Closed navels for superior chick quality
Closed Navels
Closed navels for superior chick quality
Though most hatchery managers, for good reason, focus on the highest possible hatch percentage, it is not the only factor that should be aimed for.
The hatchery manager can only manage the eggs he/she receives.
- If the eggs aren’t fertile
- If the eggs aren’t transported correctly
- If too many eggs haven’t been handled correctly or show hairline cracks
- If the eggs haven’t been kept at the right temperature after collection
- If fumigation at the farm wasn’t done correctly
then they won’t produce chicks.
However, all other factors are within the management territory of the hatchery manager.
The aim to produce the highest rate of hatch of fertile is commendable.
Achieving the highest amount of first class day old chicks is the next step.
Many factors define what isn’t a healthy chick.
They range from crossed beaks, crossed legs, red hocks, wet chicks, droopy eyes, eternal residual egg yolk, late and early hatches producing second class or dehydrated chicks, …
One that is often overlooked is the navel.
The closed navel is probably the most important in the health and further health of the newly born DOC’s (day old chick).
A poorly healed or open navel is a vector for infection, bacteria and ultimately a poor chick.
The open navel will ultimately cause disease and weakness in the chick leading to increased first week mortality.
The first week mortality rate is a metric that isn’t considered enough.
It isn’t enough for the hatchery manager to produce chicks that will die on the farm.
Blame can be placed on the farm manager for the high first week mortality, when responsibility actually falls on the hatchery management.
EMKA Hatchery Equipment’s Dry Hatch technology ensures first class closed navel chicks.
Why and how?
But first, ask yourself the question why a newly hatched chick needs to dry? …
A hatched chick in the hatcher finds itself born in an industrial environment together with thousands, if not tens of thousands, of other DOC’s.
This isn’t the natural environment for a chick to be born in.
In nature, the chicks are born from a clutch of eggs under the hens’ natural incubation talent.
When they hatch, they are able to dry naturally from natural ventilation.
In an Industrial environment such as a hatchery, the chicks are born wet together with a large amount of other wet chicks.
They need to dry for two main reasons.
The first being the need for the DOC’s body temperature to not be affected by its wet body.
A newly born DOC isn’t able to regulate its body temperature very well.
As long as it is wet, it will be susceptible to hypothermia due to the ventilation forced upon it to dry.
Secondly, and most importantly, the DOC needs to dry for the navel to scar and close properly.
As noted earlier, a navel that isn’t closed properly is a vector for disease and will increase the first week mortality.
The Dry Hatch Technology ensures faster drying of the DOC’s in the hatcher making them stronger with closed navels resulting in significantly lower first week mortality.
The Dry Hatch is achieved by having cooling water that is above the dew point.
This means that, while the hatcher is running, there is no condensation on the cooling tubes.
No condensation water on the tubes, no condensation water on the floor.
You will have noticed many traditional hatcher and setters having water drip out from under the doors of the incubators.
This is neither wanted nor good for superior hatches.
It is a source of mold, bacteria and fungal contamination, all contributing to lower quality DOC’s and higher first week mortality.
Without the condensation water on the floor, there is no excess water to evaporate in the hatcher at the time of the hatch.
No excess water means that the hatcher only needs to evaporate the chicks’ own “wetness” and allows it to dry significantly faster.
The result is a faster healing navel producing superior chick quality.
EMKA Hatchery Equipment, stunning performance, every time !
Find out how EMKA can help you improve your chick quality with its Dry Hatch Technology.