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Heat stress is one of the most important environmental stressors for the poultry industry in the world. Reduced growth rate, low feed efficiency, impaired immunological responses, changes in intestinal microflora, and deterioration of meat quality are the consequences of acute or chronic heat stress. In terms of meat quality, 3 primary mechanisms have been suggested to explain this phenomenon: 1) rapid drop in pH during and after slaughter due to the glycogen conversion to increase in lactic acid accumulation especially when the muscle temperature is high, a combination of high temperature and low pH that facilitates the denaturation of sarcoplasmic proteins resulting in lower water-holding capacity of muscle; 2) acceleration of panting to dissipate body heat, which increases CO₂exhalation and pH drop in blood, initiates metabolic acidosis in skeletal muscle. Increase in panting is also associated with a high …