Comparative Study on Growth Performance and Meat Production Traits of Reciprocal Crosses Between Guizhou Recessive White Chickens and Qiandongnan Xiaoxiang Chickens

TL;DR

This study finds that crossbreeding local Chinese chickens with a fast-growing breed improves growth and meat production, offering a profitable strategy for farmers.

Contribution

The study demonstrates that using Guizhou recessive white chickens as sires in crossbreeding significantly enhances productivity in local chicken breeds.

Findings

Crossbred chickens sired by Guizhou recessive white chickens showed faster growth and higher meat yield compared to those sired by local Qiandongnan chickens.

The Von Bertalanffy model best described growth curves for most groups, except QW roosters, where the Gompertz model was more accurate.

Hybrid progeny (WQ and QW) outperformed purebreds in slaughter traits, with WQ showing the highest heterosis rates.

Abstract

This research investigated whether crossing a local breed from Qiandongnan, China, with a larger fast-growing breed from Guizhou could produce chickens with faster growth rates and higher meat production, thus being more profitable for farmers. We bred different groups of purebred and crossbred chickens and measured their growth, body size, carcass yield and meat quality. The results show that the choice of sire plays a crucial role. Offspring sired by the Guizhou breed grew faster and larger, yielding more meat compared with those sired by the local breed. These crossbred chickens showed a strong heterosis (hybrid vigor), outperforming both parent breeds. Although the pure local chickens had more tender meat, the crossbred chickens from the Guizhou sire offered the best overall combination of growth and meat production. This study provides farmers with a practical and effective strategy: using the Guizhou recessive white as a sire breed can significantly improve the productivity of local chickens, enhancing the efficiency and sustainability of local poultry farming.

Indigenous chicken breeds often exhibit desirable meat quality but slower growth. This study evaluated growth, body size, slaughter traits, meat quality, and heterosis in reciprocal crosses between Guizhou recessive white (GW) and Qiandongnan Xiaoxiang (QX) chickens. A complete diallel cross produced four populations (WW: GW♂ × GW♀; QQ: QX♂ × QX♀; QW: QX♂ × GW♀; WQ: GW♂ × QX♀). To assess growth dynamics, body weight was recorded from hatch to 18 weeks and fitted with Logistic, Gompertz, and Von Bertalanffy models. At 18 weeks, 160 birds (40 per group, equal sex ratio) were assessed for body size, carcass yield, and meat quality. The results showed clear paternal effects. For instance, WQ (GW sire) outperformed QW (QX sire): WQ roosters had higher body weight at 18 weeks (1784.1 g vs. QW, p < 0.05) and greater heterosis (12.38%, 95%CI: 9.15–15.61 vs. 2.54%, 95%CI: −0.66–5.74). WQ hens also showed stronger heterosis despite similar body weight to QW hens (8.05%, 95%CI: 5.04–11.04 vs. 4.05%, 95%CI: 0.67–7.43). Growth curves were generally best described by the Von Bertalanffy model (R2 ≥ 0.998), except in QW roosters, where the Gompertz model fitted better. Hybrid progeny (WQ and QW) showed improved slaughter traits over QQ, with WQ roosters exhibiting higher heterosis rates (14.09–30.71%) than QW (1.08–21.93%). Meat tenderness was superior in QQ, while QW showed advantages over WQ in tenderness and water retention. Overall, crossbreeding enhanced growth and carcass traits, and using GW as the male parent (WQ) was most effective. These findings provide practical evidence for improving Qiandongnan Xiaoxiang chickens through crossbreeding. Moreover, the observed paternal effects on growth traits suggest the need for further investigation into underlying mechanisms such as genomic imprinting and growth-related hormonal pathways.

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