Effect of Litter on Development and Severity of Foot-Pad Dermatitis and Behavior of Broiler Chickens

Abstract

This study was conducted to evaluate the impact of litter type and litter treatment with enzymatic-bacterial production incidence and severity of footpad dermatitis and consequently on behavior of broiler chickens. A total of 1,200 one day-old Ross 308 broilers were randomly allocated to 4 treatments with 4 replicates in 2 x 2 factorial design. The first factor was the physical form of the straw (chopped on approximately 2 cm or un-chopped) and the second factor was addition of enzymaticbacterial product applied directly on the straw. Each replicate consisted of 75 as-hatched birds per pen. Occurrence and severity of the footpad dermatitis and histological evaluation of the scores was done at the end of the trial (42 days of age). During the trial, at 3 and 6 weeks of age, broiler behavior was observed by Scan Sampling Method. The results showed that chopped straw significantly lowered the incidence of footpad dermatitis. Chopped straw in combination with enzymaticbacterial product showed the lowest footpad dermatitis score in broilers. Histological procedures confirmed the macroscopic evaluation of the footpad dermatitis severity. The chopped straw had a significant effect on some behavioral patterns of broiler chickens. Differences were observed for dust bathing and scratching. Correlation between footpad dermatitis and birds locomotor activity was not confirmed.

Impact of acclimatization system on zootechnical performance and thermal comfort in young broiler chickens

“…It is important to maintain a good quality bedding, as this may influence the appearance of locomotor problems in birds, leading to slaughterhouse rejections. In birds raised in excessively moist bedding, there may be increased incidence of dermatitis (Zikic et al, 2017).…”

Kanatlılarda kontakt dermatit

“…(69)'nın yaptıkları çalışmaya göre altlığa % 25 ve % 50 düzeylerinde sepiolit eklenmesi altlıktaki pH, nem ve amonyak seviyelerinin azalmasına yardımcı olmuştur. Etçi piliç kümeslerindeki altlık üzerine yapılan araştırmalarda, peletlenmiş buğday samanının altlık kalitesini arttırdığı ve ayak tabanı yanıklarının görülme sıklığını azalttığı tespit edilmiştir (39,77). Altlık materyali olarak peletlenmiş buğday samanı kullanılan etçi piliç kümeslerinde, besinin 24.…”

Wheat litter and feed with aluminosilicates for improved growth and meat quality in broiler chickens

“…The main objective of the research on the quality of litter is its humidity, degree of purity or nitrogen and ammonia content, and the research concerned the use of many additives, such as aluminium sulphate, sodium bisulphate, microbiological preparation or a commercial ammonia binding agent, as well as zeolite. A positive effect has been reported, including minimization of footpad dermatitis ( Zikic et al, 2017 ). Referring to the cited literature, the quality of litter and additives improving its condition should be used throughout the production cycle.…”