Physiological responses of indigenous mother hens to a short-term separation from her chicks IYASERE OLUWASEUN SERAH Department of Animal Physiology, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria, P.M.B. 2240, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria email: o.s.iyasere@gmail.com

Introduction Natural behaviours of indigenous hens are: egg laying, brooding of eggs and post hatch care for chicks (Chen and Li, 2007) Extensive system: exposed to several stressors (predator, nutritional, high or low temperatures, rainfall) Maternal-offspring separation result in welfare problems such as stress or rejection (Hersher and Richmond, 1958) Chick separation – stress paradigm has traditionally been used as a biobehavioral assay to study attachment processes (Sufka et al., 1994) On a commercial scale, playback of hen feed calls to broiler chicks improved feed conversion ratios, body weight, were closer to the feeder than control chicks (Woodcock et al., 2004)

Hen-chick model Hen-chick relationship Pre-hatching vocalisations: as early as a day before hatching. Post-hatch maternal calls: roosting calls, maternal cluck calls, alarm calls and feeding calls Mother hen have positive effect on chicks: 1. Development of feeding behavior and food preferences in chicks. 2. Hen brooded chicks are less fearful (Rodenburg et al., 2009; Shimmura et al., 2010). Mother hens show empathy for chicks under distress condition (Edgar et al., 2011) Physiological changes (increased heart rate & decreased eye temperature) Behavioural changes (increased time spent alert and cluck calling & reduced preening)

MATERIALS AND METHODS Housing of birds Transfer to brooding pen Physical separation Housing of birds Transfer to brooding pen Post hatching Types of separation test Physical separation (Day 8 and 16) Visual separation (Day 12 and 20) Data collection Blood glucose, eye temperature and heart rate visual separation

Statistical analysis Paired sample T-test To determine the differences between the first and second separation periods To determine differences before and after each separation.

Change in eye temperature (oC) Change in heart rate (beats/minute) Table 1: Changes in eye temperature, heart rate and blood glucose levels of Nigerian indigenous mother hens separated from her chicks   Change in eye temperature (oC) Change in heart rate (beats/minute) Change in blood glucose (g/dL) Physical separation 1st -0.04±0.23 2.00±5.00 -22.43±12.91 2nd 0.13±0.26 -2.29±1.87 -5.57±5.56 Visual separation -0.16±0.25 9.14±6.53a -3.43±11.76 -0.16±0.40 -9.43±6.74b -20.43±4.85 ab Means with different superscript for each separation method differs significantly at P<0.05, n=8

Heart rate (beats/minute) Blood glucose (g/dL) Table 2: Average eye temperature, heart rate and blood glucose levels of Nigerian indigenous mother hens before and after subjection to two different separation methods   Eye temperature (oC) Heart rate (beats/minute) Blood glucose (g/dL) Physical separation Before 37.26±0.25 176.57±5.92 203.14±10.41a After 37.30±0.25 176.43±5.71 189.14±8.57b Visual separation 37.63±0.33 176.57±7.30 185.36±13.30 37.63±0.34 176.43±7.03 173.43±9.49 ab Means with different superscript for each separation method differs significantly at P<0.05, n=8

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