Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.
Poult Sci. 2011 Nov;90(11):2415-24. doi: 10.3382/ps.2011-01427.
During the winter in Western Canada, broilers are routinely transported in ambient temperatures ranging from 0°C to -40°C, yet there is little research in this area. This study examined the physiology and behavior of broilers undergoing simulated transport at typical Western Canadian winter temperatures. Groups of 15 broilers aged 32 to 33 d were exposed to an air stream regulated to -5, -10, or -15°C. Birds were placed into a typical transport drawer. Following baseline observations, the drawer was placed into a test chamber where cold air was drawn past the birds for 3 h. Three replications were conducted at each temperature. The birds adjusted their position within the drawer based upon the temperature distribution within the drawer. In comparison to the baseline period, exposing the birds to a cold air stream caused them to avoid the front plane (P = 0.003) which was the coldest area within the drawer. The birds did not adjust their usage of the middle (P = 0.308) and rear (P = 0.640) planes, because these were the warmer areas within the drawer. The total amount of space the birds occupied within the drawer did not decrease when exposed to the test chamber (P = 0.669). The core body temperature (CBT) did not vary and was within the known normal range during the normal (P = 0.528), pre-chamber (P = 0.060), and post-chamber (P = 0.285) periods. The CBT of the birds significantly decreased during the in-chamber period (P < 0.001) and then increased during the lairage period (P < 0.001). The shrink loss (P = 0.981) and amount of time to resume feed consumption (P = 0.357) were not affected by exposing the birds to temperatures of -5°C and colder. Exposing birds to temperatures of -5°C and colder had a negative effect on the CBT of the birds. However, the birds demonstrated behaviors which mitigated the negative effect that cold exposure could have on their CBT.
在加拿大西部的冬季，肉鸡通常在 0°C 至-40°C 的环境温度下运输，但该领域的研究很少。本研究检查了在典型的加拿大西部冬季温度下进行模拟运输的肉鸡的生理和行为。将 32 至 33 日龄的 15 只肉鸡分组，暴露于调节至-5、-10 或-15°C 的气流中。将鸡放入典型的运输抽屉中。在基线观察之后，将抽屉放入测试室中，冷空气在抽屉中的鸡身上吹过 3 小时。在每个温度下进行了三次重复。鸡根据抽屉内的温度分布调整其在抽屉内的位置。与基线期相比，将鸡暴露于冷空气流中导致它们避免了最冷的前平面（P = 0.003）。鸡没有调整其对中间（P = 0.308）和后（P = 0.640）平面的使用，因为这些是抽屉内较温暖的区域。暴露于测试室中时，鸡在抽屉内占据的空间总量并未减少（P = 0.669）。核心体温（CBT）在正常（P = 0.528）、前室（P = 0.060）和后室（P = 0.285）期间没有变化，并且在已知的正常范围内。在室内期间（P <0.001），鸡的 CBT 显着下降，然后在休息期间（P <0.001）增加。鸡的收缩损失（P = 0.981）和恢复进食时间（P = 0.357）不受将鸡暴露于-5°C 及以下温度的影响。将鸡暴露于-5°C 及以下温度对鸡的 CBT 有负面影响。然而，鸡表现出的行为减轻了冷暴露对其 CBT 的负面影响。
