developmental stage and eliminating […]

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Prep Your Heaters for Winter – Checklist

Whether you use brooders or tube heaters, they both need regular maintenance to keep them working flawlessly. Be sure to always unplug and disconnect the power supply and fuel supply, and never work on a hot heater. Be safe this winter. Take care of your heaters. Subscribe to our blog!

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windrowing

Choosing the Right Bedding Material

Litter is a combination of bedding material, excreta, feathers, and spilled feed and water. Bedding material is a crucial component to litter, as its role is to absorb the excess moisture from droppings and drinkers and promote drying by increasing the surface area of the house floor. Bedding acts as an insulator to protect chicks […]

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Watch your change-of-season ventilation in swine barns

Watch your change-of-season ventilation in swine barns Diane DeWitte, Extension swine educator Originally published by University of Minnesota Extension. Quick facts Ventilation removes excess heat, moisture and gas from swine barns. During weather changes, make sure your controller is set for proper ventilation. Management practices such as removing manure, cleaning and preventing dust and repairing […]

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Predators: Thieves in the Night

Predators: Thieves in the Night By: Joe Berry, Oklahoma State University Originally published in Exhibition Poultry Magazine. Playing Detective In many instances, predators leave clues to their identity when they have visited a poultry house. From these clues, the poultry producer may be able to identify the culprit and take the necessary steps to prevent […]

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Investing in Ventilation

The ideal bird environment can pay back in dividends, but if mismanaged, be costly to a farm. Investing in the bird environment will always pay better in the end. There are several primary goals to ventilation. Ventilation should: Evenly distribute fresh air to the entire flock. Remove excess heat and moisture. Limit the accumulation of […]

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Maintenance Checklist – Community Nest

Equipment maintenance is imperative to keeping things running smoothly. By cleaning the nests regularly, you can prevent transmission of disease from one flock to the next, as well as preserve the health and hatchability of the eggs. The lifespan of equipment is also prolonged when it is properly cared for, allowing farmers to catch potential […]

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Biosecurity Prevents Salmonella

This spring, The Center for Disease Control (CDC) issued a final update for its investigation into the outbreak of Salmonella Reading, which according to its investigation, caused 133 hospitalizations and 1 death across 42 states. The outbreak was linked to raw and ground turkey products and resulted in product recalls in 2018. Despite this particular […]

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Grower Spotlight – Jay Goodman

Until recently, Jay Goodman was a corporate man working for a major beverage company. As the desire for the corporate life waned, he found himself on the hunt for the perfect farm. He finally found it – with the help of his younger brother – on the Delmarva Peninsula. “I came up from Georgia to […]

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AgSpeak Magazine Vol. 4, No. 1

The strongest possible commitment to customer support drives nearly everything we do at VAL-CO. In the latest edition of AgSpeak™, you will read about how we support our customers with training on the proper use and maintenance of our equipment. Our Tech Support team is available by phone 24/7 but is also hands-on and corrects […]

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Poultry Red Mites

Red poultry mites are one of the most common external parasites to plague commercial egg flocks and backyard birds alike. They are a common vector of pathogenic diseases, but are arguably a bigger problem on their own. The two-week life cycle of the red mite means they reproduce rapidly. They prefer high heat, high humidity […]

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Methods for Managing Heat Stress

We’ve all seen it before – it’s the middle of the day and your broilers are hunkered down on the floor, wings slightly spread, and panting fast. Your birds are too hot, and are spending their energy trying to cool themselves rather than eating, drinking, and growing. In swine we see similar actions – pigs […]

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The Importance of Water Pressure & Volume

It’s easy to forget the importance of the water supply when the power is running and the pump is working; when water is coming into the house. The increasingly hot weather only highlights the importance of having an adequate amount of water available to help birds regulate their temperature. Two factors affect the availability of […]

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Understanding Rodents & Controlling Them

Rats and mice have long been a problem on farms where food and nesting sites are plentiful. They are carriers of some 45 diseases and are capable of contaminating farm feed and water supplies helping to spread disease from contaminated to uncontaminated areas and from animal to animal. Many of these diseases are harmful to […]

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Equipment Care – Watering Lines

We have to care for equipment in the poultry house in order to keep it working for as long as possible. Water is the most important nutrient that we can supply to our birds, so we should take extra care to ensure that the water delivery system is always clean and free of debris. It […]

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Preparing for Spring – Tunnel & Exhaust Fans

Fans get used all year long, but they still require regular maintenance and cleaning so that they continue to work smoothly and efficiently. Remember to put safety first, and always unplug the fans before performing any maintenance procedure. Start the summer off right with a little care, and a lot of fan performance! Subscribe to […]

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