Sciences de la volaille, de la pêche et de la faune
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How Egg Quality Impacts the Health of Day-One-Chicks?

Teresa M Agulles

The main goal of every breeder farm is to get the maximum number of qualified eggs and live chicks per hen and the highest proportion of top quality day-one-chicks. In order to obtain the maximum number of healthy, highly productive chicks, we need to consider not only the variables related to the breeders but also the factors related to eggs quality. Physical characteristics of fertile eggs are key not only to embryonic development and hatchability, but also to the health of chicks during the first week of life. Eggs with low shell quality or low specific gravity are more likely to be penetrated by pathogenic bacteria. The most obvious consequence of such infection is the development of omphalitis, also called yolk sac infection, major cause of disease and mortality in broilers during the first week, as well as a loss of productivity throughout the life of broilers