Chapter 17 - Introduction

On farm disposal of dead birds continues to be a challenge from the standpoints of cost, environmental safety, biosecurity and practicality. While we, hopefully, have to deal with only a relatively small amount each day, disposal or preservation must also occur daily in order to meet the above challenges.

Management of dead animals at poultry facilities should be conducted in accordance with KRS 257.160. Based on the level of production at facilities using this plan and the limited acreage available on site, burial as a means of dead animal disposal is not an environmentally feasible alternative and is not included as an option for disposal in this plan. This section of the plan lists the approved methods for dead animal disposal and the specific requirements for those disposal options.

A practical and sanitary system for disposing of dead poultry will help you prevent the spread of disease, prevent odors and prevent fly breeding. Regardless of the method of disposal chosen, access to the carcasses by scavenger animals such as coyotes, dogs, birds, wolves, and bears must be prevented.

Within the guidelines of the different regulatory agencies, a disposal method that best fits the management system and location of the farm can be selected. The criteria a person should use to determine the most suitable disposal method needs to include:

• Compliance with local, state and/or federal regulations
• Economics of each method
  • Amount of mortality
  • Capital costs
  • Equipment availability
  • Cost of labor
• Reliability of each method
• Degree of biosecurity

The pattern of mortality is also important. Carcass mass is fairly consistent in a breeder operation but a growout operation will have increasing volumes as body size increases with age. Catastrophic losses can create havoc with any disposal method and alternative procedures should be in place in case of a severe disease outbreak or a management problem, such as ventilation failure which may cause high losses.