Village Chickens Research Articles

Contribution of the informal market of village chickens to sustainable livelihoods in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Contribution of the informal market of village chickens to sustainable livelihoods in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Reproductive characteristics of indigenous village chickens

BackgroundIndigenous village chickens (IVCs) show a wide variation in production performance and reproductive characteristics. This high variation is occurred due to genetic and environmental factors and gene-environment interactions.ResultsThis work reports the results of a cross-sectional study conducted using a face-to-face interview with 119 small-scale farmers regarding their insights on the production performance and reproductive characteristics of IVCs. It was reported that pullets were sexually mature on average at the age of 5.5 months and cockerels at 6 months. This comparatively early sexual maturity by the standards of IVCs might be associated with the impact of uncontrolled gene flow from production breeds. However, there is high variation in age at sexual maturity at an individual bird’s level. It was found that pullets mature earlier than cockerels (t = 3.250, df = 159, p = 0.001, 95% CI: -0.670, -0.166). According to the respondents, local hens laid on average 14 eggs per clutch. The average number of clutches per year was 4, which can culminate in the yearly production of 56 eggs. A significantly large proportion of the respondents reported that the dry season is appropriate for laying eggs (96.7%) and brooding chicks (94.1%). During the dry season, the scavenging feed resource is relatively abundant, the risk of infection is comparatively low, and the hot weather is suitable for laying eggs and brooding chicks. IVCs possess a long reproductive lifetime, that is, on average, 3 years in hens and 2 years in cocks, which makes them more productive than has been anticipated. For example, this study found that a hen, on average, can lay 174 eggs and hatch 58 chicks in its average reproductive lifetime of 3 years.ConclusionsThe high intrapopulation variation in the reproductive performance of IVCs is vital resource in genetic improvement programs.

Microbial community profiling in intestinal tract of indigenous chickens from different villages

Village chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus) are commonly reared in rural households of South Africa and other developing countries. They play a vital role as a primary source of protein through the provision of meat and eggs. The chicken gut microbiota plays an important role in chicken’s immune system, its health, physiological development of the gut, digestion of food, nutrient absorption and productivity. Thus, it is imperative to critically investigate the chicken microbial composition in order to develop effective disease control measures and increase production. In this present study, microbial DNA was isolated from 34 non-descript mixed gender matured village chickens’ intestinal contents followed by high throughput Illumina sequencing targeting 16S rRNA gene. Senwamokgope village had the largest microbiota composition as compared to Itieleni and Thakgalang villages. Overall, Firmicutes (74%) was the most abundant phylum observed, followed by Proteobacteria (8%), Actinobateria (5%), and Bacteroidota (3%). At the genus level, Lactobacillus was the dominant bacteria. Other genera found included Sphingomonas (7%), Cutibacterium (4%), and Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1 (2%). The richness of female intestinal microbiota was higher compared to the male microbiota. The findings of this study provide baseline information that can assist to better understand the chicken gut microbiota and its interaction with diseases and parasites.

Family flock size and age-sex structure of indigenous village chickens.

Indigenous village chickens (IVCs) significantly contribute to rural development. There is considerable variation in family flock size and age-sex structure of IVCs. This study reports the family flock size, age-sex group structure, and demographic history of IVCs. This work involved a cross-sectional study conducted using face-to-face general informants' individual interviews with 119 smallholder farmers in highland and lowland agroecological zones. The average family flock size of the sampled households was small (mean = 7.28, range: 1-38). Female birds (hens and pullets) represented the largest proportion of the family flocks (50.2%). The proportion of chicks (26.4%) and pullets (14.4%) was lower than that of hens (35.8%), which creates a considerable challenge in producing replacement breeding flocks. Similarly, the proportion of cockerels (9.1%) was lower than that of cocks (14.3%). The average cock-to-hen ratio (one cock to seven hens) was better than the commonly recommended proportion (1 cock to 8-10 hens). As a result, smallholder farmers have not faced the problem of producing infertile eggs. The estimated effective population size (Ne) of 4.02 and the corresponding inbreeding coefficient of 0.12 at the family flock level show that to some extent inbreeding may occur at the family flock level; besides, the estimated Ne represents 55.2% of the census size. However, inbreeding could be offset by the high rate of flock turnover and uncontrolled mating among scavenging birds. Family flocks contain a few birds, which may lead to consanguineous mating. Inbreeding is, however, considerably reduced by uncontrolled breeding among birds that share a common scavenging ground. The driving factors behind the low proportion of chicks and juvenile birds and the family flock size need to be further investigated to improve the contribution of local chickens to rural livelihoods.

Village Chickens for Achieving Sustainable Development Goals 1 and 2 in Resource-Poor Communities: A Literature Review

The rapid increase in the global human population, particularly in Low-Income Food Deficit Countries (LIFDCs), causes severe food shortages. Food shortages are complex and can be linked to economic, environmental, social, and political variables. Harnessing village chicken products serves as a cheap commercial chicken substitute to address food shortages. The consumption and sales of protein products from village chickens, such as meat, eggs, and internal organs, ensures food security and poverty alleviation in limited-resource communities. However, village chickens have poor-quality end products due to poor management and animal-rearing resources. Village chicken production challenges include the absence of high-quality feed, biosecurity, recordkeeping, housing, and commercial marketing of its end products. Management being based on cultural gender roles instead of the possession of formal poultry management training further limits village chicken production. To improve village chicken end-product quality, poultry management trainings for rural women are suggested due to studies showing that women mainly manage village chicken production. Furthermore, to create a formal market share of village chickens, sensory evaluations need to be conducted using mainstream poultry consumers. This review examined the potential contribution of village chickens in achieving Sustainable Development Goals—one, No Poverty and two, Zero Hunger—to benefit vulnerable groups in resource-poor communities.

Identification and validation of novel breed-specific biomarker for the purpose of village chicken authentication using genomics approaches

Local village chicken, or "Ayam kampung" as it's known in Malaysia, is considered a premium chicken breed with a higher price than other chicken breeds. As a result of their comparable appearances and sizes, colored broiler chickens are often sold as village chickens, which is a form of food fraud that can result in a 3- to 4-fold rise in profit. Therefore, developing a breed-specific authentication method is crucial for preventing food fraud in the poultry industry. This study aims to investigate the genetic diversity of village chickens from other commercial chicken breed populations available in the market (broiler [Cobb], colored broiler [Hubbard], and layer [DeKalb]) to identify breed-specific DNA fragments as biomarkers for village chicken authentication. The Whole-genome sequencing and mutation calling of 12 chickens (3 chickens/breed) led to the identification of a total of 73,454,654 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) and 8,762,338 insertion and deletions (InDel) variants, with more variants detected in the village chicken population (6,346,704 SNPs; 752,408 InDels) compared to commercial breeds. Therefore, this study revealed that village chickens were more genetically variable compared to other breeds in Malaysia. Furthermore, the breed-specific genomic region located on chromosome 1 (1:84,405,652) harboring SNP (C-T) with high discrimination power was discovered and validated which can be considered as a novel breed-specific biomarker to develop a method for accurate authentication of village chickens in Malaysia. This authentication method offers potentialw applications in the chicken industry and food safety.

Altitude-dependent agro-ecologies impact the microbiome diversity of scavenging indigenous chicken in Ethiopia

BackgroundScavenging indigenous village chickens play a vital role in sub-Saharan Africa, sustaining the livelihood of millions of farmers. These chickens are exposed to vastly different environments and feeds compared to commercial chickens. In this study, we analysed the caecal microbiota of 243 Ethiopian village chickens living in different altitude-dependent agro-ecologies.ResultsDifferences in bacterial diversity were significantly correlated with differences in specific climate factors, topsoil characteristics, and supplemental diets provided by farmers. Microbiota clustered into three enterotypes, with one particularly enriched at high altitudes. We assembled 9977 taxonomically and functionally diverse metagenome-assembled genomes. The vast majority of these were not found in a dataset of previously published chicken microbes or in the Genome Taxonomy Database.ConclusionsThe wide functional and taxonomic diversity of these microbes highlights their importance in the local adaptation of indigenous poultry, and the significant impacts of environmental factors on the microbiota argue for further discoveries in other agro-ecologies.EEwR8PKafK2-LVnkA2-YG-Video

Breeding practice of indigenous village chickens, and traits and breed preferences of smallholder farmers.

Indigenous village chickens, or (IVCs), significantly contribute to rural livelihoods. Although natural selection has a disproportionate impact on the genetic structure of IVCs, farmers have developed locally tailored breeding practices to get the most out of their flocks. Small-scale farmers' insights on trait breed preferences and family flock breeding practices are presented in this cross-sectional study. A cross-sectional study was conducted in two agroecological zones using face-to-face individual interviews with 119 general informants. Farmers prefer IVCs because they are multipurpose birds. Unlike policymakers, who usually underestimate the importance of IVCs, small-scale farmers acknowledge the coexistence of local and commercial chickens. Only 15.7% of farmers recruited homegrown cocks, whereas 47.9% outsourced breeding cocks from local markets and 36.4% from neighbours (χ-squared=15.976, df=2, p=0.0003395). About 49.2% of small-scale farmers believed that consanguineous mating-induced inbreeding has only trivial effects. High flock turnover significantly reduces inbreeding. Regardless of the low production capacity, small-scale farmers prefer local (rank=1.47) chickens to commercial (rank=1.61). For cocks, fertility and growth traits were highly sought after, whereas for hens, maternal instincts and laying performance were prioritized. Compared to the highlands, the lowlands had a longer egg storage period (t=2.677, df=117, p=0.009, 95% CI: -3.7607, -0.5622). This study documented the wisdom of small-scale farmers and encouraged the incorporation of their insights into a sustainable genetic improvement program.

Correlation Between Body Weight and Carcass Weight in the Selection of Village Chicken Three-Generation

This study aims to estimate the correlation between body weight and carcass weight in selected native chickens in the third generation (G3). The material used in this study was 200 DOC managed with a free-range system. The samples used to obtain carcass weight were determined by purposive sampling, consisting of 38 male chickens and 26 female chickens. The data obtained were analyzed using correlation and regression analysis. The observed variables were body weight (BW) at 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 weeks of age (independent variable) and carcass weight (CW) at 10 weeks of age (dependent variable). The results showed that the average body weight (BW) of male and female chickens up to 6 weeks of age showed no significant difference (P>0.05). After eight weeks of age, the male free-range body weights were significantly different (P<0.05) higher than female chickens, while at the period of 10 weeks, the body weights of male chickens were significantly different (P<0.01) and showed higher than female chickens. Male chickens' average free-range carcass weight was significantly higher (P<0.01) than the carcass weight (CW) of female chickens. The correlation between body weight at 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 weeks and carcass weight showed a close correlation, ranging from 0.71 to 0.97. The highest correlation coefficient values were found in male and female native chickens at ten weeks of age, with 0.94 and 0.97. It can be concluded that BW at 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 weeks of age in male and female chickens strongly correlated with carcass weight (CW). Hence, body weight (BW) could be used as a selection criterion to increase chickens' carcass weight (CW) under study.

Relationship between Village Chicken Availability and Dietary Diversity along a Rural-Urban Gradient.

Dietary diversity is one of the fundamental factors of nutritional security and a proxy used to measure diet quality. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between village chicken availability and the dietary diversity of households along a rural-urban gradient. Face-to-face interviews were conducted using a structured questionnaire in rural (n = 100), peri-urban (n = 100), and urban (n = 100) areas of Pietermaritzburg uMgungundlovu District, KwaZulu-Natal, in South Africa. A positive relationship between distance from the city center and village chicken flock sizes (p < 0.001) was observed. Consumption of vegetables increased with an increase in distance from the city center (p < 0.01). A quadratic relationship was observed between distance from the city center and consumption of livestock-derived foods (LDFs) (p < 0.05). Consumption of LDFs increased with an increase in village chicken flock sizes (p < 0.05). Consumption of vegetables increased with an increase in village chicken flock sizes (p < 0.01). Food variety score (FVS) increased with an increase in distance from the city center (p < 0.05). Assessing the availability of village chickens across rural-urban gradients is a worthy opportunity to utilize to improve households' dietary diversity and alleviate poverty. It can be concluded that expanding village flock sizes could enhance the dietary diversity of households.

Thermostability study of virulent Newcastle disease viruses isolated in Southern Angola.

Newcastle disease (ND) is endemic in Angola. Several outbreaks of ND occurred in small backyard flocks and village chickens with high mortality in the southern provinces of the country, Cunene, Namibe and Huíla, in 2016 and 2018. In those years, 15 virulent ND virus (NDV) strains were isolated and grouped within subgenotype 2 of genotype VII (subgenotype VII.2). We now present a study on the thermostability of the isolates, aiming at the selection of the most thermostable strains that, after being genetically modified to reduce their virulence, can be adapted to the production of vaccines less dependent on cold chain and more adequate to protect native chickens against ND. Heat-inactivation kinetics of haemagglutinin (Ha) activity and infectivity (I) of the isolates were determined by incubating aliquots of virus at 56 °C for different time intervals. The two isolates from Namibe province showed a decrease in infectivity of 2 log10in ≤ 10 min, therefore belonging to the I-phenotype, but while the NB1 isolate from 2016 maintained the Ha activity up to 30 min and was classified as thermostable virus (I-Ha+), the Ha activity of the 2018 NB2 isolate decreased by 2 log2in 30 min, being classified as a thermolabile virus (I-Ha-). Of the 13 NDV isolates from Huíla province, 10 isolates were classified as thermostable, eight with phenotype I+Ha+and 2 with phenotype I-Ha+. The other three isolates from this province were classified as thermolabile viruses (I-Ha-).Contribution:This study will contribute to the control and/or eradication of Newcastle disease virus in Angola. The thermostable viral strains isolated from chickens in the country can be genetically manipulated by reverse genetic technology in order to reduce their virulence and use them as a vaccine in the remote areas of Angola.

Indian and Chinese Origins of West African Village Chickens as Revealed by Mitochondrial DNA Partial D-Loop Regions

The study assessed the maternal genetic origins of West African village chickens using a 920-bp mtDNA D-loop region fragment of 127 samples from four populations (Gambia, Togo, Liberia and Nigeria). The mtDNA D-loop region was amplified following standard PCR protocols, using AV1F2: 5′-AGGACTACGGCTTGAAAAGC-3′ and 5′-TGCTTAAGGTTAATTACTGCTG-3′. as the forward and reverse primers respectively. Sequencing was done using Sanger’s dideoxy chain termination method. In addition, 268 sequence samples harvested from Genbank representing Gallus gallus from Africa, Mediterranean and different regions of Asia, were included in the analysis, bringing the total sample size to 395. 24 polymorphic sites and 13 West African chicken haplotypes (WAC1-13) were detected. The evolutionary relationships amongst studied populations and other African and global chicken populations were investigated using MEGA 7 and NETWORK 4.6 softwares. The results grouped 11 of the haplotypes including the dominant one (WAC1) with India, Pakistan and Egypt into haplogroup E, indicating an Indian sub-continental origin and Egypt as an entry point, while the other haplotypes (WAC8 and 10) clustered with haplogroup B widely believed to be of Chinese matrilineage and reported for the first time in West Africa by this study. Haplogroup B is thought to be a heritage of recent introgression of exotic alleles from commercial lines. The study shows that India and China were most likely geographic origins of the matriarchs of the West African village chickens.

Carcass Characteristics and Meat Quality of Balitbangtan's Superior Village Chickens (KUB) Slaughtered at Different Ages

The research aims to determine the effect of slaughter age on carcass characteristics and meat quality of KUB chickens kept by farmers as meat producers. The research used a completely randomized design with a unidirectional pattern using 65 un-sexed Kampung Unggul Balitbangtan (KUB) chickens. The chickens were divided into 4 slaughter age treatments, namely 4 weeks, 6 weeks, 8 weeks and 10 weeks. At each slaughter age, 15 chickens are used as replications. All chickens in the slaughter age group are slaughtered using the bleeding method in the neck area by cutting off the respiratory tract, blood vessels and digestive tract. After the chicken is declared dead, it is dipped in warm water (temperature 80oC), then the feathers are cleaned, the head and neck, legs are cut and the internal contents are removed. For the purposes of measuring meat quality, meat samples were taken from the chest and then measured at the Animal Products Processing Technology Laboratory, Faculty of Animal Husbandry, Mataram University. Slaughter age increased live weight, lower thigh weight percentage, meat cooking loss value (P&lt;0.01), carcass weight percentage, wing weight percentage, upper thigh weight percentage, and water holding capacity (P&lt;0.05), but did not affect breast weight percentage , back weight and meat pH (P&gt;0.05). It was concluded that delaying the age of slaughter increases the edible part and decreases the inedible part. This research delays the age of slaughter to increase the edible part and reduce the inedible part.

Existence of the Superior Village Chicken Breeders Community Group (Master Pitung) Kendal Regency

Shared interests (hobbies) are one of the factors that encourage the formation of certain communities. Some communities formed from shared interests even have strategic economic potential. One of them is the association of free-range chicken breeders in Kendal district, Central Java province. Currently, the community has a clear goal. However, awareness of the group’s legality does not appear to have been formed. This service program aims to socialize the importance of group legality. The method of service carried out is through group discussion forums. The result of the service program is an increase in the awareness of each member to form a group legally in accordance with applicable legal provisions. The result of the service program is an increase in the awareness of each group member to legalize the association under the name “Master Pitung” or the community of superior village chicken breeders.&#x0D; Keywords: joint business group, superior village chicken breeders

Characterization of Village Chicken Production Systems in Three Agro-climatic Zones of Western Tigray, Northern, Ethiopia

A survey was conducted in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia, to characterize village chicken production systems using a questionnaire and group discussions. Data was analyzed using SPSS 22. Respondents provided supplementary feeds to chickens to improve yields and health. Sorghum, maize, sesame, tomato, onion, barley, and household food leftovers were the main supplementary feeds, although the types of cereal crops produced varied across agro-climates. Harvest and purchase were main sources of cereal and non-cereal chicken feeds, respectively. 50.4% considered summer, 48.8% winter as critical feed seasons. Farmers provided feeds to their chickens in the morning (98.7%), afternoon (69.6%), and evening (81.3%), and on the ground for collective feeding (97.9%). 59.5% of respondents constructed separate chicken houses, with 56.1% being permanent structures and 3.4% temporary. Chicken houses were constructed using materials such as mud, wood, iron sheet roofing, bamboo, grass, and plastic. 57.7% cleaned chicken houses, 66% once daily, and 2.1% not at all. Water was provided ad libitum (70.9%), once a day (7.5%), or twice a day (21.6%) from wells, taps, or rivers using various waterers. Eighty-six percent of the respondents cleaned chicken waterers, while the remaining 14% did not. Training is needed for house construction, feeding, watering, cleaning, and disinfection of feeders and waterers to prevent waterborne diseases.

Analisis SWOT Potensi Desa dan BUMDes Kedarpan

SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) is a critical strategic planning tool for evaluating the potential of villages and Village-Owned Enterprises (BUMDes) in Indonesia. BUMDes is a government initiative in empowering the economy of village communities, utilizing local resources to encourage rural entrepreneurship. This article highlights the results of a SWOT analysis of BUMDes in Kedarpan Village, showing that development prospects have not been optimal in various time periods. SWOT is used to formulate BUMDes management strategies, accelerate development, and improve performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kedarpan Village has agricultural and MSME potential which includes superior products such as white pepper and snacks made from cassava. BUMDes, such as Village Internet and chicken farms, play an important role in managing natural resources and empowering communities. This article concludes the need for BUMDes management training and further activities from the village government in building communication networks with external parties. Recommendations involve developing human resource competencies, marketing management, and collaboration with other parties to support sustainable management of Kedarpan Village and BUMDes.

The evaluation and importance of Newcastle disease’s economic loss in commercial layer poultry

Velogenic Newcastle disease virus (VNDV) causes a highly contagious and devastating disease in poultry and causes up to 100 percent mortality in susceptible populations during devastating outbreaks. Newcastle disease causes heavy economic losses to the global poultry industry by decreasing the growth rate, decreasing egg production, and increasing morbidity and mortality. The households face substantial economic losses throughout the year due to Newcastle disease. It is ranked first among other poultry diseases in village chickens. The economic losses caused by this disease in the poultry industry have given awareness about the importance of Newcastle disease and made it easier to justify the operations against this disease. So, estimating the economic losses caused by Newcastle disease is very important. Regarding the Newcastle disease's huge impact on production and causing a lack of eggs, we will have to compensate for this reduction by importing eggs from other countries. Hence, a tremendous amount of money will be needed to compensate for the shortage of eggs, which will result in a huge economic loss. Finally, these will directly affect the poultry industry and its financial resources, which clarifies the importance of correct and on-time vaccination and caring for Newcastle disease in poultry flocks to prevent enormous economic losses. In this study, the economic impact of Newcastle Disease on egg-laying farms was quantitatively assessed. Data were collected on the total number of egg-laying poultry monthly and annually. Subsequently, the economic loss for each period was calculated based on the total production period. The minimal damage caused by this disease is about 116,591 Tons. Summing all these periods' production decreases, the total loss will be 10538 Tons. To estimate the losses of the disease, it is necessary to estimate the losses in breeding herds and broiler herds so that the loss resulting from the endemic Newcastle disease of the country can be measured.

Phenotype Character of The First Generation (G1) Results of Crossing Elba Chicken With Ternate Village Chicken to Improve The Quality of Local Chicken

Phenotype Character of The First Generation (G1) Results of Crossing Elba Chicken With Ternate Village Chicken to Improve The Quality of Local Chicken

Misconceptions and their influence on chicken egg consumption pattern, buying behavior and attitudes among the urban and rural communities in Western Province of Sri Lanka

Misconceptions and their influence on chicken egg consumption pattern, buying behaviour, and attitudes among the urban and rural communities in Western province of Sri Lanka were investigated. A total of 690 respondents representing Colombo, Gampaha, and Kalutara districts were interviewed using a pre-tested questionnaire. Chi-square analysis and the descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. According to the results, 67.1% of respondents believed that the village chicken eggs are more nutritious than the commercial chicken eggs. The majority (95.4%) did not accept the fact that the brown eggs are nutritionally sound than the white shelled eggs. Of the total respondents, 46.2% trusted that the daily consumption of chicken eggs can lead to hypercholesterolemia and increases the risk of cardiac disorders. Information derived from the general public and social media were identified as the main sources of the misconceptions discussed. In conclusion, of all misconceptions tested two misconceptions: (1) the eggs from village chicken are nutritious than the commercial chicken eggs and (2) the chicken eggs when consumed daily can increase the risk of cardiac disorders, do exists. The study further concluded that the majority of the participants are willing to change their attitudes if it is guaranteed that both the village and commercial chicken eggs are coequally nutritious, and both white and brown eggs are safe to eat daily, infertile, and coequally nutritious.

On-Host Occurrence of Argas persicus in Retail Village Chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus) from Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria

On-Host Occurrence of Argas persicus in Retail Village Chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus) from Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria