Background: Growth and survival are pivotal determinants of productivity in dual purpose chickens. While lucerne (Medicago sativa) supplementation is widely used to improve nutritional intake, its quantitative effects on growth dynamics in Sasso chickens remain under investigated. This study evaluated growth trajectories of Lucerne supplemented Sasso chickens using nonlinear growth models and integrated survival analysis to support management decisions.
Methods: Body weight data from 500 Sasso chickens (12–60 weeks) were fitted to Gompertz, Brody, and Logistic models to estimate asymptotic weight, growth rates, and inflection points. Survival functions and force of mortality were assessed to characterize age–specific mortality risk. Model performance was evaluated using R², MSE, AIC, BIC, and residual diagnostics.
Results: All models described sigmoidal growth, with asymptotic weight ~1,941 g. The Brody model showed the best fit (R² = 0.865; MSE = 4,288.2; lowest AIC/BIC), particularly for late growth phases. Gompertz and Logistic models effectively captured early and mid growth dynamics, estimating inflection points at ~16 and 17 weeks, respectively. Survival analysis revealed age–specific mortality patterns that complement growth dynamics for optimized management.
Conclusions: Nonlinear growth models reliably characterized Lucerne supplemented Sasso chicken growth. The Brody model is recommended for late stage prediction, while Gompertz and Logistic models inform early growth phases. Integrating growth and survival analyses supports evidence based strategies for feeding, harvest timing, and risk management in semi intensive systems.