Vol. 4, Issue 2, Part A (2019)

Author(s): Ibrahim F Rehan, Hesham H Mohammed, Sohaila Gehad Fahmy, Asmaa Elnagar, Mohammed Youssef and Obeid Shanab

Abstract: Immunoglobulin Y (IgY) is beneficial to form the passive immunization and to improve the brooding behaviours of chicks in the first week of life. However, little information is available in this topic. Sixty 1-d old fayoumi chicks were reared in order to detect the behaviours and the levels of circulating IgY using ELISA technique. The resting behaviour of the chicks was the highest (time, frequency) in the 1-d. The activity reached its peak at the 7-d. Moreover, the chicks reared on a supplementary-light were more active than those reared on a normal-day light. The circulating-IgY was decreased (P ≤ 0.001) in the 7-d. Therefore, there was a positive correlation between the withdrawal of circulating-IgY from the chicks’ body and the behavioural activity of chicks. Our finding confirmed the importance of circulating-IgY and photoperiodism in the activation of early immunity of chicks and in the welfare implications on poultry farms.