Abstract
In the first week of a chick life, broilers are very sensitive to different conditions outside their thermoneutral zone. Thus, the goal of this study was to evaluate the behaviors and productive responses of broilers subjected to conditions of thermal comfort or challenge at different intensities (27, 30, 33 and 36ºC) and durations (1, 2, 3 and 4 days starting on the second day of life). In the experiment, ten minutes of images from each hour of each treatment were analyzed to evaluate the key behaviors of the birds. Similar behavior at different dry-bulb air temperatures were identified by using Ward's method of cluster analysis. These behaviors were grouped by dendograms in which the similarity of these data was qualified. Feed intake, water intake and body mass of these animals were evaluated and used to support the observed behaviors. Thus, a similar huddling behavior was observed in the birds from the 2nd to the 5th day of life subjected to 27ºC and 30ºC, while at 30ºC and 33ºC the behavior of accessing feeders and drinkers was also similar. Chicks subjected to 33ºC presented the best performance, and at 30 and 36ºC showed intermediate development.
Highlights
Air temperature is considered the environmental factor of greater impact on performance of broilers
Only the quantification of the thermal environment into which an animal is submitted is not sufficient to obtain the real needs of the welfare for the animal, and the rearing environment directly influences on its behavioral expression in physiological and productive responses (NAZARENO et al, 2011)
It is emphasize that the duration of thermal challenge, from 1 to 4 days, did not affect the feed intake (FI), water intake (WI) and body mass (BM) of animals (F test, p> 0.05)
Summary
Air temperature is considered the environmental factor of greater impact on performance of broilers. The heating systems more commonly used in Brazilian facilities usually do not produce constant temperatures and often exceed the required (VIGODERIS et al 2010), which can cause losses in the development of birds and even lead to death in extreme cases. The young birds need to be inserted in environments with appropriate temperature to keep their body temperature approximately constant (CORDEIRO et al, 2011). The study of animal behavior takes on an important role within the global poultry production, since it improves ancient housing methods into new management techniques, feeding and facilities. The characterization of the standard and of the structure of animal behavior is an important task to understand the complex interactions between individuals and their environment (CORDEIRO et al, 2011)
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