Recent years have seen a rise in the number of consumers wishing to know more about the journey their food takes from farm to fork. Consumer expectations of the sensory and nutritional qualities of food products have increased as a result. Poultry producers and processors must balance these quality parameters with other requirements such as yield and animal welfare. Improving poultry meat quality addresses the wealth of recent research on the genetic and environmental factors affecting the development of quality traits in poultry meat and their potential implications for breeding, husbandry and postharvest processing. This collection also reviews recent advances in understanding colour, texture and flavour development in poultry meat. A particular focus is coverage of key poultry myopathies associated with modern broiler production such as white striping, wooden breast and pale soft exudative meat. The book considers their causes, impacts on meat quality and how these defects can be prevented or overcome.

This book covers nearly all the aspects of duck rearing system with various duck genetic resources of India, their nutritional requirements, care management, diseases and prevention, slaughter, grading, packaging of meat, nutritional importance of meat & egg and integrated farming. To make this book more competent for farmers, enlisted certain drugs for treatment of different diseases of duck and vaccination schedule has also been included in the text. References have been included in this book to refer the interested reader for details understanding of duck rearing system. The language is kept simple and lucid for ease of understanding. This book will find right place in the hands of researchers, veterinary graduates, students of the animal sciences and farmers who are engaged in duck farming.

This collection features five peer-reviewed reviews on managing bacterial diseases of poultry. The first chapter provides a brief overview of Campylobacter in poultry production and the routes of transmission from bird to human. It considers current and future challenges in controlling Campylobacter, as well as the control measures implemented to reduce the occurrence of infection in poultry flocks. The second chapter discusses economically-important enteric diseases and disorders of poultry. The chapter highlights the aetiology of these diseases and explores more sustainable alternatives to promote gastrointestinal health, such as plant-derived extracts, organic acids, prebiotics and probiotics. The third chapter provides an overview of best practices to manage disease outbreaks in poultry. It reviews current disease preventative measures, health monitoring procedures, as well as disease investigation techniques. The fourth chapter reviews the emergence and re-emergence of several infectious pathogens in poultry production and the consequent need to improve current biosecurity measures in poultry flocks to ensure optimal animal health and welfare. The final chapter considers the main alternatives to antibiotics in preventing zoonoses and other major pathogens in poultry. The chapter reviews the sector's use of prebiotics and related compounds, as well as the beneficial effects of their use.

This collection features four peer-reviewed reviews on developing immunity in poultry. The first chapter discusses the advances in genetic, genomic and functional genomic studies of immune and disease resistance in chickens. The chapter reviews multi-trait selection experiments and considers the potential trade-offs between production and immunocompetence in response to disease. The second chapter reviews the importance of the gut microbiome in optimising animal health and reducing susceptibility to major diseases affecting poultry production. The chapter examines intestinal immunity, as well as the microbiota interactions which occur within the poultry immune system. The third chapter addresses the nutritional strategies which can be implemented to boost immune function in poultry. The chapter considers the process of nutritional modulation and reviews the use of vitamins, minerals and amino acids to enhance, suppress and balance poultry immune systems. The final chapter provides an overview of the avian defence system and its role in tackling some of the major pathogens affecting global poultry production, such as coccidiosis. The chapter reviews the various elements of the host defence system and considers how supplements can modulate the immune system and its responses to specific challenges.

This collection features five peer-reviewed literature reviews on sensor technologies in livestock monitoring. The first chapter considers the development of on-animal sensors as a means of monitoring an array of livestock species, as well as the challenges which arise with their deployment in commercial livestock management operations. The second chapter reviews the utilisation of wearable technologies to monitor the welfare of poultry, including accelerometers. The chapter also considers the effects of these sensors on bird welfare and behaviour. The third chapter provides a detailed overview of recent advances in techniques for monitoring dairy cow health and welfare. The chapter reviews the development of diagnostic tools and sensor technologies which enable automated, continuous monitoring of livestock. The fourth chapter reviews the potential of precision livestock farming (PLF) technology to monitor dairy cattle welfare in line with the Five Domains framework. The chapter explores how PLF can positively impact each of the five domains: nutrition, environment, health, behaviour and mental state. The final chapter reviews recent advances in technologies for monitoring key indicators of pig welfare by considering good feeding, good housing, good health and appropriate behaviour.

Queen Victoria was obsessed with it. Socrates' last words were about it. Charles Darwin and Louis Pasteur made their scientific breakthroughs using it. Hailed as a messenger of the gods, powerful sex symbol, gambling aid, all-purpose medicine and handy research tool, the humble chicken has been also cast as the epitome of evil, and the star of the world's most famous joke. Beginning with the recent discovery, that the chicken's unlikely ancestor is the T. Rex, How the Chicken Crossed the World tracks the chicken from its original domestication in the jungles of Southeast Asia some 10,000 years ago to today's Western societies, where it became the most engineered of animals, to the uncertain future of what is now humanity's single most important source of protein. In a masterful combination of historical sleuthing and journalistic exploration on four continents, Lawler reframes the way we feel and think about all domesticated animals and even nature itself.

This collection features five peer-reviewed literature reviews on poultry housing systems. The first chapter reviews current poultry housing systems and the recent emergence of enriched cages and cage-free systems. It explores the impact of conventional cages on bird health and welfare, looking primarily at bone health. The second chapter examines the impact of different housing systems on the safety and quality of eggs. It reviews how hen housing and flock management can affect indicator populations, foodborne pathogens and chemical contamination. The third chapter considers the relationship between housing conditions and management in the rearing and production of broilers. It reviews the major welfare issues related to the housing of broilers, including feed and water restriction. The fourth chapter discusses current environmental enrichment strategies implemented in poultry production. The chapter details the benefits of these strategies, as well as their role in contributing to more sustainable production models. The final chapter reviews current knowledge on perching behaviour of chickens, as well as the associated risks to bird health and welfare that arise with the use of elevated structures, such as keel bone damage.

This collection features three peer-reviewed literature reviews on pre- and probiotics in poultry production. The first chapter summarises the safety and efficacy of individual monocultures for prophylactic and/or therapeutic efficacy against Salmonella infections in poultry under both laboratory and field conditions. The chapter also considers the development of novel, cost-effective, feed-stable, direct-fed microbials with potential for widespread utilisation and improved production, delivery and clinical efficacy for animal use. The second chapter discusses the establishment of prebiotics as a series of feed compounds that serve as specific substrates for gastrointestinal tract (GIT) bacteria. The chapter reviews the impact of prebiotics on bird health, GIT function, and prevention of foodborne pathogen GIT colonization. Particular attention is drawn on the impact of prebiotics on the avian intestinal microbiome, cecal microbiome and the avian upper GIT. The final chapter considers current concerns surrounding the application of probiotics in poultry production, primarily due to mixed experiences of their effectiveness and lack of knowledge regarding the scientific basis for their modes of action. In contrast, prebiotics have been readily accepted by the sector. This chapter summarises recent research on the effects of both types of treatment, their possible modes of action, as well as the strengths and limitations of their use.

This collection features four peer-reviewed literature reviews on antibiotics in poultry production. The first chapter places the use of antibiotics in poultry production in its historical context to understand the benefits that antibiotics have conferred on animal production to date. It considers past, present and future use of antibiotics, focusing on the use of bacteriocins and phytochemicals. The second chapter considers the benefits and repercussions of the use of antibiotics in poultry production. It details the emergence of antibiotic resistance, as well as the potential risks to public health and sustainable farming associated with antibiotic use. The third chapter reviews the identification and use of prebiotics as a control measure against contamination of poultry products. The chapter covers both traditional prebiotic compounds such as fructooligosaccharides, and less conventional sources such as guar gum. The final chapter presents the background and current use of Competitive Exclusion (CE) as a preventative measure against Salmonella infections in poultry, by administration ofcultures of intestinal origin to day-old chickens.

This collection features three peer-reviewed literature reviews on feather-pecking in poultry. The first chapter describes the three main forms of injurious pecking (IP) in poultry: tissue pecking (TP), aggressive pecking (AP) and feather-pecking (FP). It discusses the origin of severe FP, the most severe form of IP. The chapter concludes with a discussion on the risk factors and current management strategies used to reduce IP in poultry production. The second chapter assesses the use of beak trimming of laying hens as an effective preventative strategy for injurious pecking (IP). It considers the welfare costs and benefits of the two different methods: hot blade (HB) and infrared (IR). The chapter concludes with a section on alternative strategies that could reduce the need for beak trimming. The final chapter reviews the different types of featherpecking and considers the origins of this behaviour. The chapter offers a detailed discussion on the management techniques available for the prevention of feather-pecking, during both rearing and the laying period.

"Each chapter provides an overview of current knowledge on the topic in question, accompanied by an outline of advances in both scientific and applied fields. The chapters are written by twenty-five authors, all scientific experts in the subject discussed... In conclusion, Understanding the behaviour and improving the welfare of chickens is an expertly written, widely accessible book for all professionals in the field, which should provide increased understanding of chicken behaviour and welfare." (Animal Welfare - Universities Federation for Animal Welfare) With rising consumer concerns about the welfare of farm animals, such as chickens, there is a growing urgency for the livestock production sector to ensure that welfare standards are met throughout the supply chain, from breeding to slaughter. Understanding the behaviour and improving the welfare of chickens offers a comprehensive summary on the wealth of recent research completed on understanding chicken behaviour and discusses how best to use this rich body of knowledge to optimise welfare management of broilers and layers. This collection features expert insights into the use of wearable, video and acoustic technologies as a means of monitoring behaviour, as well as improving current welfare protocols. With its distinguished editor and team of leading experts in their fields, Understanding the behaviour and improving the welfare of chickens will be a standard text for university researchers in poultry and veterinary science as well as ethology. The book will also be an authoritative reference for government and other agencies responsible for the poultry sector and farm animal welfare, as well as companies involved in rearing chickens and processing poultry meat and eggs.

Probiotics are live microbial feed supplements that beneficially affect the host by improving its intestinal microbial balance. The microorganisms come from a whole range of defined strains of probiotics belonging to the groups of lactic acid bacteria, Bacillus spores, and yeasts. Research in nutritional physiology demonstrates the critical importance of a balanced gut microflorain in animal and human physiology. The probiotic concept is concerned with optimizing nutritional intake and digestion by promoting the gut flora perspective. Probiotics act by reducing the feed conversion, resulting in an increase of the daily live weight gain. The improvement of the growth of an animal is achieved through a natural, physiological way: improving digestion by balancing the gut flora, helping the animal to fulfill its genetic potential. This book discusses probiotics' mode of action and probiotics' practical application in poultry production, while explaining the use of probiotics in preventing and fighting poultry diseases, such as Salmonellosis, Necrotic Enteritis, Coccidiosis, bacterial lameness, etc. It will be essential reading for a wide group of readers, including university staff, feed mill companies, poultry producers, veterinarians, and researchers in the field. [Subject: Animal Science, Veterinary Science, Poultry Farming, Agriculture]

The Emma Bridgewater factory in Stoke-on-Trent is a mecca for lovers of its iconic pottery; but tucked within is a walled garden bursting with nectar-rich, jazzy-toned flowers and rare-breed chickens. This is where Arthur Parkinson - gardener, florist and poultry keeper - used to work his magic. Inspired by his friend, gardener and florist Sarah Raven, and childhood hen-keeping pen pal the late Dowager Duchess of Devonshire, Parkinson's domain was one of resplendent flowers, platoon feather-legged hens, handwritten blackboards, flower arranging and wasteland foliage foraging - all carried out in one of the most unlikely places a garden could happen to exist: a working pottery.

Poultry are a major source of valuable high-quality protein for much of the world's population, so food security is heavily dependent on maintaining poultry health. They are also increasingly important as specialist hobby animals in back-yard flocks. Despite this, veterinarians specializing in the care and health of these important domestic animals are few and far between, and many vets in small animal practice have little real experience of poultry health management and disease. Providing a comprehensive overview, this new handbook will help to plug this gap with 46 chapters of practical and accessible poultry health and management. The book: Covers the poultry industry, basic avian biology, infectious and non-infectious diseases and their agents, infection control, and disease investigation and legislation. Includes full colour images for ease of identification and diagnosis, in addition to practical guides to disease prevention. Considers areas of increasing global importance, such as antimicrobial resistance. Written by international experts, this book forms a valuable illustrated resource for veterinary professionals, veterinary students, or those entering the poultry industry.

Commercial Poultry Production on Maryland's Lower Eastern Shore traces the beginnings and development of commercial poultry production in this very important region. African Americans were mainly involved in poultry production on the labor supply side, which was crucial to the expansion of the industry. Commercial poultry production expanded through vertical integration, acquisitions, mergers, and consolidations and became the dominant economic activity on the Lower Maryland Eastern Shore in the 1950s. Throughout the years, the industry has intermixed with public health and the environment. These integrations were problematic on several fronts, as the industry sought to maintain a much-needed economic lifeline for the region and yet protect public health and ensure a sustainable environment at the same time. In all, commercial poultry production has continued to fuel the local economy of the Lower Maryland Eastern Shore since its inception in the 1930s.

Advances in Poultry Welfare provides a targeted overview of contemporary developments in poultry welfare. The reviews in the volume address topical issues related to poultry welfare research and assessment, with a focus on identifying practical strategies for improvement as well as information gaps that remain to be filled. Part One provides an introduction to poultry production systems and gives a broad overview of current poultry welfare issues. Part Two moves on to review several aspects of poultry management, focusing on hatchery practices, early rearing, and slaughter. Part Three deals with welfare assessment on the farm, while Part Four explores continuing challenges, such as feather pecking and skeletal problems. This is followed in Part Five by a discussion of emerging issues, with chapters covering alternative parasite control methods, backyard poultry production, mass depopulation, and genetic approaches to reducing the impact of environmental stressors on welfare. This book is an essential part of the wider ranging series Advances in Farm Animal Welfare, with coverage of cattle, sheep, pigs, and poultry. With its expert editor and international team of contributors, Advances in Poultry Welfare is a key reference tool for welfare research scientists and students, veterinarians involved in welfare assessment, and indeed anyone with a professional interest in the welfare of poultry.

To meet growing demand, the FAO has estimated that world poultry production needs to grow by 2-3% per year to 2030. Much of the increase in output already achieved has been as a result of improvements in commercial breeds combined with rearing in more intensive production systems. However, more intensive systems have increased the risk of transmission of animal diseases and zoonoses. Consumer expectations of sensory and nutritional quality have also never been higher. At the same time consumers are more concerned about the environmental impact of poultry production as well as animal welfare. Drawing on an international range of expertise, this book reviews research on poultry health and welfare. Part 1 begins by reviewing the range of diseases and other health issues affecting poultry. It then goes on to discuss ways of preventing and managing disease such as breeding, and means of attenuating the immune system. The second part of the book discusses welfare issues such as management of breeding flocks, housing, transport and humane slaughter techniques. Achieving sustainable production of poultry meat Volume 3: Health and welfare will be a standard reference for poultry and food scientists in universities, government and other research centres and companies involved in poultry production. It is accompanied by two further volumes which review safety, quality and sustainability as well as poultry breeding and nutrition.

To meet growing demand, the FAO has estimated that world poultry production needs to grow by 2-3% per year to 2030. Much of the increase in output already achieved has been as a result of improvements in commercial breeds combined with rearing in more intensive production systems. However, more intensive systems have increased the risk of transmission of animal diseases and zoonoses. Consumer expectations of sensory and nutritional quality have never been higher. At the same time consumers are more concerned about the environmental impact of poultry production as well as animal welfare. Drawing on an international range of expertise, this book reviews research on poultry breeding and nutrition. The first part of the book reviews how advances in genetics have impacted developments in breeding. Part 2 discusses ways of optimising poultry nutrition to ensure quality and sustainability in poultry meat production. Chapters review the use of feedstuffs and ingredients such as amino acids, enzymes and probiotics as well as feed formulation and safety. Achieving sustainable production of poultry meat Volume 2: Breeding and nutrition will be a standard reference for poultry and food scientists in universities, government and other research centres and companies involved in poultry production. It is accompanied by two further volumes which review safety, quality and sustainability as well as poultry health and welfare.

World egg consumption is increasing, particularly in developing countries. This creates new challenges, particularly for more intensive systems which have played a major role in increasing production and productivity. Intensive systems face a continuing threat from zoonoses. At the same time, consumer expectations about both safety, sensory and nutritional quality have never been higher. There is also increasing concern about the environmental impact of and animal welfare issues in egg production. Drawing on an international range of expertise, this book reviews key research addressing these issues. Part 1 looks at advances in understanding and improving the welfare of hens, from welfare standards to nutrition and other aspects of husbandry. Part 2 discusses sustainability issues, from ways of measuring the environmental impact of egg production to ways of improving sustainability such as improved waste management. Achieving sustainable production of eggs Volume 2: Animal welfare and sustainability will be a standard reference for poultry and food scientists in universities, government and other research centres and companies involved in egg production. It is accompanied by Volume 1 which reviews safety and quality issues.

If you want to incubate, hatch, and brood chicks yourself, rather than buying them from a hatchery, this is the guide you need. Poultry authority Gail Damerow explains exactly how to hatch healthy baby chickens, ducklings, goslings, turkey poults, and guinea keets, addressing everything from selecting a breed and choosing the best incubator to ensuring proper set-up and sanitary conditions, understanding embryo development, and feeding and caring for newborn chicks in a brooder. This is an indispensable reference for any poultry raiser, whether you want to hatch three eggs or one hundred.

Thousands of backyard poultry keepers are signing up all over the country, experiencing afresh the joys of their first hen, their first egg, their happy chuckle in the morning garden. Keeping poultry in the city brings with it not only joys but responsibilities. "The Urban Hen" is the perfect companion for the city poultry keeper and shows you how to maintain a happy, healthy garden or backyard flock in towns and cities everywhere. In this book you'll discover how to: find the best poultry for the small garden - and how to house them properly; feed your birds, tune in to their daily needs and enjoy your own eggs; avoid annoying the neighbours by showing that it is possible to keep poultry without attracting unwelcome pests; recognise healthy happy birds and learn their daily routine; recognise poorly hens; treat them or get help; and, incubate and care for fertilised eggs and raise chicks.

Salmonella is a major pathogen that can result in deadly foodborne illness. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that there are 1.4 million cases of Salmonella poisoning each year in the United States from a variety of causes, with undercooked poultry and eggs being the prime culprits. Therefore, intervention strategies are vital to reducing its occurrence. Controlling Salmonella in Poultry Production and Processing provides a complete analysis of the challenges faced in controlling Salmonella in this industry and keeping the public safe from this threat.

Author Scott M. Russell, Ph.D., works closely with the poultry industry throughout the United States and Canada and with companies in Central and South America, Europe, and China. In this volume, he explores:

• The origin of Salmonella in poultry
• Intervention strategies for controlling Salmonella during breeding, hatching, grow-out, transportation, and processing
• How to design a processing plant to eliminate Salmonella
• How to verify intervention strategies to ensure they are working
• Increasing yield during processing while controlling Salmonella
• New regulations being proposed by USDA-FSIS and their impact on poultry companies regarding competition and international exportation of products
• The differences between the EU and the U.S. with regard to Salmonella control

Providing readers with numerous examples of real-world experiences, Dr. Russell offers knowledge gleaned from traveling to poultry plants throughout the world over an 18-year period, assisting processors with identifying the sources of Salmonella in their operations, and developing successful intervention strategies.

Keeping Geese is a complete guide to the domesticated goose. It shows how this intelligent bird has been absorbed into different cultures throughout history: from the taming of the Greylag and the Swan goose to the exhibition of the mighty Toulouse, the story of the goose is intimately involved in both Eastern and Western cultures.

Now in its sixth edition, Poultry Diseases is once again fully revised with the addition of vital new material. It remains the standard reference work on health and disease for those involved in the poultry industry, government and veterinary education. Following a familiar structure, readers of the sixth edition gain concise but major reviews on current knowledge of general and disease-specific topics discussed over 45 (5 new) chapters in seven sections. With a large international team of contributors led by an authoritative editor team and a Foreword by Professor Frank Jordan, Poultry Diseases is an invaluable resource for the practicing veterinarian, poultry inspector, agricultural manager or veterinary student. Covers common and rarer diseases found in all species of poultry (including chickens, ducks, turkeys, game birds and guinea-fowl). Each chapter outside the General Overview section identifies clearly Epidemiology, Clinical Signs and Differential Diagnosis, Pathogenesis, Treatment and Control. Systems chapters discuss disorders of selected body systems in detail, leading to differential diagnosis of the specific disorder Comprehensive Appendices of Useful Data, Glossary of Terms, and Lists of diseases specific to Turkeys and Ducks (cross-referenced to the disease organisms in the main text) Worldwide coverage from a recognized international team of editors and contributors 5 new chapters and major chapter revisions on biosecurity in poultry management; avian influenza; legislation and poultry welfare New contributors and 2 new prominent editors make up a 4 strong editorial team Two color format with over 60 2-colour illustrations highlights key information Viral chapters now include information on zoonoses