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General Introduction
Indigenous chickens are the most common types of poultry raised in the rural communities of South Africa. According to the Oxford Dictionary (1990) the term indigenous referred to living naturally in an area, not introduced. These indigenous chickens are raised in a free range system wherein they scavenge for food during the day around the household. The scavenging mode makes these chickens an efficient waste disposal system converting leftovers grains, human foods and insects into valuable protein foods, such as eggs and meat (Minh, 2005). It is estimated that about 80% of the Africa`s poultry population is found in traditional production systems (Branckaet et al., 2000) and the system is characterised by a low input/low production system. The birds are not regularly provided with water and other inputs such as supplementary feeds, houses, vaccination and medication. As a consequence, many birds die during pre-weaning periods due to starvation, diseases and predators. Little care is taken with regard to housing, feeding, parasites or disease control (Minga et al., 1989) and chickens are well adapted to the environment they scavenge in.
Nutrition is a major importance in raising chicken, as feeds accounts 60-70% of the total production cost (Smith, 1990; Gunaratne et al., 1993). Energy and protein are two main nutrients that can affect all production parameters in broiler chickens (Kamran et al., 2008). Information on nutrient requirements of the free ranging indigenous chickens is very limited, particularly protein and energy. Few studies were conducted to determine the nutrient requirements of indigenous chickens (Ndegwa et al., 2001; Kingori et al., 2003; Mbajiorgu, 2010; Alabi et al. 2013). It is difficult to formulate diets that require knowledge of nutrient requirements as well as of the nutrient composition of the feed ingredients, when that information is not available (Roberts & Gunaratne, 1992).
Poultry meat forms part of the staple diet of rural communities and economic source of protein (Qureshi, 1990) and proteins are good sources of essential amino acids (Wattanuchant et al., 2004) and also excellent sources of water soluble vitamins and minerals such as iron and zinc (van Heerden et al., 2002). Smith (1982) reported that white meat obtained from poultry carcass is always low in fat, with high caloric values and low levels of cholesterol, which makes it a healthy food for children and aged adults. It is known that human diets in the rural communities are deficient in protein both qualitatively and quantitatively (FAO, 1997).
High production of indigenous chickens in the rural communities can result in constant supply of good quality protein to the rural community, and that will result in alleviating malnutrition. However, the meat yield and carcass composition of the indigenous chickens in the rural communities are not yet defined.
General Introduction
References
CHAPTER 2 Literature Review
2.1. South African indigenous breeds
2.1.1. Naked Neck
2.1.3. Potchefstroom Koekoek
2.2. Production systems
2.2.1. Free range extensive system
2.2.2. Backyard system
2.2.3. Intensive system
2.2.4. Semi intensive systems
2.3. The role of indigenous chickens in the rural communities
2.4. Feed resource base for scavenging chickens
2.4.1. Factors affecting Scavengeable Feed Resource Base
2.5. Determination of SFRB available for scavenging birds
2.6. Post hatch development in chickens
2.7. Growth performance of indigenous chickens
2.8. Mortality
2.9. Feed supplementation
2.9.1. Energy requirements of scavenging chicken
2.9.2. Protein requirements
2.9.3. Crude fibre requirements
2.9.4. Mineral requirements in poultry
2.10. Feed efficienc
2.11. Carcass yields and composition
CHAPTER 3 Assessing nutrient adequacy from the crop contents of free-ranging indigenous chickens in rural villages of the Venda region of South Africa
CHAPTER 4 Growth performance and digestive tract development of indigenous scavenging chickens under village management
CHAPTER 5 Carcass composition of Venda indigenous scavenging chickens under village management
CHAPTER 6 Dietary protein and energy requirements of the Venda indigenous chickens
CHAPTER 7 General Conclusion, Critical Review and Recommendations
Further research
