Ammonia (NH3) emissions from poultry litter results in air pollution and can cause high levels of NH3 in poultry houses, which negatively impacts bird performance. The objectives of this study were to: (1) conduct a nitrogen (N) mass balance in broiler houses by measuring the N inputs (bedding, chicks, and feed) and N outputs (birds marketed, mortality, litter/cake, NH3 emissions, and nitrous o...

Emission of nitrogen in the form of ammonia from poultry rearing facilities has been an important topic for the poultry industry because of concerns regarding the effects of ammonia on the environment. Sound scientific data is needed to accurately estimate air emissions from poultry operations. Many factors, such as season of the year, ambient temperature and humidity, bird health, and manageme...

An improved polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based method for determining the species composition of Eimeria in poultry litter was developed by incorporating species-specific internal standards in the assay. Internal standard molecules were prepared by fusing seven different Eimeria species-specific intervening transcribed sequence 1 (ITS1) rDNA primer pairs to a non-Eimeria DNA molecule and by ...

Ammonia volatilization from poultry litter often causes high levels of atmospheric ammonia in poultry houses, which is detrimental to both farm workers and birds. Ammonia emissions from houses also aggravate environmental problems, such as acid rain, and result in a loss of fertilizer nitrogen. The objectives of this study were to determine the effect of litter amendments on ammonia volatilizat...

Backyard poultry ownership provides a great opportunity for improved self-reliance and small-scale agricultural sustainability through home egg and meat production. One issue with backyard poultry ownership is managing the waste products of your birds, particularly the manure and bedding mixture (termed “litter”) that builds up in the coop. If not managed properly, this waste material can creat...

Poultry are known to harbor antibiotic resistant and pathogenic bacteria, and as such poultry litter and poultry house air can be contaminated with these bacteria. However, the presence of antibiotic resistant bacteria in biological aerosols and litter is largely not understood. The purpose of this study was to determine the amount of aerosolized bacteria and endotoxin, particularly fecal indic...

Research has shown that alum [Al(2)(SO(4))(3).14H(2)O] applications to poultry litter can greatly reduce phosphorus (P) runoff, as well as decrease ammonia (NH(3)) volatilization. However, the long-term effects of fertilizing with alum-treated litter are unknown. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the long-term effects of normal poultry litter, alum-treated litter, and ammonium nitra...

The application of poultry litter to agricultural land has become a topic of interest for policy makers due to public concern about its effects on water quality. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) version 2005 is designed to assess nonpoint and point sources of pollution. In this study, six subwatersheds in Texas (HUC‐8; 12070101) are used to evaluate the model's ability to simulate wate...

ruary-March; Experiment 2, April-May; and Experiment 3, June-July. Birds received a corn-soybean meal starter (0.68 kg/bird; 22% CP, 3087 kcal/kg ME), grower (1.36 kg/bird; 20% CP, 3131 kcal/kg ME), and finisher (c.a. 2.27 kg/bird; 17.5% CP, 3197 kcal/kg ME) to 42 days of age. Treatments were control (CON); Poultry Litter Treatment (PLT), Poultry Guard (PG) or 50:50 All-Clear:PLT (ACPLT) at 100...

BACKGROUND In U.S. conventional poultry production, antimicrobials are used for therapeutic, prophylactic, and nontherapeutic purposes. Researchers have shown that this can select for antibiotic-resistant commensal and pathogenic bacteria on poultry farms and in poultry-derived products. However, no U.S. studies have investigated on-farm changes in resistance as conventional poultry farms trans...