The Heritability of Breast Blister Condition and Breast Feather Coverage in a White Rock Broiler Strain ,

THE breast blister condition continues to be of concern in broiler growing areas. In some earlier investigations it has been referred to as a keel bursa. The typical condition is expressed by the presence of a thick and viscous fluid under the skin localized in an area along the anterior end of the keel. The exact morphology of the condition has been described by O’Neil (1943). In this report it was suggested that keel bursae were formed as a reaction to constant irritation when the resting bird brings this area against the ground or roost. Bird (1944) found that birds of greater body depth showed a higher incidence of blisters, and Gyles et al. (1957) reported a positive correlation between the incidence of blisters and breast angle measurements. Hodgson and Gutteridge (1941) found differences in the incidence of breast blisters between breeds and sexes, and reported a very much higher …