Yu Myunghwan, Chathuranga Nuwan Chamara, Oketch Elijah Ogola, Hong Jun Seon, Park Haeeun, Heo Jung Min
Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 34134, Korea.
J Anim Sci Technol. 2024 Nov;66(6):1193-1202. doi: 10.5187/jast.2024.e48. Epub 2024 Nov 30.
The current study investigated the impact of using iron and plastic crates during summer transportation on production, physiological characteristics, and welfare of broiler chickens. A total of 160 Ross 308 male broilers were randomly selected from a battery-caged house at 35 days of age. Their average body weight was 1,866.62 ± 36.048 g (mean ± SEM). Broilers were crated into fixed iron crates with 1.00 m (length) × 0.78 m (width) × 0.26 m (height) and plastic crates with 0.82 m (length) × 0.57 m (width) × 0.29 m (height) dimensions at 173 cm/kg densities. Afterward, they were transported in the early morning at an average speed of 30-50 km/h for 40 minutes under 30°C and 40% relative humidity, completing a total distance of 20 km. Body weights were recorded before and after completing the journey. Following the weighing of birds, blood samples were collected for blood metabolite (cortisol, glucose, and lactate) analysis. Cervical dislocation was performed to euthanize broilers followed by breast and drumstick collection. Dressing, drumstick, and breast meat were calculated as percentages whereas respiratory frequencies were measured as the number of breaths per minute. Collected breast meat samples were utilized to analyze physiochemical parameters such as pH, color (CIE L*, a*, b*), water holding capacity, and cooking loss. Results from skin temperature assessments showed higher temperatures ( < 0.05) in broilers that were loaded into iron crates, both before (iron, 41.23 ± 0.610°C; plastic, 39.25 ± 0.065°C) and after (iron, 43.53 ± 0.723°C, and plastic, 41.63 ± 0.132°C) completing the journey. However, total skin temperature change was not significantly affected. Importantly, stress-indicating blood metabolite analysis revealed that glucose and lactate levels were lower ( < 0.05) in broilers transported in plastic crates. Nevertheless, cortisol levels remained unaffected by crate materials. Furthermore, transit losses, carcass characteristics, and physiochemical properties were also unaffected despite the dissimilar crate types. In conclusion, the study revealed that plastic is the more advantageous crating material compared to iron. Besides, plastic crates ensure meat quality and animal welfare, as evidenced by blood metabolite levels and skin temperature after transit.
本研究调查了夏季运输过程中使用铁制和塑料制鸡笼对肉鸡生产性能、生理特征及福利的影响。从一个层架式鸡舍中随机选取160只35日龄的罗斯308雄性肉鸡。它们的平均体重为1866.62±36.048克（平均值±标准误）。将肉鸡装入尺寸为1.00米（长）×0.78米（宽）×0.26米（高）的固定铁制鸡笼和尺寸为0.82米（长）×0.57米（宽）×0.29米（高）的塑料鸡笼中，密度为173厘米/千克。之后，在清晨以平均30 - 50公里/小时的速度运输40分钟，运输时温度为30°C，相对湿度为40%，总行程20公里。记录行程前后的体重。称完鸡的体重后，采集血样进行血液代谢物（皮质醇、葡萄糖和乳酸）分析。通过颈椎脱臼法对肉鸡实施安乐死，随后采集胸肉和腿肉。计算屠宰率、腿肉率和胸肉率，以百分比表示，同时测量呼吸频率，以每分钟呼吸次数计。采集的胸肉样本用于分析理化参数，如pH值、颜色（CIE L*、a*、b*）、持水力和烹饪损失。皮肤温度评估结果显示，装入铁制鸡笼的肉鸡在行程前（铁制鸡笼，41.23±0.610°C；塑料鸡笼，39.25±0.065°C）和行程后（铁制鸡笼，43.53±0.723°C，塑料鸡笼，41.63±0.132°C）的温度均较高（P<0.05）。然而，皮肤温度的总变化未受到显著影响。重要的是，应激指标血液代谢物分析显示，装在塑料鸡笼中的肉鸡体内葡萄糖和乳酸水平较低（P<0.05）。不过，皮质醇水平不受鸡笼材料的影响。此外，尽管鸡笼类型不同，但运输损耗、胴体特征和理化性质也未受到影响。总之，该研究表明，与铁制鸡笼相比，塑料是更具优势的鸡笼材料。此外，塑料鸡笼能确保肉质和动物福利，运输后的血液代谢物水平和皮肤温度证明了这一点。
