Village chicken production in Myanmar – purpose, magnitude and major constraints

Abstract

The main objective of this work was to describe the characteristics of and major constraints to village chicken production in Myanmar. Data on village chicken production, health, husbandry and marketing were collected in 296 households in 10 villages in the Yangon division of Myanmar in November 2003. The average flock size in the study area was about 30 birds, comprising 12 chicks, 12 growers, 4 hens and 2 cocks. Disease as a cause of mortality was more prominent in growers and adults, while predation and exposure to unfavourable environmental conditions were major causes of mortality in chicks. The main predators identified were: birds, rats, snakes, dogs and cats in 32, 31, 17, 15 and 3% of households respectively. Two main strategies were identified to improve village chicken production: vaccination as a means of protecting birds against Newcastle disease and confinement rearing and supplementary feeding of chicks, as a means of reducing the attrition rate of young chicks. This is the first survey conducted describing village chicken population structure and productivity in Myanmar.