Nutrient flow and distribution in conventional cage, enriched colony, and aviary layer houses

Abstract

This study was carried out to measure the mass flow and distribution of nutrients (N, C, S, P, and K) as well as solids and moisture in conventional cage (CC), enriched colony (EC), and aviary (AV) laying-hen houses with Lohmann LSL lite hens located on a commercial laying-hen farm in Iowa. The weight of consumed feed and water, and amounts of eggs and manure production were collected weekly from each house for 2 entire flocks for a total of 28 mo. Samples of feed, egg, manure, litter, and hens were regularly taken and analyzed for total solids and nutrients (N, C, S, P, and K). The nutrient losses to the atmosphere were calculated using a mass balance approach. The losses of nutrients were calculated by subtracting the nutrient contents in eggs, manure, and layer body weight gain from the nutrients intake. The research results showed that the feed intake and manure production rates were similar in the 3 houses. The average nutrient intake in feed, in g d(-1) hen(-1), for the 3 houses was 42.0 C, 2.96 N, 0.36 S, 0.55 P, and 0.79 K. The nutrient intake was partitioned as follow: C - 18% in eggs, 28% in manure, and 54% in air losses; N - 34% in eggs, 58% in manure, and 8% in air losses; S - 26% in eggs, 68% in manure, and 6% in air losses; P - 17% in eggs, 79% in manure, and 3.1% in air losses; and K - 9% in eggs, 89% in manure, and 1.6% in air losses. Manure removed from the EC house was drier than manure from the CC or AV house. Among the 3 hen houses studied, the EC house had the lowest nutrient losses and the AV house had the highest losses. Nutrient loss in CC was statistically similar to EC. But loss of N, C, and S in AV differed from CC and EC. Furthermore, the loss of P and K in the 3 housing systems was statistically similar. The AV had a doubled mortality rate compared to CC and EC.

Ammonia and Carbon Dioxide Emissions of Three Laying-Hen Housing Systems as Affected by Manure Accumulation Time

“…The littered floor of the AV house provided hens access to an average litter area of 520 cm 2 hen -1 for a portion of each day, where deposited manure accumulated throughout the flock cycle. Measurement of manure production and deposition patterns during this study found that 77% to 86% of the manure in the AV was deposited on the manure belt (Lin et al, 2016), with the remainder accumulating on the litter floor. The reduced manure deposition rate within the cage structure of the AV house observed in this study yielded an estimated effective manure-belt SD of 570 to 636 cm 2 hen -1 .…”

“…Thus, it is possible that, without in-barn drying, manure removal frequency may have a more significant impact on house-level NH 3 emissions, as wetter manure maintained in the house for extended periods has a higher emission potential. Lin et al (2016) performed a nutrient mass balance analysis on the three laying-hen houses monitored in this study, providing periodic measurements of MC and nutrient content (nitrogen, carbon, sulfur, phosphorus, and potassium) of manure at both 3 and 4 d removal intervals. Their study reported that across the two flocks, the average manure MC for EC (46%) was significantly lower than for AV (52%) and CC (54%).…”

Emissions of ammonia, carbon dioxide and particulate matter from cage-free layer houses in California

“…The rate of egg production (or hen-day egg production) was 80% with an average egg weight of 62 g. Cumulative mortality rate was 22% of the initial inventory as of 56 weeks of age. Lin et al (2015) reported mortality rates of 11.6% in aviary, 4.3% in conventional cage and 4.8% in enriched colony houses located in the Midwest. The high mortality rate in the current study might be due to the higher piling probability resulting from the higher number of hens per pen (6000 hen/pen) than that (852-1702 hen/pen) reported by Lin et al (2015).…”

“…Lin et al (2015) reported mortality rates of 11.6% in aviary, 4.3% in conventional cage and 4.8% in enriched colony houses located in the Midwest. The high mortality rate in the current study might be due to the higher piling probability resulting from the higher number of hens per pen (6000 hen/pen) than that (852-1702 hen/pen) reported by Lin et al (2015). The house temperature was maintained between 22.2 and 25.6°C.…”