Evaluation of strategies to improve village chicken production-controlled field trials to assess effects of Newcastle disease vaccination and altered chick rearing in Myanmar

Previous research identified Newcastle disease and poor management of chicks (birds younger than 6 weeks of age) as major constraints to village chicken production in Myanmar. Based on these findings, controlled trials were conducted in 124 randomly selected households in nine villages in Myanmar over a period of 12 months to evaluate strategies to enhance survival of village chickens. Two intervention strategies were assessed: Newcastle disease vaccination using the thermostable I-2 vaccine and changes to the management of chick rearing (confinement and supplementary feeding). These interventions were applied in two trials: (1) a randomised controlled trial to compare I-2 vaccination, altered chick management and no intervention (apart from placebo treatment) at household level and (2) nested within this trial, a double-blinded controlled trial at bird-level to compare serological titres between I-2 vaccinated and placebo-treated birds both between and within households. Outcomes measured in the first trial were crude incidence rate of mortality, proportional mortality rate for deaths due to disease stratified by age group of birds and mortality attributed to Newcastle disease, number of sales, income from sale of birds, consumption of birds and hatching of birds.Odds of having protective titres two weeks after vaccination were up to 125 times higher in I-2 vaccinated birds and up to 47 times higher in control birds in contact with I-2 vaccinates compared to birds without I-2 contact. Vaccination against Newcastle disease reduced the proportions of mortalities assumed to be caused by disease in growers and chicks. Crude mortality incidence was lower in households that applied management changes to chick rearing. In household-months when birds were sold, numbers sold were higher and income from sale of birds were about $US2.50 per month higher in households allocated to altered chick management. Altered chick management resulted in more households having hatchings of chicks. After a lag period of 7 months, these households were also more likely to consume home-produced chicken meat. This 7-month period reflects the age when birds are consumed and sold and highlights the lag periods that should be expected before beneficial effects of interventions focussed on chicks occur.This field research has shown that I-2 vaccination markedly increases the prevalence of protective titres and reduces proportions of mortality attributed to disease and that chick management using confinement and supplementary feeding can improve health and production of village chickens. These interventions are simple and sustainable intervention strategies.