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Updated: May 27, 2026

In Ovo Feeding of Commercial Broiler Eggs: An Accurate and Reproducible Method to Affect Muscle Development and Growth
Published on: September 20, 2021
Research note: A longitudinal evaluation of feather corticosterone in two broiler genotypes in a pasture-based system
1Department of Animal Sciences, College of Food Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, The Ohio State University, Wooster, OH, USA.
Abstract:
Despite increasing attention to broiler welfare, there is still limited information comparing physiological stress responses between fast-growing (FG) and slow-growing (SG) genotypes under evolving production conditions. Investigating this is important, as it can inform the development of more sustainable approaches in poultry management. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the stress response of FG Cornish broilers and SG Freedom Ranger broilers over a five-week period in a pasture-based system. Feather corticosterone levels were measured as a noninvasive biomarker for stress. Our results revealed no significant differences in stress levels between the FG and SG broilers. However, significant changes in stress level were observed over time (P < 0.05) regardless of genotype. These findings indicate that under the given experimental conditions, temporal changes in feather CORT were detectable whereas no genotype-related differences were observed.
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