FEATURES OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF HEAT STRESS IN QUAILS

Abstract

Stress is a complex of non-specific reactions of the body of animals to the action of stressors, which can critically disrupt homeostasis of the body, and with long-term action, it can cause death.
In poultry farming, the main types of stress are: technological, environmental, food and internal. The most common is technological stress, which is directly related to abrupt changes in the conditions of keeping the birds.
At elevated temperature in the body, quail directs energy not to growth, development and productivity, but to maintain a heat balance in the body (thermal homeostasis).
The main reason for the decrease in productivity in quails under temperature stress is: a decrease in the blood supply to the ovaries due to the redistribution of blood circulation in order to remove excess heat from the body; a decrease in the mass of the ovary; disruption of physiological mechanisms associated with hormonal regulation.
The decrease in productivity is associated with: an increase in the time between the laying of two eggs in one cycle; a decrease in the thickness of the shell due to a disruption of the microstructure of both its organic and mineral parts. The main reasons are: a decrease in feed consumption, and with it calcium. An increase in water consumption contributes to an increase in the volume of the contents of the gastrointestinal tract, disruption of metabolic processes and absorption of nutrients, and acceleration of the passage of feed through the gastrointestinal tract. The development of inflammatory processes in the intestine contributes to a disruption of the absorption area, an increase in the permeability of toxic substances and microorganisms into the bloodstream and liver. With prolonged and increased exposure to temperature, thermoregulatory processes in the quail’s body are disrupted, which leads to an increase in the overall body temperature of the birds and death.