Rapid growth, extreme heat, and poor ventilation are a dangerous combination that silently erodes the performance of broiler houses in Indonesia.

Have you ever seen a broiler with an abnormally distended abdomen? This condition is commonly referred to as “water belly” or ascites. Behind that swollen abdomen lies a chain of circulatory disorders involving the heart, lungs, and metabolic system.

To dive deeper into ascites, the Poultry Indonesia Team interviewed drh. Lidya Ester Siahaan, Senior Technical Service at PT Sehat Cerah Indonesia, via written correspondence on Tuesday (19/5). According to her, modern broilers grow so rapidly that their body’s oxygen demand increases drastically, while their lung and heart capacities cannot always keep pace.

“When oxygen demand is high, pressure increases in the pulmonary blood vessels, a condition known as pulmonary hypertension. This places a heavier workload on the right side of the heart, disrupting circulation and causing fluid to accumulate in the abdominal cavity. Ascites is not a single disease, but rather the end result of a physiological failure,” she explained.

When Heat Becomes the Trigger

In tropical countries like Indonesia, ascites has a fierce accomplice: heat. According to drh. Lidya, the relationship between heat stress and ascites is deeply intertwined and cannot be separated. When environmental temperatures are high, chickens will pant (breathe rapidly with an open beak) in an effort to dissipate body heat. However, this activity disrupts the balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide, reduces gas exchange efficiency, and causes the body to experience hypoxia.

“Modern broilers have a very high metabolic rate. When the oxygen supply remains insufficient over the long term, this condition triggers pulmonary hypertension and ultimately leads to ascites,” she clarified.

In the field, spikes in ascites cases almost always coincide with prolonged dry seasons, cooling system failures, closed houses with sub-optimal ventilation, or excessive stocking density. Furthermore, heat stress itself already weakens the chickens on multiple fronts, making their metabolic condition even more easily disrupted.

Ascites is a Multifactorial Disease

There is no single cause that can be fully blamed for the occurrence of ascites. Even so, Lidya highlighted a number of factors most frequently encountered in Indonesian farming.

This article is an excerpt from the Health section of Poultry Indonesia magazine, June 2026 edition. Read the full story in the June 2026 Edition of Poultry Indonesia Magazine. To subscribe or for further information, please contact: https://wa.me/+6287780120754 or sirkulasipoultry@gmail.com

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