ASEEL : THE HERITAGE CHICKEN BREED OF INDIA

October 8, 2023

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ASEEL : THE HERITAGE CHICKEN BREED OF INDIA

The Aseel chicken is a bird that was born to fight. The Asil is an ancient chicken breed that is the ancestor of many fighting fowl and broiler chickens, particularly the Cornish. It is so lethal that two roosters cannot be kept together as they will fight continually until one kills the other. Even the hens and young chicks are known to spar aggressively. Despite their intolerance for one another, the Asil is most often close to its human keepers and enjoys a free-range existence.

Aseel Chicken Breed is the most popular poultry bird in India. if we look back at the history of this breed then it generally originates from the Indian subcontinent.

If you don’t know about this poultry breed then don’t worry we are going to enlist every detail about Aseel Chicken Breed that you must need to know before buying it. So, Let’s dive into the article.

Background and History of the Asil Chicken Breed

This heritage chicken breed is so ancient that its true origins have been lost in time. Originating from the Indian continent, this fowl has been around for thousands of years. Lewis Wright, a well-respected poultry author, noted that birds closely resembling the Aseel breed had been written about in an ancient text called “The Codes of Manu”, which dates back to 900 – 1280 B.C. He stated that if these fowl were not Aseel as they were known today, they were at the very least the breed’s ancestors.

Asil chickens first arrived on American shores in the late 1800s. They were imported by Dr. H.P. Clarke from Indianapolis, IN., and he exhibited his birds at the Indiana State Fair in 1887. His birds came from Lucknow in India.

More specimens were obtained by Dr. D.S. Newill from Pennsylvania got his birds from India in 1931. The breed arrived in England before making it to the U.S. and were documented in 1846.

The spelling of their name has a few variations – Asil, Asli, Aseel, and Azeel. It means “pure” in Indian or “high caste” in Hindi. The Caste System is how Hindus divide their social classes. To begin with, all pure game birds were given the name, but today it is reserved only for this one breed.

Over hundreds of years, the Asil chicken has gradually spread around the world. But why should a fighting chicken become so popular? They have been used to create other breeds of meat birds, such as the Cornish chicken because they produce a carcass in their offspring that is large and meaty. Today’s commercial broilers with their exceptionally high meat proportions are related to the Asil.

There are various strains of the breed, including the Rampur, Atkinson, Sonatol, Reza, and Rajah.

Information of Aseel Chicken Breed:

As I mentioned earlier, Aseel Chicken Breed is common throughout Southeast Asia as a game bird. But what actually does it means? Actually, people of South Asia used this chicken breed in fighting competitions and also for gambling. It’s the main reason for its popularity. But there are many other characteristics that make Aseel Chicken Breed distinguish from others. Let’s discuss it one by one.

Fighter Bird:

Aseel Chicken Breed is actually a fighter bird because people used it for cockfighting. This breed of chicken is known as a fighting cock. This chicken breed is mostly known for its high stamina, pugnacity, and fighting abilities. The most popular varieties of aseel are Reza (light red), Teekar (brown), Chitta (black and white silver), Kagar (black), and Peela (golden-red).

Aseel Chicken Breed is a Layer or Broiler?

This is one of the most asked questions regarding aseel. Is Aseel Chicken Breed a Layer or Broiler? Aseel is not for eggs because this chicken breed is very poor in eggs production. These hens are not good layers but are excellent sitters. Laying depends on the Aseel variety, the small Aseels are known to be very poor layers, sometimes laying just 6 eggs a year, whereas larger Aseels can lay around 40 eggs a year. So this chicken breed is mainly used for meat purposes. But as I mentioned earlier some people just use it for cockfighting.

Body Weight of Aseel Chciken Breed :

It has a long and slender face that is not covered with a feather, compact eyes, a long neck, and a small tail and has strong and straight legs. The cocks have 4-5 kg and the hen have 3-4kg, cockerels have 3.5-4.5kg and pullets have 2.5-3.5 kg standard weight.

History of Aseel Chicken Breed:

As I mentioned earlier, this chicken breed was used as a cock fighter because of its high stamina and pugnacity. The Aseel Chicken Breed is a common breed in Indian states like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and also West Bengal.

It is considered the oldest chicken breed in the fighting world. The word Aseel is derived from an Arabic word that means “purebred.”

If we talk about India, then most of the Aseel is found in the districts of Andhra Pradesh and some districts of Odisha. This breed once got popular in Holland but its popularity declined with time.

Feed for Aseel Chicken Breed:

The feed for Aseel Chicken Breed must contain the following ingredients:

Protein:

Protein is very necessary for the proper growth and the development of every chicken breed. Keep in mind that for starters i.e For chicks of Aseel, the protein should be at least 10-15% in the diet. Because it helps the chicks to grow faster and protect them from the early problems of the chick.

Carbohydrates:

Carbohydrates are an important source of energy. It helps to maintain the body temperature of aseel and helps to mix body fat. But don’t exceed the level of carb in the diet by more than 10% because it will results in digestibility issues.

Water:

For the starter i.e. the first water of chick should include 1/4th cup of sugar and 1 teaspoon of Terramycin/gallon. The second water includes 1 teaspoon of Terramycin and then normal water is given. Provide one quart of water to every four chickens. Water must be fresh and clean.

Care of Aseel Chicken Breed:

In order to make your breed healthier the following care is necessary:

Housing System:

Do you like to live in a dirty place? Definitely, no one wants to live. In the same way, the housing system has a very major impact on the growth and production of your chicken breeds. So, for a better housing system you have to take down the following instructions:

The Shelter in which you are going to put your chickens must be clean and dry.
It must be blowy or windy.
The light must come in the shelter because light has very important role in egg production.
The bedding of the shelter must be covered with some straw because the toes of chicks are very week in the start and if you kept them on a hard floor then it will cause sprayed leg problems or other chick problems.
The bedding of the shelter should not be organic, unless the birds will eat it.
The birds have access to outdoor because they like normal behaviour of dust bathing etc.
The presence of perches is also the best choice for good housing.
Fresh water supply must be there.
It must have 24 hours electricity supply. The chicken shelter must be away from the industrial and urban area because the fertilizer of chicken will pollute the environment and causes flies’ problem.
Chose the shelter which is free from noise as the noise problem will affect the production of birds.

Make the best Housing System for your Backyard Poultry Birds

Care of newborn chicks:

Raising baby chicks requires proper attention and an incubator. The above-mentioned requirements are necessary for the proper development of chicks. The feed of chicks must be full of nutritious content in order to avoid any health issues.

Diseases of Aseel Chicken Breed and their Treatment:

The diseases of Aseel Chicken Breed and their treatment with precautions are given below:

Bird flu:

This is a very dangerous disease that can destroy all the flock within days. This problem is caused by influenza and the mortality rate is 100%. This problem spread from one bird to another and ultimately the whole shed will be under this problem. The cause of transmission is the feeding equipment and poor water supply systems.

Symptoms:

laziness in birds
loss of appetite,
comb color turn yellow,
less egg production and ultimately death.

Prevention:

Prevention includes Stop taking anything inside or outside from the chicken farm. Separate shoes will be used inside the farm.

Make the hole and add medicine in mentioned amount so that before entering the farm dip your foot in the treated water. Germ destroyers such as Qualitol should be sprayed around the farm.

Cautions during disease:

Because this disease affects the human, wear proper clothes and gloves before picking the diseased chickens. Burn or bury the dead and influenced chickens in the soil. Meat can be cooked at 70 C as it kills the infection and is used for eating.

Deficiency of Vitamin A:

The symptoms of this disease are beak and legs get fainted yellow and shaking head.

Treatment: Add more amount of Vitamin A to the feed and gave them green feed.

Chicken Pox:

It is a contagious disease and it can be spread at any age of the bird. The symptoms are sores on a comb, around eyes and ears.

Treatment: Homeopathic medicine of antimonium torterix @5ml/100 birds is given to cure chickenpox.

Coccidiosis:

Coccidiosis in Poultry is an intestinal disease that is caused by a protozoan ( coccidia ) that attaches itself to the intestinal lining and thus damages the wall of the gut leading to bleeding that can be seen in the droppings of birds.

Cause:

It is a parasitic disease that is caused by coccidian protozoan. The disease is mainly caused to the chick having an age between 3-10 weeks. It also affects the adult ones.

Symptoms: