Macedonian Veterinary Review

Original Scientific Article

Relation between microclimate and air quality in the extensively reared turkey house

Mario Ostović * ,

Sven Menčik ,

Ivica Ravić ,

Slavko Žužul ,

Željko Pavičić ,

Kristina Matković ,

Boris Antunović ,

Danijela Horvatek Tomić ,

Anamaria Ekert Kabalin

Mac Vet Rev 2017; 40 (1): 83 - 90

10.1515/macvetrev-2017-0015

Received: 23 November 2016

Received in revised form: 02 February 2017

Accepted: 14 February 2017

Available Online First: 18 February 2017

Published on: 15 March 2017

Correspondence: Mario Ostović, mostovic@vef.hr

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Abstract

od air quality in poultry houses is crucial for animal health and productivity. In these houses, air is generally contaminated with noxious gases and microorganisms, the concentrations of which depend on numerous factors including microclimate. In this case study, the relation between microclimate and air concentrations of noxious gases and microorganisms was investigated in extensively reared turkey house. The study was carried out at a family household in Dalmatia hinterland, Croatia, with 50.3±3.1 turkeys kept in the house during the study period. Air temperature, relative humidity, airflow rate, concentrations of ammonia, carbon dioxide, bacteria and fungi in indoor air were measured three times per month from September to December, in the morning, prior to releasing turkeys out for grazing. Air temperature ranged from 9.73 to 26.98 °C, relative humidity from 63.29% to 75.08%, and airflow rate from 0.11 to 0.17 m/s. Lowest ammonia and carbon dioxide concentrations were measured in September (2.17 ppm and 550 ppm, respectively) and highest in December (4.50 ppm and 900 ppm, respectively). Bacterial and fungal counts were lowest in December (2.51x105 CFU/m3 and 3.27x103 CFU/m3 air, respectively) and highest in September (6.85x105 CFU/m3 and 1.06x105 CFU/m3 air, respectively). Air temperature and relative humidity showed negative correlation with concentrations of noxious gases and positive correlation with air microorganisms (P<0.05 all).

Keywords: turkeys, ammonia, carbon dioxide, bacteria, fungi

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Copyright

© 2017 Ostović M. This is an open-access article publishedunder the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License whichpermits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,provided the original author and source are credited.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declared that they have no potential conflict of interest with respect to the authorship and/or publication of this article.

Citation Information

Macedonian Veterinary Review. Volume 40, Issue 1, Pages 83-90, p-ISSN 1409-7621, e-ISSN 1857-7415, DOI: 10.1515/macvetrev-2017-0015, 2017