chicks huddling near feeder

Hypothermia In Poultry

What Is Hypothermia In Poultry

Hypothermia is a condition when body temperature drops down below the normal level of poultry. It’s also called cold stress. the normal temperature of poultry 41-42 Celsius. So hypothermia occurred when the temperature getting down it. Its most common problems for chicks age between 01-14 days when environmental temperatures dropped below 15 Celsius.

External Finding

piling of chicks in winter season

huddle chicks aside especially daylight area due to imbalance temperature in poultry house thus create hypothermia & birds huddle in the winter season.

piling of chicks

Sometimes the unfeathered area of chicks are seen in severe piling by huddling together at one place

piling of chicks

Chicks touched to moist  & congested underlying skin surface inflamed by huddled


chicks piling syndrome

The body surface near the abdomen became red in color when chicks involved severe piling.

crop in winter piling in chicks

Feed remains undigested due to birds refused cold water at night time (15°C) & died in the morning when freshwater coming to the feeder

the crop of chicks in winter piling

the Crop remains full with feed due to digestion not possible when the temperature drops down below 18°C & birds busy in huddling at night in the winter season

Internal Findings

heart of chicks in piling in winter

Accumulation of blood on heart auricle. In severe hypothermic conditions, the body needs excess heat for maintaining balancing inside & outside temperature Thu why heart became highly pressurized to increase blood flow but unable & ruptured blood vessels in winter.

liver condition of chicks in piling in cold season

destruction of hepatocytes by abrupt blood followed by ischemic necrosis that why liver became, harden, increase in size, wide area of necrosis & discolor  death after huddling

heart condition of chicks during piling

Ruptured of the right aorta when birds forcefully pumped the heart to increase blood supply to extremities fo the production of heat in cold stress.

condition of lung in winter piling

severe congestion of lungs when excessive respiration to increase metabolism by which produced heat in hypothermic condition

pathological lesion of intestine of chick in cold piling

Frothy & ballooning of intestine due to acidosis when birds deprived water in the winter season.

pathological lesion of kidney in winter piling in chicks

kidney became severely inflamed due to increased activity during a hypothermic stage in severe cold.

More Lesion at

lesion after dying off chicks during huddling

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