The effects of wisanine and dihydrowisanine were studied on stereotyped and aggressive behaviour induced by apomorphine (0.5 mg/kg s.c.) in chicks. Pretreatment of chicks with wisanine (0.3-0.6 g/kg i.p.) and dihydrowisanine (0.2-0.4 g/kg i.p.) dose dependently antagonised fighting episodes and pecking of the chick's own feet and those of other chicks. It has been suggested that the antagonism ...

Chicks raised from hatching for 2 days without being able to see their feet because of cloth foot covers were less likely than controls to eat or pick up mealworms, which resemble the chicks’ feet in some respects. Instead the chicks spent much time staring at the mealworms. Similar, but perhaps weaker, effects were obtained when the toes were simply painted black. These results may reflect pro...

Maternal antibodies are transferred from hens to the chicks via the egg. To gain insight into maternal antibody transfer and endogenous production of antibodies in broiler chicks, total IgY, IgA, IgM, as well as anti-Newcastle disease virus (NDV) and anti-infectious bronchitis (IBV) antibody levels were examined in the dams' plasma, egg yolks, egg whites, and chicks' plasma on d 3, 7, 14, and 2...

Routine removal of the tip of the beak of chickens within the poultry industry leads to changes in pecking behavior, which have previously been interpreted as being indicative of pain. By analyzing the force of pecks, with and without the topical application of an analgesic to the beak, we investigated if changes in pecking behavior were due to a loss of sensitivity in the beak or were pain rel...

PURPOSE Lutein and zeaxanthin are largely transported in plasma by high-density lipoprotein (HDL). The Wisconsin hypoalpha mutant (WHAM) chicken has a recessive sex-linked mutation in the ABCA1 transporter gene that results in a severe deficiency of HDL. In this study, the transport and tissue distribution of lutein and zeaxanthin were examined in newly hatched and 28-day-old WHAM chicks compar...

The short-term effects of delayed feeding (DF) for 2 d posthatching were measured in neonate chicks and compared to early feeding (EF). Chicks from 10 independent families were used in this study to determine whether genetic background control of growth may be influenced by EF and DF. Early feeding maintained significant interfamily body weight variations from hatch to 4 d of age, whereas there...

Two experiments examined the effects of regular video stimulation on open-field behaviour in Ž . Ž . domestic chicks tested in the presence Experiment 1 or absence Experiment 2 of the familiar video image. In Experiment 1, socially housed chicks were either exposed daily from 2 to 8 days Ž . Ž . of age to the video image of a computer screensaver SS in their home cage, or not N . At 9, 10 or 11...

The metabolite 25-hydroxy vitamin D3 (25-OHD) can complement or replace vitamin D3 in poultry rations, and may influence broiler production and immune function traits. The effect of broiler breeder dietary 25-OHD on egg production, hatchability, and chick early innate immune function was studied. We hypothesized that maternal dietary 25-OHD would support normal broiler breeder production and a ...

The effects of maternal n-6 and n-3 fatty acid (FA) supplementation on hatched chick tissue FA profile, antioxidant status, and ex vivo eicosanoid production by the cardiac tissue were investigated. Eggs with low, medium, and high levels of n-3 FA were obtained by feeding Cobb breeder hens were fed a corn-soybean meal-based diet containing 3.5% sunflower oil (low n-3), 1.75% sunflower oil plus ...

Oxidative stress may cause various neuronal dysfunctions and modulate responses to many centrally acting drugs. This study examines the effects of oxidative stress produced by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) on sedation induced by diazepam or xylazine as assessed in 7-14 day-old chicks. Day-old chicks were provided with either plane tap water (control group) or H2O2 in tap water as 0.5% v/v drinking s...