There are many ways to track the progress and development of today’s modern broiler breeders. Breast development or flesh scoring, signs of sexual development, and fat scoring are a few methods. However, one of the easiest and practical ways to track flock progress is evaluating body weight trends by regular weighing. Following the body weight standard as recommended by the breeding company is key to productive and persistent flock performance. Tracking a flock’s body weight will provide data to make decisions for long term and consistent performance.
Weighing Technique
Weighing should be done weekly and accurately with a consistent sampling procedure. On the day of chick arrival, day 7 and day 14, bulk weighing can be done. At this age, a minimum of 2% of the population should be weighed. For bulk weighing, a platform electronic scale can be used with sufficient space to weigh a group of 5 to 10 birds.