Physiological Responses of Nigerian Indigenous Mother Hens to Visual Separation from Chicks

Abstract

Two sets of birds were used to investigate the physiological responses of Nigerian indigenous mother hens before and after separation from her chicks. From a flock of indigenous birds reared on the farm, broody hens were identified and separated into a brooding pen where they remained until the chicks were hatched. For the first set of birds, mother hens were subjected to visual (day 12 post-hatch) separation from their chicks for 10 minutes. For the second set, mother hens were subjected to visual separation for 20 minutes. Before and after each separation, the heart rate and blood glucose level of the hens were measured. Data collected were analyzed using paired sample T-test of SPSS statistical package. Separation of a mother hen for 10 minutes did not cause any significant changes heart rate and blood glucose level. However, visual separation of mother hens for 20 minutes resulted in 18% increase in the heart rate though this increase was not accompanied with a significant increase in blood glucose. Mother hens experience more stress after 20minutes of visual separation from chicks.