Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Improving Fertility With Vitamin E


Vitamin E is well known as the fertility vitamin. To improve fertility, one of several choices can be used, but use of more than one of these methods should be avoided to prevent overdose.

Vitamin E being fat stored, must be given at a proper dose to avoid breeding problems due to overdose. Overdosed hens may fail to hatch chicks because the excess vitamin E causes them to re-cycle too quickly and lose their incubation temperature.

Methods for giving extra vitamin E beyond dietary sources include:

  1. ABBA High Fertility Water Soluble Vitamin E – This is my favorite method as a measured amount (1/2 teaspoon) is mixed with one gallon water. This is used as the only bird water one day a week. I like to start the males on it about six weeks before breeding and the hens about three weeks before breeding. Males receive the one day weekly treatment till the end of the season while the hens receive it weekly only until they lay their first egg. Yesterday, my males got their second dose of the season.
  2. Recently, Donald of South Africa shared that he feeds wheat germ oil directly into the beak. Using a syringe, he delivers a couple of drops into the mouth each week. Feathers around the beak may come out if excess oil repeatedly get on the feathers around the beak. Currently, I have a couple of Border males who are lagging behind. I am trying this method on them instead of the ABBA Vitamin E in the water. After a couple of doses, these males are making improvement. It could possibly be a technique to use on stragglers.
  3. Bird seed can be coated with wheat germ oil. Doyle shared this recipe with me: two cups of fortified animal wheat germ oil (horse) is blended with 5lbs of straight canary seed and set for two days. Then this is mixed with 50 lbs of canary mix. His initial results using this have been quite good.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Linda,
As this vitamin preparation is not available wordlwide, could you calculate the correct dose of vit E you're giving (mg/liter:
Thx,
John

Linda Hogan said...

ABBA Fertility E ingredients listed on label: 475,000 mg of Vitamin E per 1000g. Dose is 1/2 teaspoon per gallon of water.

Vitamin E water is the Only water one day per week. Cocks given this one day a week treatment thru breeding season, hens weekly also but stopped when they lay their first egg.

Evon in WI said...

HELP! Please,

Advise the use for "amino acid supplement MIRACLE from Italy"
On soft food? in water?
I need the translation for proper feeding.

Linda Hogan said...

Evon

I use Miracle two ways. First, I mix 4 cups dry nestling food (such as ABBA green 92) with one tablespoon Miracle. This I fed dry in a separate dish first to males and then when I am ready for the hens to move toward breeding to them also. (Once they are in condition and paired they get egg food containing miracle but not the dry.)

Second, I use Miracle in my egg food. i make largest yellow tupperware plastic bowl full (my husband guess it is 6 quarts) and in that big batch I use one tablespoon Miracle. I feed this to my birds when they are paired till the hen lays her first egg and then again when chicks hatch.

LUIS A QUINTANILLA said...

hello Linda,

Im Luis from mexico, i met you in the national color bred show in PLano Txs, i hope you could remember me!!

I have a question, the abba E fertility has its own teaspoon or i have to buy it??

thanks a lot

Luis Quintanilla

Puebla, Mexico