<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
				
				<p> The present study investigated the effect of the type of alternative housing system, and genotype and age of laying hens on physical traits of egg shell and contents. It was demonstrated that alternative housing system type influenced egg weight and shape, and eggshell color and yolk color intensity. Eggs from free-range system were heavier and were characterized by more intense yolk color. No effect of alternative housing system type on albumen height, value of Haugh units (HU value) and presence of meat and blood spots was noted. Hen genotype had a significant effect on egg weight and eggshell color intensity in each of the alternative housing systems tested in this study. Hy-line Brown hens laid heavier eggs than hens of native breeds. Genotype was also observed to affect egg content traits (albumen height, HU values and presence of meat and blood spots). Independently of the type of alternative housing system, most blood and meat spots were noted in eggs of hens laying brown-shelled eggs, i.e. R-11 and Hy-line Brown layers. Laying hen age significantly impacted on egg weight, yolk percentage, eggshell traits (color intensity, weight, thickness and strength) and egg content traits (HU value, yolk weight and color intensity, presence of meat and blood spots). Older hens laid heavier eggs with a greater yolk percentage but with thinner eggshell.</p>
			</abstract>

The present study investigated the effect of the type of alternative housing system, and genotype and age of laying hens on physical traits of egg shell and contents. It was demonstrated that alternative housing system type influenced egg weight and shape, and eggshell color and yolk color intensity. Eggs from free-range system were heavier and were characterized by more intense yolk color. No effect of alternative housing system type on albumen height, value of Haugh units (HU value) and presence of meat and blood spots was noted. Hen genotype had a significant effect on egg weight and eggshell color intensity in each of the alternative housing systems tested in this study. Hy-line Brown hens laid heavier eggs than hens of native breeds. Genotype was also observed to affect egg content traits (albumen height, HU values and presence of meat and blood spots). Independently of the type of alternative housing system, most blood and meat spots were noted in eggs of hens laying brown-shelled eggs, i.e. R-11 and Hy-line Brown layers. Laying hen age significantly impacted on egg weight, yolk percentage, eggshell traits (color intensity, weight, thickness and strength) and egg content traits (HU value, yolk weight and color intensity, presence of meat and blood spots). Older hens laid heavier eggs with a greater yolk percentage but with thinner eggshell.

The Effect of the Type of Alternative Housing System, Genotype and Age of Laying Hens on Egg Quality

Annals of Animal Science

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

The present study investigated the effect of the type of alternative housing system, and genotype and age of laying hens on physical traits of egg shell and...

The Effect of the Type of Alternative Housing System, Genotype and Age of Laying Hens on Egg Quality

Article Category: Behavior, Well-Being, Production Technology, and Environment

Published Online: May 11, 2018

Page range: 541 - 556

Received: Sep 26, 2017

Accepted: Jan 10, 2018

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/aoas-2018-0004

Keywords
alternative housing systems, egg quality, hen genotype

© by Józefa Krawczyk

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

The Effect of the Type of Alternative Housing System, Genotype and Age of Laying Hens on Egg Quality

Article Category: Behavior, Well-Being, Production Technology, and Environment

Published Online: May 11, 2018

Page range: 541 - 556

Received: Sep 26, 2017

Accepted: Jan 10, 2018

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/aoas-2018-0004

Keywordsalternative housing systems, egg quality, hen genotype

© by Józefa Krawczyk

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Keywords
alternative housing systems, egg quality, hen genotype