棲架型式對紅羽土雞生長性能與福祉影響

Effects of perch types on the growth performance and welfare of red-feathered chickens

陳信宇(Xin-Yu Chen) ； 洪兮雯(Hsi-Wen Hung) ； 楊深玄(Shen-Shyuan Yang) ； 蘇安國(An-Kuo Su)

《畜產研究》 55卷1期 (2022/03) Pp. 40-46

https://doi.org/10.6991/JTLR.202203_55(1).0005

摘要

本研究目的在於探討臺灣商業肉用紅羽土雞對於不同棲架型式的喜好度以及棲架設計對體增重及行為之影響。將360隻5週齡紅羽土雞逢機分成對照組（無棲架）、圓管棲架組與方形棲架組，每組3重複，每重複40隻，飼養密度為5.8隻／m^2，實驗時間為3－5月。圓管棲架組型式為上下兩層式直徑1.5 cm之金屬圓管組成，方形棲架組型式為上下兩層式邊長2.5 cm之金屬方型管組成。試驗由5週齡進行至12週齡，至12週齡三組平均體重相近，依序為3,070±345、2,989±359及3,087±412g，各組間無顯著差異。雞隻於圓管棲架組平均棲架使用率為1.3%，高於方形棲架組（0.1%），兩組具有顯著差異（P＜0.05），顯示不同棲架的設計方式會影響雞隻棲架的使用率。12週齡雞隻所量測的僵直靜止反應被當成評估雞隻福祉的參考指標之一，本試驗兩組棲架處理組之反應時間皆較對照組為短，顯示雞隻在有棲架的環境中的害怕程度較無棲架時為低。因此，棲架做為環境豐富化設施時，具有維持雞隻的生產表現與提升動物福祉之助益，此結果將可提供後續飼養規劃之參考。

關鍵字

棲架 ； 紅羽土雞 ； 體增重 ； 行為 ； 動物福祉

並列摘要

The purpose of this study was to investigate effects of different types of perches on the growth performance and animal behaviors of the typical commercial red-feather chickens in Taiwan. Three hundred and sixty birds at age of 5 weeks were randomly divided into control group (without perch), round tube perch group and square tube perch group, with 3 repetitions in each group and 40 birds per treatment. The stocking density is 5.8 bird/m^2. The round tube perch is composed of upper and lower layers of metal circular tubes with a diameter of 1.5 cm, while the square perch group is composed of upper and lower layers of metal square tubes with a side length of 2.5 cm. The experiment was conducted on birds aged 5 to 12 weeks. No significant differences of bodyweight gain were observed with the average body weight 3,069 ± 345 g, 2,989 ± 359 g and 3,087 ± 412 g in the control, round, and square perch group respectively. However, the frequency of daily perch usage frequency in the round tube perch group was higher than that of the square perch group (1.3 vs. 0.1%), suggesting that the design of perches affects the preference of perch usage by domestic fowls. In the tonic immobility test measured on birds at the age of 12 weeks, which is commonly used as a reference indicator for assessing the welfare of chickens, the reaction time of the two test groups was shorter than that of the control group. These results manifested that chickens may live fearlessly when they are reared with perches for resting in the surroundings than those growing up without perches. Therefore, as an environment-enriched facility, perch setup can improve animal welfare and maintain the productive efficiency of chickens. The present results would provide some scientific information for the reference of the current poultry production system.

並列關鍵字

Perch ； Red-feather native chicken ； Body weight gain ； Behaviors ； Animal welfare