Five Parent Stocks (PS) bred by European companies, and one local PS, were evaluated for their production and reproductive performance under typical conditions in Ethiopia. The PSs were Dominant red Barred (DR), Dominant Sussex (DS), Koekoek (KK), Lohmann Brown (LB) Lohmann-Dual (LD), and reared in floor pens up to 60 weeks of age, were evaluated for feed intake, body weight, egg production, egg quality, fertility, hatchability, and mortality. A total of 600 females and 75 males were kept in three replicated pens per strain and distributed in a house using completely randomized design. There were significant (P<0.05) effects of strain, age and strain by age interactions at all stages of the laying phases in terms of feed intake, fertility, hatchability, body weight of females and males, and egg production. Significantly, highest average female body weight was recorded in DR, followed by DS and KK. The lowest average female body weights were recorded in LD and LB at all ages of the laying phases. Among the average male body weight of LD was significantly higher than other strains, followed by DR, KK and DS, the lowest average male body weights were recorded in LB during laying phase. This (LD) superiority was from the dwarf (homozygous dw/dw) meat-type line of LD. The other male strains were from the layer-types and hence lowest in body weight during the laying stages compared to that of LD male. Significantly higher average daily feed intakes were recorded in DR and DS than other PS in week 17 to 24 and 25 to 32, followed by the KK, while the lower average feed intakes were recorded in LB and LD. The average egg production of LB and LD were significantly higher than the rest, followed by KK, DS and DR. DR, DS, KK and LB were higher in egg fertility and hatchability per set eggs, followed by LD. The present result clearly indicated that the LD was poor in fertility (%) and hatchability (%) per set eggs at all stages of the laying phases. Therefore, LB, KK, DR, DS and LD were ranked 1 to 5, respectively, top to lowest in feed consumption, body weight, egg production, and reproductive performance when raised in floor pens management in Southern part of Ethiopia.
