Pigeon squabs completely depend on their parents for care and nourishment. The loss of one or both parents affects squabs' successful fledging. This study was carried out on young squabs to compare the effect of pigeon parent sex and different fostering methods on squab welfare (behavior and growth performance). Two experiments were carried out. In the first experiment, the squabs were divided into three groups. Group 1 (control) consisted of 10 parent pairs with 20 brooding squabs; group 2 consisted of 10 male parents with 20 brooding squabs; and group 3 consisted of 10 female parents with 20 brooding squabs. In the second experiment, the squabs were also divided into three groups. Group 1 (control) consisted of 10 parent pairs with 20 brooding squabs; group 2 consisted of 20 brooding squabs fostered by 10 foster parent pigeons (either male or female); and group 3 consisted of 20 brooding squabs fostered by the hand-rearing method. A significant improvement in growth performance, behavioral welfare (head waggle, squab note and squab wing shake); increased repetition of these behaviors indicates stress and discomfort), and survival rate was observed to be higher in the group brooded by both parents compared to the group brooded by either a male or a female parent. In addition, the group fostered by hand-rearing showed a significant improvement in growth performance, behavioral welfare, and survival rate compared to the group brooded by foster pigeon parents.
Keywords: brooding care; growth performance; hand-fostering; pigeon squabs; rearing system; welfare.