Heat Production and Gaseous Metabolism of Young Male Chickens

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Abstract
Thirty-five experiments, each of 72 hours duration, were made in which energy and gaseous metabolism of male Rhode Island Red chickens between the ages of 4 and 133 days was measured. The conditions prevailing in the calorimeter during each experiment were: temperature, 90°F.; relative humidity, 60%; O2 content, 21%; and CO2 content, not exceeding 1%. The oxygen consumed during periods of 2 hours and the carbon dioxide and heat produced during periods of 8 hours were determined. In some of the experiments either casein or gelatin was fed during the twenty-third hour in order to study the thermogenic effect of these two proteins. Data on basal metabolism, maximum resting metabolism, R.Q.'s, CO2 and O2 thermal quotients and equivalents, total water elimination, diurnal rhythm, and the thermogenic effects of casein and gelatin are given. Curves are presented that show the course of the diurnal rhythm of oxygen consumption in the domestic fowl, and how the amplitude of this diurnal rhythm changes with age. It is concluded that: