Broiler survival

I'm honestly somewhat amazed at my Freedom Ranger broiler chicks.  I got 102 last Thursday.  None were DOA, and none have died since I got them.  I've always had at least 1 or 2 that were just weak and lethargic on arrival and usually those would die no matter what I did.  Or I'd find a chick suddenly dead here or there.  Usually 2-4% mortality by the end of the first week (since hatching, not arrival).  Well, as of this morning's feeding, with them now 6 days old, there is still 0 mortality.  They're also all pretty vigorous, zooming around the brooder, and have been having dominance fights.  Got a few that I need to clean their backsides, but otherwise they're seeming in excellent health.

Some of this is luck of course, but I think it's also a matter of giving them warm water and fermented feed.  The warm water keeps them from having to use energy to warm it up, and the fermented feed does a few things for them.  For one, it's wet.  Obvious, but that moisture means they don't need to drink a whole bunch of water just after eating.  That reduces their stress quite a bit.  Being babies I think the long soak involved in fermenting also makes it a bit easier to eat the food (I do mix it with dry feed so it's like a barely pourable porridge for consistency).  The probiotics from the fermentation also kick start their digestive flora so they get the calories and nutrients more efficiently those first few days.  

Last year I fermented their feed all the way to slaughter day.  Had excellent survival post arrival (had to get replacements shipped because only 26 of 102 survived the first shipping, then 2 of the 89 replacements didn't even make it to sundown the day the came) with I think 1 or 2 deaths in the brooder, and then 2 that I processed less than a week ahead of slaughter day because they weren't acting right. Fermenting their feed was a huge increase in workload, and didn't seem to benefit things in terms of final carcass size or feed efficiency.  So, this time I'll continue to ferment their feed until they are ready to leave the brooder entirely then they'll get dry feed until slaughter.

I've never raised broilers, but since I started raising all my chicks on fermented feed, I have had really good survival rates.  I rarely lose a chick.  

Still 100% survival.  My broad-breasted white turkey poults too, which are a week older.  Going to do this same method with the layer chicks I'll be getting in a couple weeks, the CRX chicks next week, and the heritage turkey poults in about a month.