Getting to the heart of chicken ailments

摘要

Humans aren't the only ones who are susceptible to congestive heart failure— the heart's inability to maintain adequate blood flow to tissues. Chickens, particularly broilers, fall prey to a similar condition called ascites. In chickens, the right ventricle of the heart enlarges and can't pump blood efficiently to the lungs. Blood pressure then builds in the liver, and a yellow serumlike fluid leaks from the liver into the body cavity, eventually leading to death.