Construction of a statistical learning tool based on ordinary differential equations to model the digestive behaviour of ross chickens

Abstract

Being able to monitor and forecast farm animal performances is a strategic problem in the agronomy industry. We use a Data-Model Coupling approach to build a biomimetic Statistical Learning tool taking into account some aspects of the biological dynamics of the animal body. The objective is to build a tool which is able to assimilate data about daily feed consumption and measured performances. The model encompasses several sub-models corresponding to compartments and permitting to mimic a kinetic process divided into several steps. Each sub-model contains parameters which can be learnt by using an optimization algorithm and data. The goal of the first application of the model on field data was to simulate and predict the growth of chickens. An experiment was performed during 70 days to collect every day the feed consumption and the weight gain of a male and a female chickens. After the learning of the model parameters, the model shows a very good approximation of the chicken’s weight evolution over time.