Growth and feed efficiency in commercial broilers under hot-humid conditions in Puducherry

Day-old chicks (n=204) of a commercial strain of broilers were reared under standard management conditions. Weekly data on body weight, feed consumption and mortality were collected. Hourly records of temperature (°C) and relative humidity (%) inside the poultry shed were recorded using a thermohygrograph. Mean hourly temperature over the entire experimental period as well as mean weekly temperatures indicated that there was only a little variation both in the diurnal and night temperatures which is expectable in the coastal region. On the other hand, relative humidity decreased between 12 noon to 4 pm although weekly averages were comparable. Growth parameters, feed efficiency and mortality of the broiler strain were satisfactory with weight gain of 1305.9, 1622.3 and 1961.8 g by the end of 5, 6 and 7 weeks, respectively; the corresponding Feed Conversion Ratio values were 1.89, 2.02 and 2.11. The overall mortality was 1.96%. Velocity and Relative Growth Rate values indicated that the broilers are to be sold preferably after five weeks of age. Simple linear regression analysis indicated that males grew (316.037±16.957 g per week, R² =98.3%) faster than females (270.629±12.549 g per week, R² =98.7%). The Quadratic regression analysis showed that the weight gain (combined sex) reached theoretical maximum (353.6 g) at 36.9 d of age (R² =91.4%).