Grant: Research Tools and Instruments

Collectively, our research aims at enhancing the profitability and sustainability of the Canadian Poultry Industry while ensuring this does not come at the expense of animal health and welfare. To that end, Drs. Bédécarrats, Kiarie and Harlander's use a multidisciplinary approach involving nutrition, metabolism, physiology, and behaviour to addresses priorities of all sectors of the industry including laying hens (table eggs), broilers (for meat), and turkeys. Specifically, Egg Farmers of Canada is committed to transition production systems to non-cage housing and although welfare friendly, these systems come with specific challenges associated with the increased level of bird activity and increased risk of accidents/collisions in complex 3-dimentional environments. The differing need for nutrients between housing systems influences growth trajectories and body composition of birds, which drastically impacts the development and health of the musculoskeletal system (in particular keel bone fractures) and subsequent egg production. On the broiler side, decades of intensive genetic selection for breast muscle yield have dramatically changed the growth trajectories of birds leading to multiple health and welfare issues including myopathies, skeletal and joint problems leading to inflammation and lameness, and cardiovascular issues. As part of their efforts to tackle these issues, Drs. Bédécarrats, Kiarie and Harlander's research relies heavily on monitoring changes in body composition and skeletal integrity. Biomedical imaging such as radiography (X-Ray) and Dual-Energy-X-Ray-Absorptiometry (DXA) developed for human medicine have recently been adapted and refined to estimate body composition, bone mineral density, and skeletal integrity in live animals, thus providing an ideal non-invasive tool to monitor changes in body composition and skeletal integrity in poultry. The equipment requested, the iNSiGHT DXA system from Scintica, is a fully shielded portable DXA system that can also combine radiography with DXA output. Being shielded and portable implies it can be used on experimental farms where animals are housed, which is a tremendous advantage over other scanners. Furthermore, combining X-ray capability and DXA output allows for the accurate measurement of ossification process during skeletal development, especially keel bones. With Dr. Bédécarrats' focusing on identifying the impact of body composition and metabolic status on the initiation of lay and the subsequent impacts on skeletal health, Dr. Kiarie's research focusing on early life nutrition strategies to bolster gastrointestinal and skeletal development, and Dr. Harlander's research focusing on how muscle use affects skeletal health, all three co-applicants would greatly benefit from the requested instrument.