No abstract

An investigation was made into the effects of different lairage times and the position of chicken crates during transport to the slaughterhouse on the biochemical and hematological profile and physical parameters of broilers, such as color and pH of their breast meat. The treatments were defined by the animals slaughtered after 0, 2, 4 and 6 hours of lairage time at the slaughterhouse, transported in crates located in the top and bottom layers of the truck. It was found that increasing the lairage time at the slaughterhouse to over two hours reduced the number of lymphocytes and increased the heterophil/lymphocyte (H/L) ratio and the basophil count in the hemogram. In addition, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity and cholesterol levels increased and plasma triglyceride and glucose levels decreased. The position of the crates in the truck altered the creatine kinase (CK) activity, and the highest enzyme activity was found in birds transported in the top layer of crates in the truck. Furthermore, the long lairage time in the slaughterhouse increased the pH and the value of a* (redness value) and decreased the lightness value of breast fillets. The interaction significant between 4 and 6 hours of lairage time and the position of the crate in the top layer of the truck favored the development of dark, firm, dry (DFD) meat.Keywords: animal welfare, DFD meat, fasting, holding sheds, pre-slaughter Palavras-chave: bem-estar animal, carne DFD, galpão de espera, jejum, pré-abate RESUMO Este trabalho objetivou a avaliação dos efeitos dos diferentes tempos de espera e da posição das caixas

This study was designed to determine adequate levels for sodium butyrate inclusion in pre-hatching and pre-starter feed in order to minimize the negative effects of post-hatch delayed placement on broiler chicks. Newly-hatched chicks were allotted in a completely randomized design, with five treatments, each comprising five replicates of ten birds each. Five dietetic levels of sodium butyrate (control, 0.050, 0.075, 0.100 and 0.200%) were used in the pre-starter feed offered to the chicks in the transporting box and during the pre-starter phase. Performance, yolk sac retraction, plasma glucose concentration, weight and histomorphometry of the small intestine were evaluated after 24 hours of feed access and at 7 days of age. A metabolic trial was performed when the chicks were seven to ten days of age. Supplementation of 0.1% sodium butyrate increased the development of broiler chicks’ intestinal villi at seven days of age but was not able to improve performance in the pre-starter phase. Supplementation with sodium butyrate in a diet offered in the transportation box does not improve broiler performance in the pre-starter phase. Supplementation of up to 0.16% is recommended, in order to improve the metabolizability of the ether extract for broilers at seven days of age.