Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-q99xh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-22T18:50:12.606Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Wooden breast myopathy links with poorer gait in broiler chickens

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 December 2018

M. Norring ,
A. Valros ,
J. Valaja ,
H-K. Sihvo ,
K. Immonen  and
E. Puolanne
M. Norring*
Affiliation:
Research Centre for Animal Welfare, Department of Production Animal Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
A. Valros
Affiliation:
Research Centre for Animal Welfare, Department of Production Animal Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
J. Valaja
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
H-K. Sihvo
Affiliation:
Department of Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland Department of Veterinary Biosciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
K. Immonen
Affiliation:
Department of Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
E. Puolanne
Affiliation:
Department of Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
*
†E-mail: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

Wooden breast myopathy, a condition where broiler breast muscles show a hardened consistency post-mortem, has been described recently. However, it is not known how wooden breast myopathy affects the bird activity or welfare. Altogether, over 340 birds of five commonly used commercial hybrids were housed in 25 pens, and sample birds killed at ages of 22, 32, 36, 39 and 43 days. Their breast muscle condition was assessed post-mortem by palpation. The birds were gait scored and their latency to lie was measured before killing. For further behavior observations, one affected and healthy bird in 12 pens were followed on 5 days for 20 minutes using video recordings. The connection of myopathy to gait score and activity was analyzed with mixed models. A higher gait score of wooden-breast-affected birds than that of unaffected birds (2.9 ± 0.1 v. 2.6 ± 0.1, P < 0.05) indicated a higher level of locomotor difficulties over all age groups. The wooden-breast-affected birds had fewer crawling or movement bouts while lying down compared with unaffected (P < 0.05). Wooden breast myopathy-affected birds were heavier (2774 ± 91 v. 2620 ± 91 g; P < 0.05) and had higher breast muscle yield (21 ± 1 v. 19 ± 1%; P < 0.05) than unaffected birds overall. Older birds had longer lying bouts, longer total lying time, fewer walking bouts, more difficulties to walk and to stand compared with younger birds (P < 0.05). Birds with poorer gait had longer total lying time and fewer walking bouts (P < 0.05). Birds with greatest breast muscle yield had the largest number of lying bouts (P < 0.05). It was concluded that wooden breast myopathy was associated with an impairment of gait scores, and may thus be partly linked to the common walking abnormalities in broilers.

Keywords

activityanimal welfareGallus galluslamenesspoultry
Type
Research Article
Information
animal , Volume 13 , Issue 8 , August 2019 , pp. 1690 - 1695
Copyright
© The Animal Consortium 2018 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abasht, B, Mutryn, MF, Michalek, RD and Lee, WR 2016. Oxidative stress and metabolic perturbations in wooden breast disorder in chickens. PLoS one 11, e0153750.Google Scholar
Bailie, CL, Ball, MEE and O’Connell, NE 2013. Influence of the provision of natural light and straw bales on activity levels and leg health in commercial broiler chickens. Animal 7, 1–9.Google Scholar
Berg, C and Sanotra, GS 2003. Can a modified latency-to-lie test be used to validate gait-scoring results in commercial broiler flocks? Animal Welfare 12, 655–659.Google Scholar
Branciari, R, Mugnai, C, Mammoli, R, Miraglia, D, Ranucci, D, Dal Bosco, A and Castellini, C 2009. Effect of genotype and rearing system on chicken behavior and muscle fiber characteristics. Journal of Animal Science 87, 4109–4117.Google Scholar
Broom, DM 2017. Animal Welfare in the European Union. Directorate general for internal policies, Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs, 78p. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/supporting-analysesGoogle Scholar
Caplen, G, Hothersall, B, Nicol, CJ, Parker, RMA, Waterman-Pearson, AE, Weeks, CA and Murrell, JC 2014. Lameness is consistently better at predicting broiler chicken performance in mobility tests than other broiler characteristics. Animal Welfare 23, 179–187.Google Scholar
Hothersall, B, Caplen, G, Parker, RMA, Nicol, CJ, Waterman-Pearson, AE, Weeks, CA and Murrell, JC 2016. Effects of carprofen, meloxicam and butorphanol on broiler chickens’ performance in mobility tests. Animal Welfare 25, 55–67.Google Scholar
Kaukonen, E, Norring, M and Valros, A 2017. Perches and elevated platforms in commercial broiler farms: Use and effect on walking ability, incidence of tibial dyschondroplasia and bone mineral content. Animal 11, 864–871.Google Scholar
Kuttappan, VA, Brewer, VB, Apple, JK, Waldroup, PW and Owens, CM 2012. Influence of growth rate on the occurrence of white striping in broiler breast fillets. Poultry Science 91, 2677–2685.Google Scholar
Kuttappan, VA, Hargis, BM and Owens, CM 2016. White striping and woody breast myopathies in the modern poultry industry: a review. Poultry Science 95, 2724–2733.Google Scholar
Kuttappan, VA, Huff, GR, Huff, WE, Hargis, BM, Apple, JK, Coon, C and Owens, CM 2013a. Comparison of hematologic and serologic profiles of broiler birds with normal and severe degrees of white striping in breast fillets. Poultry Science 92, 339–345.Google Scholar
Kuttappan, VA, Owens, CM, Coon, C, Hargis, BM and Vazquez-Anon, M 2017. Incidence of broiler breast myopathies at 2 different ages and its impact on selected raw meat quality parameters. Poultry Science 96, 3005–3009.Google Scholar
Kuttappan, VA, Shivaprasad, HL, Shaw, DP, Valentine, BA, Hargis, BM, Clark, FD, McKee, SR and Owens, CM 2013b. Pathological changes associated with white striping in broiler breast muscles. Poultry Science 92, 331–338.Google Scholar
Kestin, SC, Gorden, S, Su, G and Sorensen, P 2001. Relationships in broiler chickens between lameness, live weight, growth rate and age. Veterinary Record 148, 195–197.Google Scholar
Kestin, SC, Knowles, TG, Tinch, AE and Gregory, NE 1992. The prevalence of leg weakness in broiler chickens assessed by gait scoring and its relationship to genotype. Veterinary Record 131, 190–194.Google Scholar
Knowles, TG, Kestin, SC, Haslam, SM, Brown, SN, Green, LE, Butterworth, A, Pope, SJ and Nicol, CJ 2008. Leg disorders in broiler chickens: prevalence, risk factors and prevention. PLoS One 3, e1545.Google Scholar
Mazzoni, M, Petracci, M, Meluzzi, A, Cavani, C, Clevanzani, P and Sirri, F 2015. Relationship between pectoralis major muscle histology and quality traits of chicken meat. Poultry Science 94, 123–130.Google Scholar
Mudalal, S, Babini, E, Cavani, C and Petracci, M 2014. Quantity and functionality of protein fractions in chicken breast fillets affected by white striping. Poultry Science 93, 2108–2116.Google Scholar
Norring, M, Kaukonen, E and Valros, A 2016. The use of perches and platforms by broiler chickens. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 184, 91–96.Google Scholar
Petracci, M, Mudalal, S, Bonfiglio, A and Cavani, C 2013. Occurrence of white striping under commercial conditions and its impact on breast meat quality in broiler chickens. Poultry Science 92, 1670–1675.Google Scholar
Sihvo, HK, Immonen, K and Puolanne, E 2014. Myodegeneration with fibrosis and regeneration in the pectoralis major muscle of broilers. Veterinary Pathology 51, 619–623.Google Scholar
Sihvo, H-K, Lindén, J, Airas, N, Immonen, K, Valaja, J and Puolanne, E 2017. Wooden breast myodegeneration of pectoralis major muscle over the growth period in broilers. Veterinary Pathology 54, 119–128.Google Scholar
Sörensen, P, Su, G and Kestin, SC 1999. The effect of photoperiod: scotoperiod on leg weakness in broiler chickens. Poultry Science 78, 336–342.Google Scholar
Weeks, CA, Danbury, TD, Davies, HC, Hunt, P and Kestin, SC 2000. The behaviour of broiler chickens and its modification by lameness. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 67, 111–125.Google Scholar
Weeks, CA, Knowles, TG, Gordon, RG, Kerr, AE, Peyton, ST and Tilbrook, NT 2002. New method for objectively assessing lameness in broiler chickens. Veterinary Record 151, 762–764.Google Scholar
Wichman, A, Norring, M, Pastell, M, Algers, B, Pösö, R, Valros, A, Saloniemi, H and Hänninen, L 2010. Effect of crate height during short-term confinement on the welfare and behaviour of turkeys. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 126, 134–139.Google Scholar