Zootechnical Performance and Growth Curve Modelling of the Niamey Local Chickens in Niger

Abstract

The Niamey region in Niger depends on imports to meet its chicken meat needs. Although consumers appreciate local poultry products, they cannot fulfill their needs. The reluctance of modern producers to use local chickens on their farms is linked to a lack of knowledge of the production characteristics of local strains, which have been little studied. Thus, this study aimed to determine the growth profile of traditional chickens from villages in the Niamey region (Niger). In doing so, 100 local chicks whose parents were collected in the surrounding villages of the Niamey region were followed from hatching until the age of 140 days. The chickens were raised in cages with 10 per compartment of 3 m length and 1.5 m width. Food consumption was recorded daily, and weights were measured weekly. The parameters of the growth curves were obtained using the Gompertz equation. Female and male chickens had a significant weight difference at the third week of age. The mean weight of chicks at hatching was 24.90 ± 0.36 g. At the end of the follow-up, males, with a mean weight of 1523.05 ± 26.22 g were significantly heavier than females (1052.73 ± 14.04 g). Over the entire period of the experiment, the average daily gain and consumption indices were 9.5 g/d and 5.12, respectively. Asymptotic weights were 2096.78 g and 1313.26 g for males and females, respectively. The maturation factor of the Gompertz equation was higher in females (0.0196 g/d) than in males (0.0181 g/d), and the inflection age averaged 75 days for both sexes. In conclusion, Niamey local chickens are slow growing and have a high feed conversion ratio compared to the modern broiler or layer strains.