Swiftlet Farming " Dog Kennel, Open Roof & Window unit"

I’ve received many emails regarding the above, especially from those who are new to Swiftlet Farming. I hope the information provided here would be useful.

There many types of design of Swiftlet Farm as you could see from the pictures that I have posted here. It comes in varies sizes, designs, shapes, etc. To name it the most common ones are Dog Kennel, Open Roof & Window Type.

Of course every each of them have their own advantages and disadvantages over the other. These 3 types of farm are commonly seen in Malaysia where in some Swiftlet Farm areas you could see one of the 3 types predominate over the other. The reason being is "Adaptation".

Dog Kennel (DK)

The purpose of DK is to prevent light from reaching the nesting area. The opening (entrance) usually small thus the movement of air is not easily sweep into the farm. The height also deters intruders. It is good for small farm that has a small build-up area as the roving will not take up lots of space.

The disadvantages are, due to the small entrance, it takes a longer time for birds to enter the farm and manoeuvre is a problem if the farm is not designed properly. It may take a long time for birds to nest, furthermore younger birds may find it hard to fly out from the farm if the flying path is designed wrongly.

It also create eye sore as it can be easily seen by others. This will invite people from the local council and intruders. Secondly, since the entrance is facing horizontally this creates sound pollution. The sound from the external tweeter can be heard by the public.

The DK is very famous in the West Coast of Malaysia.

Open Roof (OR)

It is the favorite of the East Coast Swiftlet Farmers. Majority of them in the East Coast of Malaysia (T’ganu, Pahang and Kelantan) favor this design.

The entrance is facing the sky making it easy for birds to enter the farm’s entrance rarely smaller than 4x4’ (most are bigger). It takes up lots of space and it is not advisable for small build-up farm. Due to the large entrance air is easily draw into the farm thus creating an environment disliked by Swiftlets.

It is not easy to control the micro environment of OR farm, initially there are many birds visiting the farm if the micro condition is not right after couple of weeks they will leave.

The large entrance also invite intruder as it is easy to break in. The light could reach the nesting area if the design is not done properly. The advantage is the sound pollution is at minimum as all tweeters can be placed facing the sky.

No eye sore for OR farm, if the sound could be controlled properly no one will notice, there is a farm around.

Window Type (WT)

This is very similar to the DK except the opening is at the window or the wall parallel to the building. The reason being is to save cost. It is the easiest to make and cheaper than the both above (for Shop lot ). No renovation needed on the roof.

The WT are very common in Indonesia and especially for Stand Alone farm where there is no obstruction at the opposite of the entrance. There’re few very successful farms using this design here. Once again, sound pollution and eye sore shall invite people from the council and complain .It is easy for thief to go in from the next building’s window. All he has to do is just climb over. (Shop lot)

It takes a while for the birds to go into the farm. The light can penetrate right to the end of the farm unless partitions are made.

For more information you may email me at swifjames@yahoo.com