NRM Pecking Blocks

Words by Dr. Rob Derrick

Anybody who has seen day-old chicks scratch and reverse before pecking feed off the ground knows that chooks are hard-wired to be foragers.

NRM’s new Pecking Blocks are designed to deliver nutrients to poultry in a form which will require a bit more time and effort compared to a mash or pelleted feed. By providing a little challenge, they can provide enrichment which is considered helpful to both the well-being and productivity of poultry. Enrichment can be a nice-to-deliver gesture – effectively a thank you to birds that repay owners so frequently with nutritious eggs – or a management aid when birds need an extra distraction to reduce the risk of feather pecking. With whole wheat and lightly cracked maize, they give birds access to chunky pieces of grain which can be good for gizzard function. A mixture of both fine and coarse oyster grit helps to deliver slowly available calcium to support eggshell production overnight. Whole sunflower seeds have been included to add interest.

A key driver behind delivering the NRM Pecking Block was being able to offer something to help birds at the bottom of the pecking order if the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of bird flu gets to NZ and birds have to be confined to reduce exposure to wild birds. We have developed the 2.5kg option specifically with our urban-based customers with smaller flocks in mind; a 10kg option coming soon will be more appropriate for larger flocks in rural areas and commercial units.

For more information on bird flu, see our latest update with tips for increasing biosecurity: https://www.farmlands.co.nz/emergency-resources/birdflu.html