Comparative analysis of hatcheries contribution to poor development of day-old chicks based on biological and immunological performance

Comparative analysis of hatcheries contribution to poor development of day-old chicks based on biological and immunological performance

The quality of day-old chicks is a cornerstone to successful poultry production. Chicks with a poor quality start slowly in the field and may have high feed intake, poor growth rate, and poor feed conversion ratio. The current study aimed to assess chick quality challenges encountered from day-old c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Veterinary World Vol. 12; no. 11; pp. 1849 - 1857
Main Authors: Yeboah, P P, Konadu, L A, Hamidu, J A, Poku, E A, Wakpal, D, Kudaya, P Y, Dey, A, Siddiq, S M
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: India Veterinary World 01-11-2019
Subjects:
Bacteria
Blood
chick quality
Chicks
Comparative analysis
Conversion ratio
day-old chicks
foreign chicks
Gram-negative bacteria
Growth rate
Hatcheries
Hematology
Immunology
International standards
Intestine
Juveniles
local chicks
Monocytes
Physical characteristics
Quality
residual yolk sac
Vaccination
Yolk
Yolk sac
Ghana
chick quality
day-old chicks
foreign chicks
local chicks
residual yolk sac
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Summary:The quality of day-old chicks is a cornerstone to successful poultry production. Chicks with a poor quality start slowly in the field and may have high feed intake, poor growth rate, and poor feed conversion ratio. The current study aimed to assess chick quality challenges encountered from day-old chicks hatched in most commercial hatcheries in Ghana. A total of 300 day-old chicks each were obtained from commercial hatcheries in Ghana and Europe. The chicks were labeled as locally hatched broiler day-old chicks (LBDOC) and foreign hatched broiler day-old chicks (FBDOC), respectively. Chicks were reared and monitored from day old to 21 days post-hatch. Sample of chicks (n=25) from each hatchery was euthanized weekly at 1, 7, 14, and 21 days and blood samples collected for analysis. The parameters measured included physical, hematological, immunological, histological, and bacteriological characteristics. All data were analyzed by SAS Proc GLM at p<0.05. The live weight of chicks was higher in FBDOC compared to LBDOC on the 1 day. The chick length and shank length of FBDOC were longer than the LBDOC. The 7-day chick mortality was 6% in LBDOC as compared to 1.5% in FBDOC. The LBDOC also had a higher wet and dry residual yolk sac percentages as well as higher residual yolk sac fluid volume than the FBDOC. The rate of yolk sac disappearance of the FBDOC was higher than the LBDOC. More than half of the LBDOC had developed navel strings and leaky navel compared to FBDOC. The LBDOC recorded , Proteus, spp., and Gram-negative bacteria in the residual yolk sac isolated through the 21 days while FBDOC recorded , Proteus, and Gram-negative bacteria. The intestinal villi count, lengths, width, and surface area were all not significantly different. The blood monocyte levels appeared higher in FBDOC than LBDOC, which give evidence of higher immunity in FBDOC than LBDOC. The results indicate a challenging situation in maintaining the quality of locally hatched broiler day-old-chicks compared to foreign hatched broiler-day-old-chicks. The study demonstrates that chick quality impact goes beyond the physical characteristics of chick weight and chick length, and the higher performance of FBDOC may be influenced by compliance with international hatchery standards and vaccination protocols.
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ISSN:0972-8988
2231-0916
DOI:10.14202/vetworld.2019.1849-1857