Department of Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Ciszewskiego 8, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland.
Musielak S.A., ISA Brown Reproduction Farm and Hatchery, Niedabyl 49, Poland.
Poult Sci. 2021 Jun;100(6):101101. doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2021.101101. Epub 2021 Mar 11.
This study analyzed the influence of an aviary system, in comparison with battery cages, on rearing and reproduction of parent-stock (PS) laying-type chickens. ISA Brown PS chicks were reared for 16 wk in battery cages or in an aviary system. Chickens reared in cages were kept there throughout the rearing period, whereas those reared in the aviary were released after 7 wk. The remaining housing conditions were similar in cages and the aviary. Body weight (BW, g), feed intake (FI, g/birds/d), and mortality (%) of birds were monitored during rearing. After the rearing period, the chickens were transferred to 4 litter poultry houses: flock C (in cages) to poultry houses C1 and C2 (total: 2,076 cockerels and 20,450 pullets); flock A (in aviary) to poultry houses A1 and A2 (total: 1,542 cockerels and 16,962 pullets). During the period of reproduction (48 wk), egg production (%), hatching egg production (%), waste egg (%) and litter egg production (%), feed conversion ratio (FCR, g) and water intake (mL) per laid egg, hatching egg, and hatched chick, mortality (week/%), and BW at 17 wk and after reaching 50% laying performance were monitored. Furthermore, during incubation, fertilization rate (%), hatchability (%), and chick quality were recorded. The results showed that aviary rearing was associated with lower FI and higher mortality of chicks up to 16 wk of age. The following effects were also observed for aviary rearing during reproduction: the average egg and hatching egg production were higher, while waste and litter egg production were lower; FCR per laid egg, hatching egg, and the number of hatched chicks were poorer; and water intake for the production of 1 hatching egg and 1 hatched chick was lower. In the case of flocks A, higher mortality and BW at 17 wk of age were recorded for both sexes. They were characterized by higher relative egg fertilization, but lower hatchability due to the higher share of unhatched eggs. No influence of PS flock rearing system on chick quality was observed. The obtained results indicate that the aviary rearing system can be recommended for PS laying-type flocks. However, future research should consider the impact of a different diet having higher energy concentration on PS flocks reared in aviaries and develop methods for counteracting higher mortality in these systems. This is particularly significant for roosters because too few roosters in flock may contribute to lower egg fertilization and higher embryonic mortality.
本研究分析了与笼养相比，开放式鸡舍系统对种鸡（PS）饲养和繁殖的影响。ISA Brown PS 雏鸡在笼养或开放式鸡舍中饲养 16 周。笼养的雏鸡在整个饲养期间都留在笼中，而在开放式鸡舍中饲养的雏鸡则在 7 周后释放。笼养和开放式鸡舍中的剩余饲养条件相似。在饲养期间监测了鸡的体重（BW，g）、采食量（FI，g/只/天）和死亡率（%）。饲养期结束后，鸡被转移到 4 个层叠式禽舍：笼养的鸡群 C（鸡群 C）到禽舍 C1 和 C2（共：2076 只公鸡和 20450 只母鸡）；开放式鸡舍中的鸡群 A（鸡群 A）到禽舍 A1 和 A2（共：1542 只公鸡和 16962 只母鸡）。在繁殖期（48 周）期间，监测了产蛋率（%）、种蛋产蛋率（%）、废蛋率（%）和垫料蛋产率（%）、每产一枚蛋、种蛋和孵化鸡的饲料转化率（FCR，g）和耗水量（mL）、死亡率（周/%)）以及 17 周和达到 50%产蛋性能时的 BW。此外，在孵化期间，还记录了受精率（%）、孵化率（%）和雏鸡质量。结果表明，开放式饲养与雏鸡采食量较低和死亡率较高有关，直至 16 周龄。开放式饲养在繁殖期还表现出以下影响：平均产蛋率和种蛋产蛋率较高，而废蛋率和垫料蛋产率较低；每产一枚蛋、种蛋和孵化鸡的 FCR 较差；生产 1 枚种蛋和 1 只孵化鸡的耗水量较低。对于鸡群 A，公母鸡的死亡率和 17 周龄 BW 都较高。它们的特点是相对较高的蛋受精率，但由于未孵化的蛋较多，孵化率较低。PS 鸡群饲养系统对雏鸡质量没有影响。研究结果表明，开放式饲养系统可推荐用于 PS 产蛋型鸡群。然而，未来的研究应考虑更高能量浓度的不同饮食对开放式鸡舍饲养的 PS 鸡群的影响，并开发方法来应对这些系统中较高的死亡率。这对于公鸡尤为重要，因为鸡群中公鸡数量不足可能导致受精率降低和胚胎死亡率升高。
