The day-old chick: a crucial hinge between breeders and broilers

The quality of the day-old broiler chick is foremost in the minds of many p oultry managers. From fertilised ovum to the placement at the broiler farm, some factors such as the characteristics of the incubating eggs, the egg h olding conditions, the incubation conditions and the conditions that exist between hatching and placement at the farm and their interactions may affec t chick quality. It may be questioned if maximal hatchability is the best i ndicator for chick quality and/or post-hatching viability, even if optimal hatchability is considered a prerequisite for successful incubation. The en vironmental conditions during incubation (e.g. the temperature, humidity an d ventilation rate (carbon dioxide concentration)) are not set independentl y from each other, although each may have its own optimum for hatchability and chick quality. These optima for each incubation factor may alter differ entially according to the characteristics of the incubating egg. It is conc luded that more independent control as well as more control of the variabil ity of the classical physical conditions in the incubator are required in o rder to improve hatchability and chick quality.