Brooder Specialist

Role Overview

This role is responsible for the day-to-day management of brooding operations, ensuring the health and growth of chicks from hatch to transfer. The Brooder Manager oversees all aspects of chick care—temperature, feeding, ventilation, and biosecurity—directly impacting mortality rates and flock uniformity. By maintaining precise environmental conditions and supervising attendants, this position is critical to the farm's productivity and profitability.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversee all daily activities in brooder houses, including monitoring chick behaviour, feed intake, and water consumption to ensure optimal growth conditions.
• Regulate and adjust environmental controls such as heating, ventilation, and humidity levels to maintain recommended brooding temperatures and air quality.
• Implement and enforce strict biosecurity protocols, including sanitation of equipment, footwear, and visitor access to prevent disease introduction.
• Administer scheduled vaccinations and treatments, following veterinary protocols and recording all interventions accurately.
• Inspect equipment—heaters, brooders, feeders, drinkers—regularly and arrange repairs or replacements to avoid disruptions.
• Record production data (mortality, weight gains, feed conversion) daily and analyse trends to identify issues early.
• Supervise and train brooder attendants, assigning tasks and ensuring that cleaning, feeding, and monitoring procedures are followed correctly.
• Identify signs of illness or injury in chicks, report to management, and assist in isolation or treatment as required.

Requirements & Qualifications

• Diploma in Animal Production or equivalent qualification in poultry science.
• Poultry production certification with a focus on brooding management.
• Minimum two years of hands-on experience in a commercial poultry farm, specifically managing brooder houses.
• Proven knowledge of chick behaviour, nutritional needs during the brooding phase, and disease prevention strategies.
• Familiarity with biosecurity protocols and record-keeping systems (paper and digital).
• Computer literacy for data entry and basic analysis.
• Strong communication and teamwork skills; ability to lead a small team of attendants.
• Attention to detail, problem-solving ability, and time management skills to handle multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.