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Delayed Oviposition Observed in Hens Fed Purified Diets1
RESEARCH NOTES
469
the coefficient of variation about 20 percent. Certainly there is little evidence of homogeneity in a n n u a l egg production which m a y be caused by environmental factors. TABLE 2.—Mean egg production of untested, partially tested and completely tested dams in seven years In general, it appears that the greatest handicap in attempting to increase the Mean ProKind of No. of No. of egg production level of this flock lies in , . _ duction of Dam Dams n the limited size of the population which Daughters D a u g h t e r s prevents the selection of sufficient breeders Untested 1279 228 198 228 Partially tested 59 318 of highest merit to reproduce the flock. 225 11 61 Completely tested Our d a t a show that, when pullet families are selected from about 38 dams each The records in table 2 indicate essen- year, raising the production level of tially the same egg production in daugh- daughters above 230 eggs has n o t been ters of the three types of dams. This fact feasible. We suggest t h a t a minimum of suggests two possibilities: first, the stand- about 100 families of daughters be seards for selected partially tested and com- lected with no fewer than 1000 daughters pletely tested dams may have been too tested each year in order to apply more low; second, the flock m a y be highly rigid selective breeding. Another conhomogeneous with respect to genes af- structive procedure might consist in the fecting egg production. I t is our opinion use of two or three sires used successively t h a t the standards for selecting breeding in each breeding pen to produce each females were too low because of the limited generation. size of the flock which produced a very REFERENCES small number of superior females. Variability in annual egg production of Hays, F. A. 1946. Egg records as a criterion for selecting breeding hens. Poultry Sci. 25: 622-627. daughters is extremely high as pointed Lerner, I. M., and L. N. Hazel. 1947. Population out by H a y s (1946). T h e standard deviagenetics of a poltry flock under artificial selection in production is about + 4 3 eggs and tion. Genetics 32: 325-339 yearlings and two-year-olds t h a t had not been progeny-tested. These are included in Table 2.
DELAYED OVIPOSITION OBSERVED IN HENS FED PURIFIED DIETS1 C. R. G R A U AND M .
KAMEI
Division of Poultry Husbandry, University of California, Berkeley (Received for publication April 5, 1949)
In the course of studies of the amino acid requirements for egg production, we have observed a number of instances of delayed oviposition in birds fed purified control diets. Normally, an egg remains in 1
This study was aided by a grant from Swift & Company.
the uterus from 19 to 24 hours, according to Warren and Scott (1935a, 1935b), and during the last 13 hours the egg has a hard shell. Scott and Warren (1936) found no evidence for the belief t h a t " t h e clutch was terminated by the holding over until the next morning of the egg which was
470
RESEARCH NOTES
scheduled to be laid at an abnormal period, late afternoon or night." Scott (1940) reported t h a t disturbing hens b y catching a n d moving them was occasionally followed by delayed oviposition and t h a t the subsequent egg, which entered the uterus before the first egg was laid, was usually malformed. Rothchild and Fraps (1944) observed t h a t oviposition of an egg was delayed for 1 to 7 days following surgical removal of the ruptured follicle from which the ovum was released. Delayed oviposition has been observed in birds receiving purified diets of several types, including Cravens' diet B-20 (Cravens, 1947) and a diet based upon t h a t used by Taylor (1947), in which 1 6 % casein and 5 % gelatin replaced the fish meal as the amino acid source, and glucose replaced rice as the carbohydrate source. Prior to the experiment, White Leghorn hens in their first laying year were maintained in individual, wire-floored cages for several weeks to accustom them to the cages and to allow choice of birds on the basis of past egg production. Feed, water and oyster shell were supplied ad libitum. The room in which the birds were kept was lighted from 6:00 A.M. to 7:00 P.M. The hens were palpated without removing them from their pens, in order to disturb them as little as possible. For the same reason, the' palpation was usually performed externally only, in the region of the vent. In this manner, all hardshelled eggs and some soft-shelled eggs were easily felt. All hens were palpated a t approximately 10:00 P.M. and 6:00 A.M. Eggs were collected at 12:00 M. and at 5:00 P.M. ; any hen which had had an egg in her uterus a t 6:00 A.M. t h a t was not laid during the day was again palpated at 5:00 P.M. An oviposition was considered delayed when an easily palpable egg remained in the uterus a t least 22 hours. Eggs laid a t normal intervals were collected an average
of 14 hours after they were first felt in the uterus. This rigorous criterion and the long interval between palpations undoubtedly resulted in failure to observe some instances of delay. Even under these conditions, the number of retentions observed was appreciable. In one study, 50 hens were observed (after an initial experimental period of 30 days) for 21 days, during which time 11 hens (22%) exhibited delayed oviposition. T h e total egg production during this period was 558 eggs, of which 18 (3.1%) were delayed. The average time these 18 held eggs were, known to be in the uterus was 30 hours with a range of 22 to 48 hours. In four instances, the held egg was followed b y a soft-shelled or malformed egg which evidently had entered the uterus while the first egg was still present (Scott, 1940). These four eggs had thick, sandy shells, while the other 14 had smooth shells which were not abnormally thick. I n earlier studies in which the hens were palpated only once daily (at 8:00 A.M.), a number of instances were observed in which oviposition was delayed from several days to as long as one month. In order to determine the frequency of delayed oviposition in hens receiving a practical-type laying mash, 83 laying hens of the same strain were palpated, as before, at 6:00 A.M. and 10:00 P.M., for 10 days, during which time 613 eggs were laid. Four hens (4.8%) exhibited delayed oviposition during this period; 4 eggs (0.65%) were delayed. Two of these 4 held eggs were followed b y malformed eggs. Although the stimulus for normal oviposition has not been determined, the available evidence indicates t h a t the ruptured follicle and the posterior pituitary are the most likely participating organs (Rothchild and Fraps, 1944; Burrows a n d Byerly, 1942). I t is apparent from our observations t h a t the diet also influences the
RESEARCH NOTES length of time that the egg remains in the uterus. The mechanism of the effect of the diet is, however, unknown. SUMMARY T\ i J • -J.u J Delayed oviposition was observed , ... . .. . . among hens which were fed purified diets. The duration of the delay, as determined by external palpation in the uterine region, ranged from a few hours to as long as one month. In one study of 50 hens observed for 21 days, 3 . 1 % of the eggs DO , , , "" ' , were delayed, and 2 2 % of the hens were affected. Some of the delays observed were complicated by the presence of a second egg in the uterus before the first one.was laid. Unless this occurred, shell thickness was not increased markedly by , , , . . . „. . ., r , delayed oviposition. T h e incidence of delayed eggs in birds fed a stock diet was only 0 . 6 5 % .
471
REFERENCES Burrows, W. H., and T. C. Byerly, 1942. Premature expulsion of eggs by hens following injection of whole posterior pituitary preparations. Poultry Sci. 21:416. Cravens, W. W., 1948. Effect of leucine on egg pro, .' ,' , , . , . " , „.„„?„„ duction and hatchabihty. Poultry Sci. 27: 562. . R o t h c h i l d ) L> a n d R M F r a p S j 1 9 4 4 0 n t h e f u n c . t i o n o f t h e r u p t ured ovarian follicle of the domestic fowl. Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 50: 79. Scott H M > - -> a n d D - c - Warren, 1936. Influence of o v u a t i o n rat ' ? °" t h * t e " d e " c y °cf .th,ec f ™| t o produce eggs m clutches. Poultry Sci. 15:381. ^ ^ H M ; 194Q A n o t e o n a b n o r m a l s h a p e o f e g g , Amer. Nat. 74:185. Taylor, L. W. 1947. The effect of folic acid on egg production and hatchabihty. Poultry Sci. 26: 372 Warren
> D ' C > a n d H ; M ' S c o t t ' 1 c 935a - T h n e c t i m e factor in egg formation. Poultry Sci. 14: 195. _ 1 9 3 5 b P h y s i o l o g i c a l f a c t o r s i n f l u e n c i n g the r a t e 0f e g g formation in the domestic hen. J. Agr. Res. 51: 565.
Poultry Science in Bound Form We are in a position to furnish sets of POULTRY SCIENCE from Volume' 9, Number 1, through Volume 27, Number 6, in attractive cloth binding. The prices given below are f.o.b. Menasha, Wisconsin. A postage and mailing charge of 50
"
$5.25 4.50 4.50 4.50 4.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 7.00 7.00
Please make remittance payable to POULTRY SCIENCE and send orders to Dr. R. George Jaap, Poultry Science, Ohio State University, Columbus 10, Ohio.
469
the coefficient of variation about 20 percent. Certainly there is little evidence of homogeneity in a n n u a l egg production which m a y be caused by environmental factors. TABLE 2.—Mean egg production of untested, partially tested and completely tested dams in seven years In general, it appears that the greatest handicap in attempting to increase the Mean ProKind of No. of No. of egg production level of this flock lies in , . _ duction of Dam Dams n the limited size of the population which Daughters D a u g h t e r s prevents the selection of sufficient breeders Untested 1279 228 198 228 Partially tested 59 318 of highest merit to reproduce the flock. 225 11 61 Completely tested Our d a t a show that, when pullet families are selected from about 38 dams each The records in table 2 indicate essen- year, raising the production level of tially the same egg production in daugh- daughters above 230 eggs has n o t been ters of the three types of dams. This fact feasible. We suggest t h a t a minimum of suggests two possibilities: first, the stand- about 100 families of daughters be seards for selected partially tested and com- lected with no fewer than 1000 daughters pletely tested dams may have been too tested each year in order to apply more low; second, the flock m a y be highly rigid selective breeding. Another conhomogeneous with respect to genes af- structive procedure might consist in the fecting egg production. I t is our opinion use of two or three sires used successively t h a t the standards for selecting breeding in each breeding pen to produce each females were too low because of the limited generation. size of the flock which produced a very REFERENCES small number of superior females. Variability in annual egg production of Hays, F. A. 1946. Egg records as a criterion for selecting breeding hens. Poultry Sci. 25: 622-627. daughters is extremely high as pointed Lerner, I. M., and L. N. Hazel. 1947. Population out by H a y s (1946). T h e standard deviagenetics of a poltry flock under artificial selection in production is about + 4 3 eggs and tion. Genetics 32: 325-339 yearlings and two-year-olds t h a t had not been progeny-tested. These are included in Table 2.
DELAYED OVIPOSITION OBSERVED IN HENS FED PURIFIED DIETS1 C. R. G R A U AND M .
KAMEI
Division of Poultry Husbandry, University of California, Berkeley (Received for publication April 5, 1949)
In the course of studies of the amino acid requirements for egg production, we have observed a number of instances of delayed oviposition in birds fed purified control diets. Normally, an egg remains in 1
This study was aided by a grant from Swift & Company.
the uterus from 19 to 24 hours, according to Warren and Scott (1935a, 1935b), and during the last 13 hours the egg has a hard shell. Scott and Warren (1936) found no evidence for the belief t h a t " t h e clutch was terminated by the holding over until the next morning of the egg which was
470
RESEARCH NOTES
scheduled to be laid at an abnormal period, late afternoon or night." Scott (1940) reported t h a t disturbing hens b y catching a n d moving them was occasionally followed by delayed oviposition and t h a t the subsequent egg, which entered the uterus before the first egg was laid, was usually malformed. Rothchild and Fraps (1944) observed t h a t oviposition of an egg was delayed for 1 to 7 days following surgical removal of the ruptured follicle from which the ovum was released. Delayed oviposition has been observed in birds receiving purified diets of several types, including Cravens' diet B-20 (Cravens, 1947) and a diet based upon t h a t used by Taylor (1947), in which 1 6 % casein and 5 % gelatin replaced the fish meal as the amino acid source, and glucose replaced rice as the carbohydrate source. Prior to the experiment, White Leghorn hens in their first laying year were maintained in individual, wire-floored cages for several weeks to accustom them to the cages and to allow choice of birds on the basis of past egg production. Feed, water and oyster shell were supplied ad libitum. The room in which the birds were kept was lighted from 6:00 A.M. to 7:00 P.M. The hens were palpated without removing them from their pens, in order to disturb them as little as possible. For the same reason, the' palpation was usually performed externally only, in the region of the vent. In this manner, all hardshelled eggs and some soft-shelled eggs were easily felt. All hens were palpated a t approximately 10:00 P.M. and 6:00 A.M. Eggs were collected at 12:00 M. and at 5:00 P.M. ; any hen which had had an egg in her uterus a t 6:00 A.M. t h a t was not laid during the day was again palpated at 5:00 P.M. An oviposition was considered delayed when an easily palpable egg remained in the uterus a t least 22 hours. Eggs laid a t normal intervals were collected an average
of 14 hours after they were first felt in the uterus. This rigorous criterion and the long interval between palpations undoubtedly resulted in failure to observe some instances of delay. Even under these conditions, the number of retentions observed was appreciable. In one study, 50 hens were observed (after an initial experimental period of 30 days) for 21 days, during which time 11 hens (22%) exhibited delayed oviposition. T h e total egg production during this period was 558 eggs, of which 18 (3.1%) were delayed. The average time these 18 held eggs were, known to be in the uterus was 30 hours with a range of 22 to 48 hours. In four instances, the held egg was followed b y a soft-shelled or malformed egg which evidently had entered the uterus while the first egg was still present (Scott, 1940). These four eggs had thick, sandy shells, while the other 14 had smooth shells which were not abnormally thick. I n earlier studies in which the hens were palpated only once daily (at 8:00 A.M.), a number of instances were observed in which oviposition was delayed from several days to as long as one month. In order to determine the frequency of delayed oviposition in hens receiving a practical-type laying mash, 83 laying hens of the same strain were palpated, as before, at 6:00 A.M. and 10:00 P.M., for 10 days, during which time 613 eggs were laid. Four hens (4.8%) exhibited delayed oviposition during this period; 4 eggs (0.65%) were delayed. Two of these 4 held eggs were followed b y malformed eggs. Although the stimulus for normal oviposition has not been determined, the available evidence indicates t h a t the ruptured follicle and the posterior pituitary are the most likely participating organs (Rothchild and Fraps, 1944; Burrows a n d Byerly, 1942). I t is apparent from our observations t h a t the diet also influences the
RESEARCH NOTES length of time that the egg remains in the uterus. The mechanism of the effect of the diet is, however, unknown. SUMMARY T\ i J • -J.u J Delayed oviposition was observed , ... . .. . . among hens which were fed purified diets. The duration of the delay, as determined by external palpation in the uterine region, ranged from a few hours to as long as one month. In one study of 50 hens observed for 21 days, 3 . 1 % of the eggs DO , , , "" ' , were delayed, and 2 2 % of the hens were affected. Some of the delays observed were complicated by the presence of a second egg in the uterus before the first one.was laid. Unless this occurred, shell thickness was not increased markedly by , , , . . . „. . ., r , delayed oviposition. T h e incidence of delayed eggs in birds fed a stock diet was only 0 . 6 5 % .
471
REFERENCES Burrows, W. H., and T. C. Byerly, 1942. Premature expulsion of eggs by hens following injection of whole posterior pituitary preparations. Poultry Sci. 21:416. Cravens, W. W., 1948. Effect of leucine on egg pro, .' ,' , , . , . " , „.„„?„„ duction and hatchabihty. Poultry Sci. 27: 562. . R o t h c h i l d ) L> a n d R M F r a p S j 1 9 4 4 0 n t h e f u n c . t i o n o f t h e r u p t ured ovarian follicle of the domestic fowl. Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 50: 79. Scott H M > - -> a n d D - c - Warren, 1936. Influence of o v u a t i o n rat ' ? °" t h * t e " d e " c y °cf .th,ec f ™| t o produce eggs m clutches. Poultry Sci. 15:381. ^ ^ H M ; 194Q A n o t e o n a b n o r m a l s h a p e o f e g g , Amer. Nat. 74:185. Taylor, L. W. 1947. The effect of folic acid on egg production and hatchabihty. Poultry Sci. 26: 372 Warren
> D ' C > a n d H ; M ' S c o t t ' 1 c 935a - T h n e c t i m e factor in egg formation. Poultry Sci. 14: 195. _ 1 9 3 5 b P h y s i o l o g i c a l f a c t o r s i n f l u e n c i n g the r a t e 0f e g g formation in the domestic hen. J. Agr. Res. 51: 565.
Poultry Science in Bound Form We are in a position to furnish sets of POULTRY SCIENCE from Volume' 9, Number 1, through Volume 27, Number 6, in attractive cloth binding. The prices given below are f.o.b. Menasha, Wisconsin. A postage and mailing charge of 50
"
$5.25 4.50 4.50 4.50 4.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 5.50 7.00 7.00
Please make remittance payable to POULTRY SCIENCE and send orders to Dr. R. George Jaap, Poultry Science, Ohio State University, Columbus 10, Ohio.