STRESSOR EFFECTS OF HANDLING ON THE IMMATURE FOWL

Chicks were handled for 5 min twice daily for 5 consecutive days/wk over a 3-wk period. The control birds were not handled once they had been allotted to their brooders. The growth rate of the treated birds was significantly decreased. There was no adrenal hypertrophy; the concentration, but not the content, of adrenal cholesterol was significantly increased. Plasma glucose, FFA [free fatty acid] and cholesterol concentrations were similar in the groups at the end of the experiment. The lipolytic response of the handled birds to a further stimulus of handling was significantly greater than that of unhandled birds experiencing novel handling stimulus. There was a significant decrease in the concentration of corticosterone in the plasma of the handled birds but not in the unhandled group. There was no evidence of habituation.