Do ducklings need light at night and how much to turn it on, the main requirements
In order for the living conditions in the bird shed to be comfortable, it is important to equip it correctly and, first of all, we are talking about lighting. The length of daylight hours affects the physiological processes in the body and, together with the temperature, proper lighting plays an important role in growing. To understand whether ducklings need an additional light source at night, you need to focus on their age and the length of daylight hours.
Do ducklings need light at night
Many poultry farmers are concerned about whether ducklings and ducks need light at night. For the full growth and development of little ducklings, a light source is necessary in the dark, but for adult birds it is not necessary if year-round egg production is not needed. If the correct lighting regime is observed, the number of red blood cells in ducklings increases, metabolism improves and the growth process accelerates.
So should the ducklings turn off the lights all night or just for a few hours? Babies who have reached one week of age are raised with a day of light for 20 hours, after which the time gradually decreases to 16.
Note! The level of light intensity per 1 square meter of the shed area should not exceed 4 watts.
In the dark, some of the lighting devices are turned off, or their power is reduced to 2 watts per 1 square meter. In order to avoid the death of some individuals, the poultry farmer, who asks whether the ducklings need to leave the light in the barn at night, it is important to know that in the dark the babies get scared and crowded - this leads to a lack of oxygen and suffocation. At the same time, too bright lighting devices can adversely affect the brood, since cannibalism can appear in weak chicks.
Basic requirements for light
In order for the newborn chicks to fully develop, and the adult ducks to fly steadily, it is necessary to provide a sufficient amount of natural and artificial lighting in the house.
Artificial sources can be: LED lamps, as well as sodium, metal halide, fluorescent and incandescent lamps. The optimum lamp operating time is 15 hours.
