Effect of chick body temperature during post-hatch handling on broiler live

performance1

A. Hamissou Maman, S. Özlü, A. Uçar, and O. Elibol2

Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ankara, Ankara 06110, Turkey

ABSTRACT The current study investigated the ef- the high body temperature group than in the chicks in
fect of chick body (rectal) temperature during the post- the other 2 groups until the end of the experiment at
hatch handling period on body weight (BW) loss, yolk 35 d (P ≤ 0.05) because chicks in the high temperature
sac utilization, organ weights, and broiler live perfor- group consumed less feed throughout the experiment
mance. Hatching eggs were obtained from a commercial (P ≤ 0.05). Feed conversion ratio (FCR) and mortality
flock of Ross 308 broiler breeders at 44 wk of age. A to- were numerically greater in the high body temperature
tal of 384 chicks were separated into 3 groups during chicks than in the control group, whereas FCR and the
the 12 h post-hatch handling period: control, high and mortality in the low body temperature chicks were in-
low temperature groups, with average body tempera- termediate at 35 d. The results of the present study
tures of 40.0, 42.6, and 38.1◦ C, respectively. Residual indicate that day-old chicks with high body tempera-
yolk sac weight was not affected by temperature group, tures (42.6◦ C) exhibited a greater percentage of BW
whereas the weights of organs such as the heart, giz- loss due to dehydration and lower organ weights during
zard, proventriculus, and bursa of Fabricius were sig- the 12 h post-hatch handling period, which was followed
nificantly lower in the high body temperature group by significantly poorer broiler performance. There were
than in the control and low body temperature groups. no significant differences in performance between the
BW was significantly lower at placement in chicks in chicks in the control (40.0◦ C) and low (38.1◦ C) body
the high temperature group than in chicks in the con- temperature groups. In conclusion, day-old chicks are
trol and low body temperature groups due to greater more sensitive to higher body temperatures than to
weight loss during the post-hatch handling period (P lower temperatures during the post-hatch handling pe-
≤ 0.05). Lower BW was maintained in the chicks in riod.
Key words: broilers, body temperature, post-hatch handling, body weight, feed consumption
2019 Poultry Science 98:244–250
http://dx.doi.org/10.3382/ps/pey395

INTRODUCTION time allowed, including waiting in the hatchery and

transportation, is 72 h. Furthermore, the time between
There has always been a natural biological variation take-off from the hatcher and placement in a broiler
(24 to 48 h) in the time that chicks emerge from their house is normally approximately12 h in vertically in-
egg shells (hatch time), even under optimal artificial tegrated operations and depends mainly on the trans-
incubation conditions. However, chicks are commonly portation schedule, the availability of rearing houses,
removed from the hatchers at the same time (take-off). and the transportation period.
After take-off, the post-hatch treatment includes sort- Very little is known about the effects of suboptimal
ing, sexing, counting, vaccination, waiting in the hatch- conditions in the hours after take-off either in the chick
ery, and, finally, transportation to the broiler house. In holding room or during transportation (Oviedo-Rondón
practice and according to the current legislation in Eu- et al., 2009; EFSA Panel on Animal Health Welfare,
rope (EFSA Panel on Animal Health Welfare, 2011), 2011). Freeman (1984) reported that newly hatched
storage of chicks for more than 24 h is not permitted chicks were unresponsive to stress. However, several
in hatcheries. The chicks are then transferred to rearing studies have reported that both the post-hatch handling
farms over a maximum of 24 to 48 h, and the maximum time and the environmental conditions are crucial for
the development and performance of chicks later in life

C 2018 Poultry Science Association Inc. (Mitchell, 2009; Bergoug et al., 2013).
Received May 8, 2018. During post-hatch handling, temperature is the main
Accepted August 4, 2018. environmental condition affecting the quality of day-
1
The use of trade names in this publication does not imply endorse- old chicks and their subsequent broiler performance
ment of the products mentioned or criticism of similar products not
mentioned. (Decuypere et al., 2001). In practice, most hatcheries
2
Corresponding author: elibol@agri.ankara.edu.tr recommend that environmental temperatures for chick

244
 CHICK BODY TEMPERATURE 245
rooms or transportation of the boxes containing chicks between 483 and 486 h of incubation, and placed back
remain between 24 and 26◦ C (Mitchell et al., 1996; inside their original hatcher tray, where they awaited
Mitchell and Kettlewell, 2009) to maintain the opti- the final pull. Only the first-grade chicks hatched be-
mal chick body temperature (40.0 to 40.5◦ C). When tween 483 and 486 h of incubation were used in this
above the ideal range, the air temperature may induce experiment. Thus, the post-hatch holding period in the
hyperthermia and dehydration in the chicks, leading hatcher was similar for all included chicks. Chicks that
to increased mortality (Xin and Rieger, 1995; Xin and hatched before or after these time periods were not in-
Harmon, 1996; Joseph and Moran, 2005), increased in- cluded in this experiment.
cidence of twisted legs (Oviedo-Rondón et al., 2009),
reduced feed intake, and growth retardation (Nazareno
et al., 2016). During the first days of life, a chick still Experimental Treatments
functions as a poikilotherm and cannot adjust its heat
The chicks (n = 384) were feather sexed, permanently
production to ambient temperatures (Weytjens et al.,
identified with a numbered neck tag upon removal from
1999). Therefore, cold stress may be another problem
the incubators (510 h of incubation), and randomly and
in day-old chicks that could affect muscle growth and
equally assigned to 3 identical chambers as the control,
development (Sagher, 1975; Davison and Lickiss, 1979).
high and low temperature groups. In each chamber, 128
In most previous studies, the ambient temperature
chicks were placed in 4 plastic chick boxes, each with 16
and/or the temperature values within the chick box
male and 16 female chicks. Ten randomly selected chicks
have been determined (Xin and Rieger, 1995; Xin
were used for measuring body temperature through the
and Harmon, 1996; Barri, 2008; Oviedo-Rondón et al.,
cloaca (rectal temperature) hourly with a digital ther-
2009). However, the optimum temperature values for
mometer (Braun, model Prt1000) during the 12 h post-
the chick can be influenced and varied by factors such as
hatch handling period in each chamber (temperature
air movement in the environment, the outdoor temper-
group). As the procedure of the measuring body tem-
ature, the box type, and especially the heating-cooling
perature is stressful to the chicks, a different 10 chicks
capacity and chick capacity of the truck. For this rea-
were used each hour in each chamber. The ambient tem-
son, chick body (rectal) temperature measurements,
perature of the chamber was recorded by using 4 data-
which are the most reliable values, were used in the
loggers (Testo, model 174H). The chamber air tempera-
current study.
tures were programmed hourly based on the chick body
The aim of the current study was to investigate the
temperatures, as shown in Table 1. The relative humid-
effect of chick body temperature during the 12 h post-
ity in the 3 chambers averaged between 53 and 58%. A
hatch handling period on body weight (BW) loss with
constant air flow through the chambers was maintained.
yolk sac utilization, the weights of internal organs, and
To prevent heat loss during chick body temperature
subsequent broiler live performance.
measurements, a plastic tent was constructed around
the doors at the front of the 3 chambers to keep the
MATERIALS AND METHODS chamber and external environments equalized during
chick body temperature measurements.
All procedures in the current study were approved
by the Animal Ethics Committee of Ankara University
(2017-5-47). Housing
After the post-hatch handling period, 336 chicks from
Incubation 3 chambers (112 chicks per chamber) were placed in a
single broiler housing unit, where 7 male and 7 female
Hatching eggs were obtained from a commercial flock chicks from the same treatment were selected, individ-
of Ross × Ross 308 broiler breeders at 44 wk of age. A ually weighed, and distributed among 24(8 pens × 3
total of 2,520 eggs were stored for 2 d at 17◦ C and 75% treatments) floor pens (1 × 1 m) with new wood lit-
RH before being set for incubation in 3 identical labo- ter shavings. Each pen contained 3 nipple-type drinkers
ratory incubators (Çimuka, Ankara, Turkey). A single- and 1 tube feeder. The brooding facilities were pre-
stage incubation program was used with a gradually heated for 24 h before chick placement to achieve a
decreasing machine set point temperature from 38.1◦ C stable and uniform litter temperature. At placement,
at embryonic day (E) 0 to 37.5◦ C at E18 of incuba- the litter temperature was 33◦ C, which was decreased
tion. At E18, the eggs were candled, and those with to 20◦ C at 21 d of age and remained at that level until
evidence of living embryos were transferred to hatching slaughter at 35 d of age. The chicks were maintained
baskets. The hatchers began at a set point tempera- under continuous light (24 L: 0 D) and light intensity
ture of 37.2◦ C at E18, which was gradually decreased at pen level with 25 lx throughout the grow-out pe-
to 36.4◦ C at E21. The relative humidity was 53 ± 2% riod. Starter (3,000 kcal ME/kg and 23.5% CP) and
from E0 to E18. The eggs were turned once every hour grower (3,200 kcal ME/kg and 22.0% CP) diets were
until E18 of incubation. Chicks that still had wet down, fed for 0 to 10 and 11 to 28 d, respectively. The fin-
indicating that they had just hatched, were marked isher (3,300 kcal ME/kg and 20.0% CP) diet was fed
246 HAMISSOU MAMAN ET AL.

Table 1. Body (cloaca) and ambient temperatures in control, high and low temperature groups
during the post-hatch handling period.

Treatment2

Control High Low

Location3
1
Transport period Chick cloaca Ambient Chick cloaca Ambient Chick cloaca Ambient
(hour) (◦ C)
1 40.19 35.52 42.53 40.02 38.29 19.52
2 40.16 36.13 42.48 40.81 38.23 18.88
3 40.08 36.16 42.21 40.77 37.96 19.83
4 39.95 36.06 42.72 40.78 38.08 20.42
5 40.08 36.31 42.68 40.54 38.20 20.84
6 40.06 36.31 42.55 40.47 38.09 21.25
7 40.14 36.13 42.50 40.43 38.25 21.28
8 40.19 36.03 42.79 40.46 37.68 21.20
9 39.88 36.18 42.62 40.33 37.84 24.25
10 39.36 36.24 42.75 40.34 38.05 25.13
11 39.52 36.44 42.65 40.38 37.89 25.19
12 39.95 36.78 42.69 40.45 39.00 22.41
Average 39.96 36.19 42.60 40.48 38.13 21.68
SEM4 0.12 0.21 0.12 0.21 0.12 0.21
1
Post-hatch handling period: data collected hourly.
2
Treatment: control averaged 40.0◦ C, high averaged 42.6◦ C, and low averaged 38.1◦ C.
3
Location: chick cloacal temperature was measured with a Braun thermometer, and ambient temperature
was measured with a datalogger (Testo, model 174H).
4
Standard error of the mean for 10 chicks per treatment or for 4 dataloggers per treatment.

on days 29 through 35. Both crumble feed and water the overall mean, BTi is the body temperature (high,
were available ad libitum during the entire rearing pe- low, control), and eij is the residual error term. Data
riod, and the diets were formulated to meet or exceed on chick BW were analyzed according to the follow-
NRC (1994) recommendations throughout the grow-out ing model: Yijk = μ + BTi + sexj +(BT × sex)ij +
period. eijk , where sexj is the sex of the chick, (BT × sex)ij is
the interaction between body temperature and sex, and
eijk is the residual error term. When the means of the
Measurements GLM were significantly different, means were compared
using least squares with Duncan’s multiple range test.
The chicks were weighed individually before and af- The percentage of mortality was analyzed using the chi-
ter the 12 h post-hatch handling period to evaluate squared test in Minitab Version 14 (Minitab Inc., State
BW loss. Sixteen (totally 48 chicks) randomly selected College, PA). Claims of significant difference were based
chicks from each temperature group were weighed and upon P ≤ 0.05.
necropsied to determine residual yolk sac (RYS), heart,
proventriculus, gizzard, and bursa of Fabricius weights
at the time of placement in pens before introduction to RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
feed and water.
Individual BW was recorded at d 7, 14, 21, 28, and Body and Ambient Temperature During the
35. On these same days, feed consumption and feed Post-hatch Handling Period
conversion ratio (FCR) were measured and calculated
each week per pen up to slaughter age. Feed consump- The body (rectal) and ambient temperatures of
tion was calculated by subtracting the weight of the re- the control, high and low temperature groups during
maining feed in the feeders from the weight of the feed the 12 h post-hatch handling period are presented in
initially provided. Mortality was collected twice daily Table 1. The average body–ambient temperature was
and weighed in order to calculate the adjusted FCR 40.0 to 36.2◦ C, 42.6 to 40.5◦ C, and 38.1 to 21.7◦ C in
(kg of feed consumed/kg of live BW) in each pen. the control, high and low temperature groups, respec-
tively. Table 1 shows that the increase in body tem-
perature from the control (40.0◦ C) group to the high
Statistical Analyses (42.6◦ C) temperature group was enough to increase the
ambient temperature by 4◦ C in the chamber, although
Data on yolk sac and organ weights, feed consump- the ambient temperature was decreased by 14.5◦ C to
tion, and FCR were analyzed using the general linear decrease body temperature from the control (40.0◦ C)
model (GLM) procedure of SAS (SAS, 2004) according group to the low (38.1◦ C) temperature group. It is clear,
to the following model: Yij = μ + BTi + eij , where μ is therefore, that chicks were more resistant to changes in
 CHICK BODY TEMPERATURE 247
Table 2. Effect of chick body temperature on body weight Table 3. Effect of chick body temperature on yolk-free body
loss during the post-hatch handling period. mass, residual yolk sac weight, and internal organ weights.

Treatment1 Treatment1
Control High Low SEM2 Control High Low SEM2

Chick weight at take-off (g) 42.97 43.49 43.77 0.296 Yolk-free body mass (g) 37.88a 35.45b 38.46a 0.782
Chick weight after handling (g) 41.33b 39.06c 42.06a 0.209 Residual yolk sac weight (g) 3.37 3.03 3.21 0.321
Body weight loss (%) 3.82b 10.20a 3.86b 0.145 Relative yolk sac (%) 8.33 8.10 7.71 0.514
a-c
Heart (g) 0.30a 0.27b 0.32a 0.01
Means with different letters in the same row differ significantly Proventriculus(g) 0.41a 0.32b 0.42a 0.02
(P ≤ 0.05). Gizzard(g) 2.21a 1.77b 2.23a 0.07
1
Treatment: control averaged 40.0◦ C, high averaged 42.6◦ C, and Bursa of Fabricius(g) 0.056a 0.021b 0.044a 0.006
low averaged 38.1◦ C.
2
Standard error of the mean for 128 chicks per treatment. a-b
Means with different letters in the same row differ significantly
(P ≤ 0.05).
1
Treatment: control averaged 40.0◦ C, high averaged 42.6◦ C, and
their body temperature if exposed to low ambient tem- low averaged 38.1◦ C.
2
peratures than high temperatures. Standard error of the mean for 16 chicks per treatment.

weight loss and reduced yolk sac loss. Leksrisompong

Chick Body Weight Loss During the et al. (2007) reported that Ross 308 broiler chicks incu-
Post-hatch Handling Period bated at 40◦ C eggshell temperature (EST) from embry-
onic day 19 to 20 exhibited increased yolk sac weights
Table 2 presents the effects of body temperature on as day-old chicks. Moreover, RYS weight could be af-
BW loss during the 12 h post-hatch handling period. fected by hatch time and the subsequent holding pe-
BW loss was 3.82, 10.20, and 3.86% in the control, riod in the hatcher (Özlü et al., 2016). In the present
high and low body temperature groups, respectively, study, the effect of hatch time was eliminated because
and the differences were significant (P ≤ 0.05). Simi- all chicks used in this experiment were obtained from a
larly, many researchers have reported significant weight similar hatch moment (483 to 486 h of incubation).
loss in chicks exposed to high temperatures (Henken et The weights of the heart, gizzard, proventriculus, and
al., 1987; Xin and Harmon, 1996; French et al., 2011). bursa of Fabricius, as well as the YFBM, were lower (P
Freeman (1984) reported that 40 g chicks maintained < 0.01) in the high temperature group than in the con-
under optimal environmental conditions lost an aver- trol and low body temperature groups. Total BW loss
age of 5% of their BW in the first 24 h after hatch- was mainly due to the loss of water originating from
ing, but if they were maintained at slightly higher the body and not from the yolk sac (Table 3). Maat-
temperatures such as 40◦ C, the chicks’ water stores jens et al. (2014) reported that high EST during the
would be exhausted in 8 to 10 h, with the result- hatching phase resulted in lower YFBM at hatching
ing weight loss reaching 10% to 15% or even 25% than that in the normal and low EST groups. Most
of the chicks’ weight. Van der Hel et al. (1991) also studies have shown that BW and the weights of the
found that water loss ranged from 1.8 g at 30.8◦ C heart, gizzard, proventriculus, and small intestines are
to 4.4 g at 38.8◦ C. In the present study, the BW reduced under the influence of high incubation tem-
loss of chicks exposed to high body temperatures peratures during late incubation (Leksrisompong et al.,
within a 12 h period was approximately 3 times higher 2007; Lourens et al., 2007; Maatjens et al., 2014; Sozcu
than in the chicks in the control and low tempera- and Ipek, 2015). Contrary to the higher-temperature
ture groups, and the difference in BW loss between embryos, the lower-temperature embryos exhibited in-
the control and high body temperature groups was creased heart weights late in incubation (Maatjens
2.8 g. It was also confirmed that a low body tempera- et al., 2014, 2016). Heart development was also affected
ture of 38.5◦ C did not negatively affect BW loss. by brooding temperature. The cold brooding tempera-
ture resulted in a higher relative heart weight than the
Yolk-Free Body Mass, Residual Yolk Sac, normal brooding temperature treatment (Moraes et al.,
and Organ Weights 2002; Van der Pol et al., 2013). Similarly, higher heart
weights were recorded in the low temperature group
The effects of body temperature on yolk-free body in the present study. Many common broiler problems
mass (YFBM), RYS, and internal organ weights after such as sudden death syndrome and ascites may be re-
the post-hatch handling are shown in Table 3. lated to problems with cardiovascular development and
RYS weight was not significantly affected (P ≤ 0.05) function (Leksrisompong et al., 2007). The weights of
by body temperature in this experiment. In contrast digestive organs such as the gizzard and proventricu-
to our findings, Van der Hel et al. (1991) reported lus and one of main organs of the immune system, the
that yolk sac weight loss was decreased by 24 h under bursa of Fabricius, decreased significantly in chicks with
high ambient temperature (38.8◦ C) conditions. Simi- high body temperature in the current study. Bartlett
larly, Henken et al. (1987) found that increasing the and Smith (2003) observed that broilers subjected
temperature during 46 h of transportation increased to heat stress had reduced levels of total circulating
248 HAMISSOU MAMAN ET AL.
Table 4. Effect of chick body temperature on body weight, feed consumption, feed conversion ratio, and mortality.

Age
Treatment1 Placement 7d 14 d 21 d 28 d 35 d

(BW, g)
Control 41.33b 173.5a 493.5a 1054.3a 1740.0a 2438a
High 39.06c 151.6b 450.0b 987.6b 1648.0b 2333b
Low 42.06a 171.3a 488.5a 1045.6a 1737.0a 2438a
SEM2 0.2 1.2 3.15 5.93 9.5 13.1
(Feed consumption, g/chick)
Control 206.0a 638.6a 1479a 2540a 3855a
High 193.1b 599.6b 1447b 2475b 3745b
Low 206.3a 633.1a 1489a 2566a 3884a
SEM3 2.16 3.84 9.0 14.7 25.0
(Feed conversion ratio, g:g)
Control 1.187b 1.294b 1.402b 1.459b 1.581
High 1.276a 1.326a 1.464a 1.499a 1.600
Low 1.205b 1.292b 1.421b 1.470b 1.592
SEM3 0.015 0.009 0.011 0.012 0.014
(Mortality, %)
Control 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.78
High 0.89 0.89 0.89 0.89 5.36
Low 0.00 0.89 0.89 1.78 2.68
Chi squared4 2.006 1.006 1.006 2.018 2.444
a,b
Means with different letters in a row differ significantly (P ≤ 0.05).
1
Treatment: control averaged 40.0◦ C, high averaged 42.6◦ C, and low averaged 38.1◦ C.
2
Standard error of the mean for 112 chicks per treatment.
3
Standard error of the mean for 8 pens per treatment.
4
Chi squared for df = 2.

antibodies as well as reduced specific IgM and IgG levels Chicks subjected to high temperature during post-
during both primary and secondary humoral responses. hatch holding consumed less feed (P ≤ 0.05) in 35 d
Moreover, the authors observed significantly reduced than the chicks in the control and low temperature
weights of the thymus, bursa, spleen, and liver. Aeng- groups. The difference in feed consumption per chick
wanich (2008) also demonstrated the occurrence of re- between the high and control temperature groups was
duced bursa weight in broilers subjected to heat stress determined to be 110 g at 35 d (Table 4). These data
as well as decreased numbers of lymphocytes in the cor- were consistent with the BW data. The present data
tex and medulla areas of the bursa. clearly demonstrated a negative effect of high temper-
atures, which was obviously related to poor feed con-
sumption. Consistent with poor growth and feed con-
Body Weight, Feed Consumption, and Feed sumption, the FCR was poorest to 28 d of age (P ≤
0.05) in the chicks exposed to high temperatures, and
Conversion Ratio
the effect was numerically apparent thereafter.
The effects of body temperature during the handling Henken et al. (1987) found that when day-old chicks
period on live chick BW, feed consumption, and FCR were exposed to temperatures above 37◦ C during the
from placement to 35 d of age are shown in Table 4. The first 2 neonatal days, feed intake and growth decreased
initial BW on day 1 was higher in the control (41.3 g) during the subsequent 2 wk. Barri (2008) reported that
and low body temperature (42.1 g) groups than in the the chicks that were transported for 4 h after hatch-
high body temperature group (39.1 g) due to greater ing under control temperature conditions (34◦ C) were
BW loss during the post-hatch handling period (P ≤ 40 g heavier (P = 0.01) than chicks that were trans-
0.05). The control and low body temperature groups ported under higher ambient temperatures (40◦ C) at
were consistently heavier from day 1 to 35 than the 42 d. An air temperature above the ideal range may
high body temperature group. At 35 d of age, the live induce hyperthermia in the chicks, leading to dehy-
weights of broilers in the control, low, and high body dration, which in turn leads to reductions in feed in-
temperature groups were 2.438, 2.438, and 2.333 g, re- take and growth retardation (Nazareno et al., 2016).
spectively (P ≤ 0.05). In this study, BW was the same in Indeed, chicks have greater tolerance to high tempera-
both the control and low temperature treatment groups tures than to low temperatures (Dunnington and Siegel,
at 35 d. As expected, males exhibited higher BW than 1984; Lin et al., 2005). This fact is related to the im-
females after the 7 d rearing period (P ≤ 0.05). No in- maturity of the body thermoregulation of the day-old
teractions were found between temperature groups and chicks, which need to maintain a high body temperature
sex (data not shown for brevity). (Dunnington and Siegel, 1984; Weytjens et al., 1999;
 CHICK BODY TEMPERATURE 249
Tzschentke, 2007). Therefore, another problem in day- reserves are sufficient to meet the chicks’ requirements
old chicks may be cold stress, which affects muscle for approximately 3 d under optimum temperature con-
growth and development (Sagher, 1975; Davison and ditions (at 26◦ C), but at 40◦ C, the reserves would be
Lickiss, 1979). However, in the current study, the av- exhausted in 8 to 10 h (Freeman, 1984). The results
erage body temperature was 38.1◦ C in the low tem- demonstrate that the dehydration of the day-old chicks
perature group, and broiler performance was not nega- was more dependent on temperature than on the time
tively affected compared to that in the control group. between hatching and arrival at the farm.
This lack of difference may be explained by the lower In conclusion, this study clearly shows that day-old
critical body temperature of one-day-old chicks of ap- chicks with high body temperature (42.6◦ C) have a
proximately 15◦ C (Randall, 1943; Moreng and Shaffner, greater percentage of BW loss due to dehydration and
1951; Davison and Lickiss, 1979), a temperature that is lower organ weights during the 12 h post-hatch han-
reached only after 4 or more hours at a temperature of dling period than chicks with low or control tempera-
10◦ C (Davison and Lickiss, 1979). tures. These high temperature chicks were also found
to have poorer feed consumption, decreased BW, and
Mortality increased mortality at 35 d. Furthermore, there were
no significant differences in performance between the
There were no deaths in any of the groups during chicks in the control (40.0◦ C) and low (38.1◦ C) body
the 12 h post-hatch handling period. The percentage temperature groups.
mortality in the low, control and high body tempera-
ture groups was determined to be 2.68, 1.79, and 5.36%,
respectively, at 35 d of age (Table 4), which was numer- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
ically higher in the high body temperature group than The authors wish to thank the students who partici-
in the other 2 groups (P > 0.05). When above the ideal pated in this project and the Turkiye Scholarships Pro-
range, the air temperature may induce hyperthermia in gram for the scholarship grants awarded to Abdoulaziz
chicks, leading to dehydration and increased mortality, Hamissou Maman.
particularly early in the rearing period (Hoogerbrugge
and Ormel, 1982; Van der Hel et al., 1991; Xin and
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