The Influence of Sex on the Slaughter Parameters and Selected Blood Indices of Greenleg Partridge, Polish Native Breed of Hens

Simple Summary For the last decade, capons have become very popular because of the specific quality traits of their meat. In case of laying hens caponization may be a solution to the problem of redundant roosters. The Greenleg partridge breed, covered by a program for livestock genetic resources conservation in Poland, consisted of attraction, as the oldest Polish hens breed, as well as the source of poultry products (eggs and meat) in a small farm. The cockerels are often intended for caponization, due to Polish tradition and consumer preferences. However, this procedure influences not only their productivity or meat quality, but also physiological aspect of birds. We were interested not only in capons compared to roosters, but also in relation between sexes in case of productive traits as well as their selected physiological traits. The sex effect was found in all experimental aspects. Cocks had the highest carcass yield, however, the biggest breast muscles proportion were stated in capons carcasses. The highest proportion of abdominal fat pad was found in females but the lack of sex hormones in capons also contributed to a higher fat accumulation. The serum profile showed that the sexual maturity of hens increased lipids content (cholesterol, trigliceroles) caused by laying production. The aim of the study was to assess the influence of sex, including caponization, on selected physiological and productive traits of Greenleg partridge (GP) birds. The study material consisted of 120 GP chicks (40 females and 80 males), divided into 3 equal groups (4 replication in each) and kept in litter system and fed ad libitum. A total of 40 cocks have been surgically castrated. The body weight (BW) of birds were measured biweekly. At the age of 24 weeks 8 birds/group were slaughtered, their carcasses were subjected to simplified dissection. Blood samples were collected and among others biochemical profile of serum was established. The lowest BW, regardless of age, had hens. From 18th week capons had the highest BW and finally it was similar to cocks. Cocks demonstrated, significantly, the highest carcass yield, however, the biggest proportion of breast muscles were stated in capons carcasses. The effect of sex is very clear in case of abdominal fat pad. The highest proportion of it was found in females but the lack of sex hormones in capons also contributed to a higher fat accumulation. The serum profile showed that the sexual maturity of hens increased lipids conten