Agriculture for Standard Six - Unit 20 - Systems of Keeping Chickens 1 - Free Range and Semi-intensive Systems

Jul 19, 2026

Agriculture for Standard Six, Unit 20 explains systems of keeping chickens and how housing, space, and management affect productivity and health. It covers three main systems, focusing on free range and semi-intensive approaches. Free range keeps birds loose to forage for feed, spreading manure and allowing sunshine, but increases risks from predators and makes egg collection difficult. Semi-intensive management uses fenced daytime movement plus provided feed, water, and laying nets to improve disease control and simplify manure and egg collection.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages13

Reading Time33 min

AccessFree to download

Systems of Keeping Chickens

Free Range System

Advantages of Free Range System

Disadvantages of Free Range System

Semi-intensive System

Advantages of Semiintensive System

Agriculture for Standard Six-Unit 20 SYSTEMS OF KEEPING CHICKENS 1 English Agriculture Agriculture for Standard Six-Unit 20 SYSTEMS OF KEEPING CHICKENS 1 English Zomba, Southern , Malawi Copyright © 2025, Knowledge & Information for Successful Society [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) You are free to make commercial use of this work. You may adapt and add to this work. You must keep the copyright and credits for authors , illustrators , etc. SYSTEMS OF KEEPING CHICKENS 1 Chickens need proper housing to protect them from bad weather, predators and thieves. It is important to provide enough space. A clean chicken house will help to control diseases and parasites. There are three main systems of keeping chickens. These are: Free range system Semi-intensive system Intensive system FREE RANGE SYSTEM Chickens are left free all day, getting their own feed in form of green grass, insects and any leftover food. The chickens are not restricted by a fence. This system is adopted where there is enough land. ADVANTAGES OF FREE RANGE SYSTEM Chickens can find feed for themselves Chickens are able to get sunshine Manure is well spread all over the field The children house does not need expensive materials to construct DISADVANTAGES OF FREE RANGE SYSTEM Predators can catch the chickens It is difficult to collect eggs at they may be laid in the bush Chickens can easily catch diseases Difficult to control breeding. SEMI-INTENSIVE SYSTEM The chickens are allowed to move freely during the day to eat insects, grass, worms and grit in a fenced area. They are provided with a house to sleep at night. Feed and water are provided within the fence. Laying nets are provided. The house provided can either be traditional or deep litter. ADVANTAGES OF SEMIINTENSIVE SYSTEM Chickens do not go far away Easy to collect manure It is easy to control diseases It is easy to collect eggs Chickens can be fed on locally made feed.

FAQs

Why do chickens need proper housing?

Chickens need housing to protect them from bad weather, predators, and thieves. A clean chicken house also helps control diseases and parasites.

What is the main practice in the free range system?

Chickens are left free all day and forage for green grass, insects, and leftover food. They are not restricted by a fence.

How does the semi-intensive system differ from free range?

Semi-intensive chickens move freely during the day in a fenced area to eat insects, grass, worms, and grit. They are provided with a house for night, feed and water within the fence, and laying nets.

Jul 19, 2026

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