Poultry back ground

1. Earily Chick Mortality
By
Dr. Awais Malik

2. Early Chick Mortality
Contents
 Definition
Causes
 Genetic causes.
 Managemental causes.
 Nutritional causes.
 Disease causes.

3. Early Chick Mortality
 There are enormous causes of early chick mortality.
Whereas attempts could be made to diagnose the early
chick mortality includes:
 Genetic causes.
 Managemental causes.
 Nutritional causes.
 Disease causes.


4. Genetic Causes:
 Genetic cause is also important because there are 21
lethal mutations in the fowl.
 The lethal is more pronounced in homozygotes
especially during 3rd week of incubation.
 The greater the abnormality caused by the lethal gene,
the earlier the age at death.
 Sticky embryos die during the last 4 days of incubation
and about half of the Naked chicks die during 2 or 3
days before hatching time

5. MANAGEMENTAL CAUSES:
 A) Effect of high brooding temperature High
brooding temperature causes the following problems,
 Dehydration: When the water loss from the body
reaches above the 10% the chicks die. Actually the
young chicks comprises 70% water. Due to high
brooding temperature water loss become high
resulting death.
 Pasting: It’s the condition in which the feces are
stalked around the vent area causing blockage of the
vent which ultimately results in death.

6. MANAGEMENTAL CAUSES:
 B) Effect of low brooding temperature Low brooding
temperature causes the following problems:
 Chilling or brooding pneumonia: When the brooding
temperature is low, chicks accumulate at a area near to light
source, which cause suffocation resulting to pneumonic
problems resulting death , where lungs become blue colored if
examined carefully
 Smothering: During low temperature chicks huddle together to
maintain body temperature which results in smothering and
death.
 To prevent the problems of dehydration, pasting, chilling and
smothering we should adjust the brooding room temperature 24
hours before putting the chicks in the brooding room and during
the brooding period. Try to maintain the normal temperature
throughout the brooding period and brooding areas.

7. MANAGEMENTAL CAUSES:
 C) Effect of poisoning Mortality due to poisoning is
also high in young chicks such as:
 Feed poisoning: Fungal contaminated feed and toxic
material in feed causes feed poisoning .
 Salt poisoning: Salt poisoning also causes mortality
which is due to excess salt in drinking water and feed.
 Gas poisoning: High concentration of different toxic
gases also causes mortality .

8. MANAGEMENTAL CAUSES:
 Ammonia: It causes irritation of mucous membrane &
eyes, low feed consumption, reduced growth rate, loss of
cilia in the trachea , hemorrhages and death at level above
100 ppm, so its concentration should be less than 25 ppm.
 Carbon monoxide (CO): CO combines with hemoglobin
to form carboxy-hemoglobin which is unable to transport
oxygen. The lethal conc. of CO is 2000-3600 ppm .
 Carbon dioxide: If the conc. of CO2 goes beyond 30% ,it
causes suffocation and death.
 Tennin or Litter poisoning: The ingestion of toxic
material like tannin in saw dust causes mortality.

9. MANAGEMENTAL CAUSES:
 D) Effect of injuries: If chicks are not handled
carefully during various operations it causes injuries
and death which are; sexing, vaccination, dubbing,
debeaking.
 E) Starvation: Young chicks do not have fat storage to
fulfill body needs during starvation, so it results in
death.

10. MANAGEMENTAL CAUSES:
 F) Less floor, feeder and waterer spaces: less floor space is
another cause of mortality in chicks as overcrowding causes
dampness of the litter material which become a suitable site for
the multiplication of micro organism, causing, coccidiosis etc.
Less feeder and waterer space causes starvation and death
specially in young chicks.
 G) High relative humidity High relative humidity in brooding
house causes the dampness of litter material which facilitate the
growth of micro organisms causing infections.
 H) Predators If brooding houses are not properly constructed
against predators they also causes mortality, e.g. Rat, Dog, Cat
etc.


11. NUTRITIONAL CAUSES
 A) Water: Water play an important role in maintaining the health and
performance of the birds. It acts as a transport medium for nutrients
and metabolic end products. It helps in maintaining deep body
temperature during hot weather. Water play an important role in
weight gain of broiler. Water fulfills the minor deficiency of mineral
like Na, Cl, K etc. Imbalance and unhygienic water causes high
mortality.
 B) Effect of fat soluble vitamins deficiency: Severe deficiency of
these vitamins (A, D, E & K) causes death, but minor deficiency causes
cessation of growth, ruffled feather, lacrimation, rickets,
encephalomalacia, exudative diathesis and anemia etc.
 C) Effect of water soluble vitamins deficiency: Severe deficiency of
these vitamins (B-Complex & C) causes death, but minor deficiency
causes, loss of weight, poor feathering, poor growth, dermatitis,
perosis, nervous signs and anemia etc.

12. DISEASES:
 Omphalitis: This bacterial disease affects the chicks
during and after hatching, spreads navel infection
characterized by inflamed skin in the navel area, soft,
flabby and distended abdomen, vent pasting, foul
smelling on carcass opening, due to unabsorbed yolk.

14. DISEASES:
 Salmonellosis: A group of acute rapidly spreading
diseases affecting all ages characterized by rise in body
temperature, septicemia, omphalitis, hepatitis,
enlargement of spleen, arthritis and death.
 Colibacillosis: It is an acute septicemia disease
caused by E-coli affecting all ages characterized by
involvement of all systems, poor feed conversion and
death.
 Air sacculitis:Congested lungs and liver and air sacs.

16. Diseases
 Pullorum: It is an acute infectious and fatal bacterial
disease of chicks characterized by ruffled feather,
white diarrhea, labor breathing, chirping and death.