Ascites in meat‐type ducklings

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Abstract
Hearts selected at random from the line at a duck processing factory gave a mean right ventricle to total ventricle (RV/TV) ratio of 0.188 (18.8% right ventricle). Ducks condemned because of ascites at the same factory fell into three groups: ducks with ascites secondary to right ventricular failure (RVF) with a RV/TV ratio of 0.336 (mean of 12 ducks), ducks with ascites secondary to hepatic amyloidosis with a RV/TV ratio of 0.202 (mean of 8) and ducks condemned as ascitic but in fact suffering from peritonitis with a RV/TV ratio of 0.202 (mean of 4). The results indicate that the most common cause of ascites in meat‐type ducks at slaughter is RVF as it is in broiler chickens. The RV/TV ratio in normal ducks was less than 0.230; in ducks with ascites from RVF it was greater than 0.283.