Brooding is the most sensitive period in a broiler chicken's life, impacting their overall health, growth, and performance throughout the rearing process. Poultry producer's one common mistake is to think that brooding is just about keeping chicks warm. In this video, the way of proper brooding management is discussed under seven topics as 1. Pre-placement Preparation, 2. Feed Management, 3. Light Management, 4. Temperature Management, 5. Water Management 6. Air Quality and Ventilation and 7. Grading the Young Flock to facilitate poultry farmers can ensure a healthy, uniform and profitable broiler flock at the end of the brooding period.

Instructor Bio

Nipuna Perera, Ph.D., is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Animal Science at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. With a Ph.D. in Poultry Nutrition from Massey University, New Zealand, and a Master’s in Poultry Science from the University of Peradeniya, Nipuna has extensive expertise in monogastric nutrition and poultry management.

Growing up in a village where poultry farming was the main occupation and in a family business of commercial animal feed manufacturing (New Bernards Animal Feeds, Sri Lanka), Nipuna's early experiences inspired her passion for animal science. She pursued her studies, focusing on the influence of feed processing and enzyme supplementation on poultry.

At the University of Peradeniya, Nipuna teaches courses in animal nutrition, poultry and swine production, and feed processing technology. Her research interests include alternative feed ingredients and feed additives, and she collaborates closely with farmers and the industry.

Nipuna has participated in international workshops on climate-smart livestock production and environmental monitoring technologies. She has received research grants for improving the fatty acid profile of broiler chicken meat and developing efficient feed utilization techniques.

Nipuna serves as a peer reviewer for several journals and has collaborated on projects such as the Sustainable Poultry Sector in Sri Lanka. She is a member of professional organizations including the World Poultry Science Association and the Sri Lanka Association of Animal Production. Her academic excellence has been recognized with awards such as the Helen E. Akers Doctoral Scholarship and the A. S. B. Rajaguru Memorial Gold Medal for Animal Science.