Egg Production and Physiological Assessment of Sentul Hens in Temperate and Lowland Regions of West Java, Indonesia
Egg Production and Physiological Assessment of Sentul Hens in Temperate and Lowland Regions of West Java, Indonesia
Andi Mushawwir1*, Lovita Adriani1, Ronnie Permana1, Eli Sahara2
ABSTRACT
The Sentul hen is a local Indonesian chicken that has been distributed across various regions in West Java. The location’s topography significantly impacts the chickens’ performance, as it is closely related to the environment’s macro and microclimatic conditions. Low-lying areas tend to increase the risk of heat stress in chickens. In this study, 300 Sentul chickens were observed at different altitudes. The research sites at low elevations, located 150 meters above sea level, were in northern Majalengka and Cirebon, where the recorded environmental temperature was 30.5°C, and the humidity was 89%. In contrast, the sites at medium altitudes, ranging from 750 to 850 meters above sea level, were in Sumedang and South Subang, where the average temperature was 24°C, and the humidity was 65%. The study, which lasted for six months, aimed to assess the effects of heat stress on various stress markers, including malondialdehyde (MDA), cholesterol, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), and carbonic acid (H2CO3) levels. Additionally, it examined how heat stress affected the eggshell formation of Sentul chickens in the laying phase. Sixty Sentul chickens in the laying phase were used in this research, with two treatments: one group reared at medium altitude and the other at low elevation. The analysis revealed that the Sentul-laying chickens raised in the lowlands were more susceptible to heat stress, which negatively impacted the thickness of the eggshells they produced.
Keywords | Sentul chicken, Heat stress, Eggshell, Metabolism, Egg production, Altitude
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