Thermal stress and high stocking densities in poultry farms: Potential effects and mitigation strategies

Rana Muhammad Bilal; Faiz-Ul Hassan; Mayada R Farag; Taquir Ali Nasir; Marco Ragni; Hany A M Mahgoub; Mahmoud Alagawany

doi:10.1016/j.jtherbio.2021.102944

Thermal stress and high stocking densities in poultry farms: Potential effects and mitigation strategies

J Therm Biol. 2021 Jul:99:102944. doi: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2021.102944. Epub 2021 Apr 6.

Authors

Rana Muhammad Bilal¹, Faiz-Ul Hassan², Mayada R Farag³, Taquir Ali Nasir⁴, Marco Ragni⁵, Hany A M Mahgoub⁶, Mahmoud Alagawany⁷

Affiliations

¹ College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, 63100, Pakistan. Electronic address: Muhammad.bilal@iub.edu.pk.
² Institute of Animal & Dairy Sciences, Faculty of Animal Husbandry, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, 38040, Pakistan.
³ Forensic Medicine and Toxicology Department, Veterinary Medicine Faculty, Zagazig University, Zagazig, 44519, Egypt.
⁴ Department of Animal Science, University of Sargodha, Punjb, Pakistan.
⁵ Department of Agro-Environmental and Territorial Sciences, University of Bari 'Aldo Moro', Bari, Italy.
⁶ Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Nasr City, Cairo, 11884, Egypt.
⁷ Poultry Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, Zagazig, 44519, Egypt. Electronic address: dr.mahmoud.alagwany@gmail.com.

PMID: 34420608
DOI: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2021.102944

Abstract

Environmental changes pose significant threats to agricultural activities particularly animal production. These changes have induced major concerns which will negatively affect the poultry health and productivity under the current climate changes. Moreover, they also alter the immunological status of the exposed birds and make them susceptible to different diseases. The adverse effects of environmental stress also include poor performance of birds (reduced feed intake, growth, feed efficiency, immunity, and egg production) and inferior product quality. The adverse effect of heat stress on different quail breeds like Japanese quail, bobwhite quail, scaled quail, and Gambel's quail ranged from decreased growth rates (11.0-14.5%), body weight (7.7-13.2%), feed intake (6.1-21.6%), feed efficiency (4.3-8.6%), and egg production (6.6-23.3%). Also, birds reared under heat stress (34 °C) had significantly decreased Haugh units by 10.8% and egg weight by 14.3% in comparison with the control group (reared at 22 °C). On the other hand, increasing stoking density from 30 to 45 kg/m² also negatively affected the feed intake and body weight. Recent studies have focused on evaluating the potential adverse effects of different environmental stresses on poultry performance, behavior, welfare, and reproduction. It is imperative to understand better the interaction of different environmental factors and their subsequent effects on avian physiology, to spotlights on the effective management and nutritional strategies to alleviate the adverse effects of different stresses in poultry. This review aims to present a comprehensive overview of physiological manifestations of major environmental stresses including thermal stress (heat and cold stress) and high stocking densities on poultry health and production. Moreover, we have also critically evaluated the scope and efficacy of some potential strategies to mitigate the influences of these environmental stressors in different poultry species.

Keywords: Environmental stresses; Health; Nutrition; Poultry; Production; Stocking density.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Animal Husbandry*
Animals
Cold-Shock Response*
Crowding*
Heat-Shock Response*
Poultry / physiology*