HPAI continues to disrupt poultry production worldwide. But according to Taoufik Rawi, DVM, a poultry veterinarian at Boehringer Ingelheim focused on global respiratory disease challenges, the industry is no longer dealing with the same virus it faced a decade ago.
The poultry industry is increasingly focused on extending the productive lifespan of laying hens beyond 100 weeks to enhance welfare, sustainability and profitability. A major challenge in achieving this goal is the age-related decline in eggshell quality. Supplementation with phytase and dacitic tuff breccia could be the answer, according to a study from North Carolina State University.
By Douglas L. Fulnechek, DVM,
Senior Public Health Veterinarian,
GTS Health
Mycotoxins are poisonous metabolites produced by naturally occurring mold organisms that contaminate corn, soybean meal and other feedstuffs. Even in very low concentrations, they can hurt animal health and productivity. Research has revealed a host of emerging mycotoxins that are not yet regularly determined or regulated. What does this mean for producers?
Optient lighting, developed by ONCE® by Signify® and available through VAL-CO, is a lighting system built entirely around how a chicken sees the world. It uses poultry-specific LED lights to accommodate chickens’ heightened photosensitivity.
The newly hatched chick’s immune system is immature, but it develops with time. However, the developmental characteristics are incomplete and skew toward innate response versus active response, which challenges the commonly practiced day-of-age vaccination protocol. Rodrigo Gallardo, DVM, PhD, DACPV, University of California, Davis, discusses the pros and cons of vaccinating chicks later.
Three recent studies by Huvepharma found that birds receiving quillaja, which is derived from the bark of the South American soapbark tree, alongside different anticoccidials achieved significantly better feed-conversion than those receiving the anticoccidials alone.
Although links between the gut microbiome and broiler performance are well established, translating microbiome data into practical decisions has been a challenge, said Fernanda Castro, PhD, micronutrition and health technology lead for Cargill Animal Nutrition.
Drawing on more than 70,000 hatchery vaccination audits conducted through Ceva Animal Health’s C.H.I.C.K Program, Alba Pfaff, MS, the company’s senior technical marketing manager, discusses what helps hatcheries maintain high vaccination standards, the details that matter most and how better use of data could support even greater consistency.
Modern commercial chicks hatch into a very different world than they would under natural conditions. According to Ivan Rychlik, DVM, researcher at the Czech Republic’s Veterinary Research Institute, that difference has major consequences for gut health, disease resistance and antibiotic use.
Ivan Alvarado, DVM, PhD, Merck Animal Health, discusses the research which has highlighted the health and production benefits of using recombinant HVT vaccines at the hatchery alongside live vaccines against infectious laryngotracheitis and Newcastle disease.
By David L. Wicker, PhD, industry consultant, Gainesville, Georgia and
W.A. Dozier, III, PhD, Department of Poultry Science, Auburn University and Alabama Cooperative Extension System
