Anas Abdelqader

Characterization of local chicken production systems and their potential under different levels of management practice in Jordan.

This study aimed to characterize the local chickens and their production systems and to investigate the opportunities for improvement. The study was carried out in 18 villages in northern Jordan with the participation of 120 households. Data were collected by individual interviews and surveys supported with structured questionnaires. A scoring system was developed to study the effect of different levels of management on chicken performance. The main reasons for keep local chickens were egg production and generation of income. The main features of the production systems were improper housing and inadequate hygiene. Newcastle disease, predators, and parasites were the main causes of flock losses. Purchasing rate was controlled by the chickens’ phenotype, sex and age, and by season of year. The average flock size was 41.6 (±32.9) chickens per household, with a hen:cock ratio of 6.4:1. The average effective population size was 15.35, which indicated a high rate of inbreeding (5.52%). The main selection criterion adopted by farmers was egg production. There were positive significant correlations (p < 0.001) between management level and chickens’ performance. Hatchability, survivability, flock size, number of clutches, egg weight and egg mass were the major parameters that improved significantly with improvement in management level. Local chickens fulfil significant functions in the livelihood of rural smallholders; however, many constraints affected the efficiency of the production systems. Solutions should start with improving the management practices and establishing an effective breeding system.

Prevalence and burden of gastrointestinal helminthes among local chickens, in northern Jordan.

We conducted a cross-sectional study from December 2004 to February 2005 and from June 2005 to August 2005. The study aimed to determine the prevalence of gastrointestinal and tracheal helminthes among local chickens in northern Jordan. A total of 208 male and female local scavenging chickens were selected randomly. We examined the trachea and gastrointestinal tract of each bird for the presence of helminthes. We recovered three nematode and eight cestode species. No trematodes were found. One hundred and fifty-two birds (73.1%) (95% CI: 67, 79) were infected. The prevalences of different species were as follows: Ascaridia galli female 28%, male 43%; Capillaria obsignata 0.5%; Heterakis gallinarum 33%; Amoebotaenia cuneata 4.3%; Choanotaenia infundibulum female 23%, male 13%; Davainea proglottina 1.4%; Hymenolepsis cantaniana 11%; Hymenolepsis carioca female 35%, male 24%; Raillietina cesticillius female 5%, male 11%; Raillietina echinobothrida 16%; and Raillietina tetragona 18%. The prevalences of A. galli and R. cesticillus were higher in male than female hosts while those of C. infundibulum and H. carioca were higher in females. The median worm burden was 7 (range 0-168) worms per chicken.

On-farm investigation of local chicken biodiversity and performance potentials in rural areas of Jordan

Summary On-farm surveys were conducted to investigate the biodiversity of local chickens and their performance potential. The study was carried out in rural areas of northern Jordan. A sample of 846 adult local chickens was phenotypically characterized based on morphology, feather colors, comb shape and performance. Body measurements for cluster analyses were recorded on 460 adult females. The most predominant chicken type was the Jordan Baladi (67.3%) followed by the Pakistani (27.7%) and the Brahma (5%). Cluster analyses showed that the three populations are distinct. The Jordan Baladi and the Pakistani were closer to each other than the Brahma. Plumage colors were observed either as single color or mottled (a mix of many colors). The latter was the most predominant (23.1 %) followed by black (19.5%) and light brownish (19.1%). The single comb type was the most predominant (80.3%). Hens of the local chicken reached sexual maturity at about 22-30 weeks of age. The average clutch number was 1-5 per year, with 18-30 eggs per clutch. Each hen laid on average 68.9±3.3 eggs per year. The body size of adult females and males was about 1 240±10g and 1 890±30g, respectively. Indiscriminate crossbreeding was taking place frequently. Genetic characterization would complement the phenotypic characterization and should be conducted. This would help to initiate a program for the preservation of genetic diversity in local chickens in Jordan.

Anthelmintic effects of citrus peels ethanolic extracts against Ascaridia galli.

The use of phytogenic bioactive compounds to control poultry helminthes is increasing in different production systems. In vitro and in vivo anthelmintic activity of citrus peels against Ascaridia galli was investigated. Ethanolic extracts of three citrus peels species were suspended in 0.5% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) to form an experimental composition (EC). EC was mainly composed of Limonene (96%), followed by β-Pinene (1.5%), α-Pinene (0.5%), and Sabinene (0.3%). For in vitro investigation, adult A. galli worms (n=225) were collected from naturally infected chickens and distributed to 3 equal groups. Groups 1, 2, and 3 were exposed to Fenbendazole (0.5mg/ml), EC (50mg/ml), and 0.5% DMSO, respectively. For in vivo investigation, 200 Lohmann Selected Leghorns chicks were infected at 1-day old with 250 embryonated A. galli eggs. At 6 weeks of age, 150 A. galli infected birds were randomly allocated into 5 equal groups. Groups 1, 2, and 3 were treated with 300, 600, and 1200 mg EC kg(-1) body weight, respectively. Group 4 was treated with Fenbendazole (50 mg kg(-1)). Group 5 was left as control. Birds were euthanized 2-weeks post-treatment, and all worms were collected from their intestines. EC possessed significant (P<0.001) in vitro anthelmintic properties on live worms. No significant (P>0.05) difference was quantified between number of motile worms exposed either to EC or Fenbendazole 7h post-exposure. A significant (P<0.0001) reduction in fecal egg count was observed 14 days post-treatment with 1200 mg kg(-1) EC. No significant differences were observed in worm burden of the 300 mg EC-treated group compared to the controls. In contrast, the 600 and 1200 mg EC-treated groups showed significant (P<0.0001) reduction in worm burden. Fenbendazole was the most effective in reducing A. galli burden (Efficacy=97%) followed by 1200 mg EC kg(-1) (68%), 600 mg EC kg(-1) (66%), and 300 mg EC kg(-1) (5%). It is concluded that citrus peels extracts have potential anthelmintic properties against A. galli.

The effect of heat stress on intestinal integrity and Salmonella invasion in broiler birds

The intestinal mucosa works as a barrier to protect the internal environment of the animal from bacteria and bacterial toxins found in the gut lumen. Heat stress may harm this function. Therefore, we designed the current experiment to investigate the effect of heat stress on intestinal integrity, physiological and immunological responses and Salmonella invasion in broiler chickens. At 26 days of age, 72 birds were randomly distributed into 3 treatments, with 8 replicates per treatment and 3 birds per replicate. The three treatments were control treatment; kept at thermoneutral environmental conditions (20 ± 2°C), chronic heat stress treatment (exposed to 30 ± 2°C; 24h/day) and acute heat stress treatment (exposed to 35 ±2°C from 09:00 to 13:00 and kept at 20 ± 1°C from 13:00 to 09:00). The heat stress exposure was conducted for 10 successive days. Compared with the control treatment, birds subject to chronic and acute heat stress had reduced (P < 0.05) body weight and body gain and increased (P < 0.05) feed conversion ratio. However, feed intake and mortality rate were only increased (P < 0.05) in the acute heat stress treatment. Rectal temperature and Δ rectal temperature (°C/h) increased (P < 0.05) sharply during the first 2 days of exposure followed by gradual decreases until a plateau was achieved. Heat-stressed birds had increased (P < 0.05) serum concentrations of corticosterone, endotoxin lipopolysaccharide and the systemic inflammatory cytokine: TNF-α and IL-2, as well as a higher (P < 0.05) prevalence of Salmonella spp. in meat and livers, as compared with control treatment. It can be concluded that heat stress impaired intestinal integrity which resulted in increased intestinal permeability to endotoxin, translocation of intestinal pathogens (Salmonella spp.) and serum inflammatory cytokines. Therefore, avoiding thermal dysfunction of intestinal barrier is a significant factor in maintaining welfare, immune status and meat safety of broiler birds.

Use of Dietary Probiotics to Improve Laying Hen Performance

Abstract Inclusion of probiotics into the diets of laying hens improves egg production, egg weight, shell quality, albumen quality, and reduces yolk cholesterol. Modes of action of probiotic microorganisms in laying hens include regulation of intestinal microbial homeostasis, inhibition of pathogen growth in the gastrointestinal tract, interference with the ability of pathogens to colonize and infect the mucosa, increasing mucosal villus heights and absorptive area, stabilization of the gastrointestinal barrier function, increasing digestive enzyme activity, increasing metabolic efficiency, and modulation of the immune response. Probiotics increase the intestinal fermentation rate and production of short-chain fatty acids that provide nourishment for intestinal epithelia cells that ultimately leads to improved mineral assimilation. Probiotics can be considered as a successful strategy to improve hen health that leads to better hen performance.

Effects of pregnancy and disease stress on the antioxidative capacity of sheep and goat

Sheep and goat undergoes various stresses throughout their life cycle, among various causes of these stresses pregnancy and diseases are the most common one which widely affected these two ruminants. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of pregnancy and disease stress on antioxidative capacity of the sheep and goat, which in turn screens the total health status of the animal under study. Forty goat and sheep females (20 each) in two groups viz 15 diseased & pregnant and 5 healthy females without pregnancy and diseases (control) were investigated for variations in the antioxidative capacity. Result of study revealed that acw value (the water soluble antioxidative capacity) was reported lowest in pregnant sheep (5.75mg/l), whereas this value was reported highest in the control group (7.08 mg/l) which concluded that stress caused by pregnancy or disease reduced the antioxidative capacity of goat and sheep as compared the control group. Similar trends were reported in the goat also. Firas Mahmoud faleh Hayajneh * , Anas Abdelqader and Rabie AH Irshaid