Ostrich’s breeding
The origin of ostriches are originally from Africa. In the late 1800 and most recently in the 1900s, this bird was taken to Europe, Middle East, Asia, Australia, and America. In fact the remarkably popular ostrich product was its feathers. However, nowadays, ostrich leather is the most valuable product. Manufacturers, in these countries, are generally using the sub-species of native birds as their basic flock of the birds.
The Domestic ostrich, which is in danger of extinction, is genetically a hybrid of South African Black-Necked Ostrich, North African Red Neck, South African Blue Neck, and also subspecies of Arabian Ostrich. In this website the structure and the development of ostrich industry in 1996 in Republic of South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ethiopia, United Arab Emirates, and Australia will be entirely examined.
The ostrich aroused the imagination of the ancients from the earliest times onwards. From antiquity, ostriches have provided human being with food, clothing, utensils, and adornment. They have also been persecuted for their meat, skin, feathers, and eggs. In ancient Sparta, an egg was on exhibition.
In West Africa, ostrich eggs are believed to have magic properties, protecting houses against lightening. Apart from being hunted for their flesh, skin, and plums, ostriches were kept in captivity and tamed by the early Egyptians, Greek, and Romans.
Climate
Ostriches, one of the toughest and strongest birds, can stand all kinds of climates and easily adjust to them, ranging from very cold climates, like Alaska, to the hottest and driest ones, like the Deserts of Africa. However, the hotter and drier climate is, the more desirable and superior the quality and quantity of products is. The only climate which is not recommended for ostrich breeding is the hot and humid one since it may tended to generate negative impact on birds.
Ostrich farming system:
Extensive system
Semi-intensive system
Intensive system
Ostrich Restrain and Handling
In order to restrain the ostrich, each of which should stand by one of the bird’s legs to keep it from under the belly and on its tail. In this procedure, the workers generally use a special crook to grasp the bird’s neck and bring the neck down. When the ostrich’s beak reaches its knee, pull the beak down while putting a thumb on it. This, would prevent any frontal impact with the bird’s legs. Ostriches would be kept in this situation for treatments like injection, examination, and bloodletting.
Workers need to push birds on the runaway truck ramp while assembling them. Adult ostriches need trucks whose side wall height should be 2.2 meters and with a jute cloth or burlap canopy. The trucks are covered with this canopy to avoid head and neck hanging. The floor is generally covered in sand, soil, bags of grass, and the side walls are covered with bags of grass to minimize damage to feathers and skin. Additionally, some partitions would be placed inside the truck to divide birds into groups of six. This, would prevent ostriches to stretch their legs or to be kicked.
Extensive farming system
Apart from the sot of the birds (which is common to all systems), land is the major capital requirement. This type of system requires a large area of land in excess of 40ha. The birds are kept and raised as near as possible to their natural habitat, with minimum interference.
The main advantage of the extensive farming system is the greatly reduced cost of keeping adult birds in large numbers. Moreover, incubation costs are not incurred if the birds are allowed to hatch their eggs. Thus, production costs are extremely low.
However, the disadvantages can easily outweigh the advantages of this system. Monitoring and identification of the birds and collection of eggs often prove to be a problem. No control over breeding conditions can be exercised. Mortality and loss of birds are often high, particularly among chicks, because of the high degree of predation.
Semi-intensive farming system
The range of required for this type of system varies from 20 to 60 ha. The birds are kept in relatively small paddocks or territories of approximately 8 to 12 ha. They are able to roam freely to a certain content, thus obtaining some of their nutritional requirements from the pasture. Feeding sites should be located near the perimeter fencing, to increase accessibility and reduced the degree of disturbance caused by frequent entry into the paddocks.
Intensive farming system
The area required for the intensive farming system is normally less than 20 ha. Divided into small paddocks. Advantageous of using the intensive farming system and by far outweigh the disadvantages. However, there are two clear disadvantageous associated with the intensive system:
Higher feed costs
higher cost of fencing
Financial investment for each unit of land, in this way, is higher than the other two methods.
The major advantage of intensification is that there is full control over breeding, through keeping accurate and precise records of the number of eggs produced by each hen and their fertility and hatchability. These records are invaluable for assessing the eventual value of the stock, whether for resale, retention for breeding, or slaughter. Selective breeding of quality birds can be performed. Furthermore, accurate feed consumption records can be maintained. Examination and handling of birds do not present problems under the intensive farming system.
Ethology:
In the wild, ostriches are well adapted to the environment in which they have evolved. When exposed to environmental changes, the birds first try to modify adverse conditions.
In natural environment, ostrich is generally considered as a social species. And they form groups of different gender and ages surrounding water pond. In these environments these birds face various animal species, however, they usually avoid an encounter with other animals and they are generally less violent to others. In approximately 75% of cases, ostriches condone any violent behavior.
According to conducted researches, the behavior of cleaning feathers and wings is during morning rather than the afternoon. Conversely their dust bathing is commonly more in the evening instead of morning and it would be culminated in the evening.
Waltz Dance behavior will take place when a male ostrich is defending his territory. The bird is actually flapping his wings out, squatting down, and waving his neck back and forth, or getting rid of fear. While sleeping adult birds tend to hold their head up, however, young chicks prefer to sleep in the prone position.
Chickens that are raised by nannies ostriches do not generally show abnormal behaviors like wood chewing. Behaviors like feeding the chickens and responding to certain environmental factors, which are mainly the least desirable breeding conditions, lead to cannibalism or feather pecking as well. Based on studies, chicks are generally pecking green stimulus ten times more than white stimulus.
Poop eating both in the wild and in captivity have been also seeing.
Nutrition
From one day old to three months old
Ostrich chick can feed on the remainder of the yolk sac for the first seven to ten days of its life. It is important to ensure that birds are drinking. If they are not the brooder light intensity may need to be increased or the temperature adjusted. It is recommended that the chick be initially offered food in crumb form and, if floor brooding is used, that crumbs are spread on paper or egg cartons for the first week, after which feed troughs can be introduced. Their initial growth should be controlled to avoid problems normally associated with fast growth, e.g. leg and skeletal disorders. Caution should be exercised in order to avoid limiting those nutrients that that are vital for proportional growth 9the growth of the different parts of the body at the correct rate). Limiting the energy content of feed to values between 9 and 10 MJ ME/kg (calculated on the basis of poultry feed nutrient value) is normally sufficient to control body growth.
Fiber content in diet should also be considered. Although ostriches are able to digest more fiber than other domestic birds (because of hind hut fermentation), they are only able to do so after reaching a certain age. Accordingly, it is important not to feed diets containing more than 5 percent fiber during the vital first few weeks of the chick’s life. Similarly, the ability of ostrich chicks to digest fat early in life is quite low, hence dietary fat content should not be higher than 5 percent.
From three months to one year
The birds’ nutritional requirements change as they become older. Emphasis should be placed on increasing both the energy and fiber contents and reducing the crude protein value of the feed. The dietary fiber should be allowed to increase at four to five months of age to around 10-11 percent. Analogously, the calorific value of the feed should be increased to around 10-10/5 MJ ME/kg. Crude protein content should be reduced gradually to about 18-20 percent.
A balance between calcium and available phosphorus concentrations should be maintained at 1.8- 2:1.
During breeding
When birds are raised solely for meat and leather production, males may have to be raised separately because they grow faster, require higher protein diets and are more efficient as feed converters for a longer period than the females. The latter reach the stage of diminishing returns earlier and thus have to be marketed at lower body weights than the males.
From one year to breeding
Maintaining the birds in prime condition is of paramount importance. Obesity is one of the major problems encountered between one year of age and the commencement of breeding. Likewise starvation or underfeeding delays sexual maturation and leads to poor performance during breeding.
A combination of quantitative and qualitative feed restriction is the most appropriate methods is most appropriate. A balanced diet with all vitamins and minerals but low in protein and energy should be adopted. Dietary fiber could be increased up to 15 percent. Birds should be offered 1.5 kg of diet daily. During cold weather spells, the addition of a high-energy rich source (e.g. full fat soybeans) is recommended.
During Breeding
From the age of 18 months, birds should be offered a breeder ration, which should ideally be relatively high in energy and protein and low in fiber. Although some dietary fiber can be converted into energy by the ostrich, the birds require a more readily available source of energy during breeding. Moreover, ostrich eggs contain about 20 percent shell, of which calcium is the main constituent. Consequently, it is indispensable for calcium and available phosphorus levels to be increased at the onset of breeding or at 18 months of age. Failure to do this may prevent egg laying together or results in poor rates of egg productivity, hatchability, of fertile eggs and increased production of soft-shell or shell-less eggs.
Breeding system
The wild ostrich is sexually mature at four to five years old, while the domesticated ostrich is mature at two or three years. The female is mature slightly earlier than the male. Male ostriches have a black and white plumage when mature and immature birds are much duller, with a grayish-brown plumage. The male and female chick’s sex can only be determined by examining their sexual organs. Unlike most birds, the male ostrich has a penis and micturition and defecation are separate acts. Full distinction between the sexes is reached at about two years old.
Nest building
The male begins the process of nest building well before mating. The nest can be situated anywhere in the breeding paddock. A pitched roof open-ended shed can be made to cover the nest. This should be about 3*3 meters with a height of 3 m and with the open ends facing north and south. However, some birds may not accept this foreign structure and may prefer their own simple nest instead.
Mating behavior
Male ostriches are polygamous and can mate with more than one female. Domesticated ostriches are kept in pairs (one male and one female) or in trios (one male and two females) for the breeding season.
Egg Laying
The female starts to lay fertile eggs shortly after mating. The first fertilized egg is laid approximately 10 to 14 days after first mating. Thereafter, and almost without exception, eggs are laid every other day in clutches (sequences) of 20 – 24 eggs. The hen stops laying for a period of seven to ten days after which she starts a new clutch again. Between 80 to 100 eggs are laid during the breeding season by high-producing female. The ostrich lays the largest egg of any living bird. Oddly enough, however, the ostrich egg is one of the smallest in relation to the size of the bird. The ostrich egg Measures, on average, 17-19 cm in length and 14-15 cm in width and weighs up to 1900g.
Male: female ratio
Although a ratio of one male to one female (1;1) appears at first to be ideal for highest fertility, compatibility may prove to be a problem. Incompatible pairing is a problem that sometimes occurs when birds are not allowed to select their mate. However, as such a natural selection of mates is not normally possible in commercial operations, the producer should spend extra time observing the birds after grouping and should take a constant note of their performance and compatibility.
Male female ratios from 1:2 to 1:4 appear to give comparable and satisfactory fertile rates. A ratio in excess of 1:4 is not desirable as the male may not be able to mate with all the females and this in turn may result in a higher number of infertile eggs.
Incubation
Hatching eggs are often collected and stored for a time before incubation. This I s a normal practice, particularly in commercial enterprises where eggs are kept until there are sufficient numbers to fill the incubators. Rough handling of hatching eggs can disrupt the delicate internal structure and will lead to the death of the embryo.
Guidelines for collecting and handling eggs:
use clean containers for egg collection
Avoid wiping the eggs with a dirty damp cloth since this is the fastest way to contaminate them.
Use dry fine sandpaper for cleaning off large lumps of dirt.
When washing the eggs, follow the manufacturer’s instructions explicitly with regard to the concentration of the detergent disinfectant.
Ultra-violet lighting (in the range 200-300) is effective as a germicidal technique.
Cool the eggs gradually before packing for storage.
Storage condition of ostrich eggs
Storage Period (day) – Temperature (Centigrade) |
Relative Humidity |
1-3 18 |
75-80 |
4-7 16 |
75-80 |
More than 7 15 |
75-80 |
Temperature
In forced draft incubators, with uniform heat distribution around the eggs, the optimum temperature is evidently near the center of the potential hatching zone, between35.9 and 36.5. These are very narrow limits of temperature between which the embryo will develop properly.
Towards the end of the incubation period, when the chicks begins to produce its own heat, the temperature can be lowered by 0.7C (approximately four days before hatching.) for a long time it was assumed, by analogy with conditions of natural incubation, the good artificial incubation results depend on the existence of a temperature gradient, decreasing from the upper to the lower surface of the eggs.
For a time, this view had a great influence on the design of still-air incubators, but was shown to be without concrete foundation by the excellent performance of forced-draft incubators.
Humidity during incubation
Humidity itself is of great importance for an embryo to develop properly and to transform into a chick of normal size. For this to happen, the egg contents must evaporate at an established rate (13-15percent of fresh weight to day 38 of incubation). An egg weighing 1500g at day 0should lose on average 210g by day 38 of incubation (38.7g per week). To control the rate by which the egg contents are evaporated, moisture content in the air surrounding the egg must be controlled.
High hatching rates in ostriches are obtained with 15-25 percent RH (at 36˚C).
Ventilation
Poor ventilation and air movement inside the incubator may lead to an uneven distribution of heat and moisture, a lethal carbon dioxide level, and an insufficient oxygen supply with poor hatchability as the net result. The developing embryo is normally capable of withstanding marginal reductions in oxygen levels down to 18 percent. A high concentration of carbon dioxide inside the incubator is extremely damaging.
Egg position and turning
Eggs under artificial incubation should be held with the large ends uppermost. Turning should be carried out at least three times a day if done manually (more, if possible, but always an odd number of times, e.g. five, seven, nine, etc.) or once every one to two hours if done mechanically. Egg turning should stop at day 38 of incubation. Eggs are then transferred to the hatching trays.
Hatching
The eggs are transferred to the hatching trays in the hatching compartment at day 38 of incubation. The chick draws the yolk sac inside the body during the last 24 hours of incubation, which acts as a food store after hatching for the first few days of its life. It is the presence of this yolk sac that enables chicks to be transported for several days without needing food or water.
The hatching process starts when the chick jerks its head by reflex, breaks its way through the allantois and starts to breathe through its lungs for the first time. This process is called – internal pipping _ and the chick’s beak can be seen by candling inside the air cell. The first step of breaking the eggshell is known as _external pipping _ in which the chick can braces its leg against the shell and turns around the egg, pecking the shell. The humidity should be increased by 3 to 5 percent so that the chick can turn easily inside the egg.
The hatched chicks should be left inside the hatcher until completely dry before being removed; 24 hours will normally suffice.
Slaughter of ostriches
One of the most important elements of commercial ostrich operations is the abattoir. The ostrich abattoir should be built to high standards and operated in line with the strictest food hygiene regulations. This will not only make its operation more efficient but will also increase the number and range of markets available to the operator. Purpose-built abattoirs are needed:
Incorporating or featuring a holding area
Separate areas for killing
Plucking
Skinning
Evisceration
Deboning
Chilling
Packing
Freezing
Dispatch
Birds are ready for slaughter between 10 to 14 months of age (depending on management and growth rate). The eviscerated carcass is allowed to cool in the chilling area at 1˚C. The chilling period varies in length from only a few hours to full 24 hours. Deboning is carried out and the meat is normally vacuum packed in 2_kg packs and either dispatched fresh or moved to the freezing area for storage at a temperature of _ 20˚C.
Curing
The main reason for curing a skin is to preserve its fine structure until it is restored to its original state before tanning. This is normally achieved by saturation with salt, which also stops the growth of bacteria.
Grading
A number of features are considered in assessing wet salted skin. The number of grades ranges from four to five grades, the last grade being rejects. The top quality, most valuable first – grade skins are fresh, well cured and full size with correct cutting lines; they have no flesh, fat, or blood clots and no damaged feather follicles, cuts, holes, red-heat patches, or any other defects. Accordingly, skins are selected as first, second, third, and sometimes fourth grades and rejects.
Meat
Ostriches produce red meat that is similar in taste and texture to veal and beef (depending on age at slaughter). It is high in protein and yet low in fat.
The nutritive value of ostrich meat
Chicken – Cow(100g) |
ostrich |
Fat 3/6 g – 16/3 g |
2g |
Cholesterol 85mg – 84mg |
58 mg |
Energy 185kcal – 256kcal |
114 kcal |
Protein 21/4g – 20 g |
21/9 g |
Calcium 13mg – 9mg |
5/2 mg |