A breeding program for balanced improvement of performance and health in broilers

Area of Science:

• Animal Science
• Genetics
• Animal Welfare

Background:

• Broiler production prioritizes economic traits, potentially compromising animal health.
• Gait Score (GS) and Heart Failure (HF) are critical health indicators in broiler chickens.
• Sustainable breeding programs aim to balance production with animal well-being.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of including health traits (GS and HF) in broiler breeding goals.
• To compare economic and sustainable breeding scenarios.
• To quantify the effects on production traits and animal health.

Main Methods:

• Simulations were conducted using the SelAction program for two scenarios: economic (production traits only) and sustainable (production, GS, and HF traits).
• Economic values for GS and HF were determined using the desired-gain approach.
• Correlations between health and production traits were analyzed.

Main Results:

• The economic scenario showed improved production traits but led to a decline in GS and an increase in HF.
• The sustainable scenario successfully halted the deterioration of GS and HF.
• While the economic scenario yielded higher monetary returns, it compromised animal health.

Conclusions:

• Integrating health traits into broiler breeding goals is essential for disease prevention and improved animal welfare.
• Appropriate economic values must be assigned to health traits to ensure their inclusion in breeding programs.
• Sustainable breeding strategies are necessary to mitigate negative health consequences in broiler production.