THE EFFECT OF SUPRAPHYSIOLOGICAL DOSES OF VITAMIN E ON PERFORMANCE OF BROILER BREEDERS FLOCK

: The effect of supplementary vitamin E levels on the performance of broiler breeder flocks was studied. A completely randomized design with four treatments (100, 500, 1000, or 1500 IU vitamin E/kg) and three replicates per treatment was used. Each replicate included seven females and one male broiler breeder. Rearing conditions, lighting, temperature, humidity, amount of feed, and the amount of other nutrients in the diet were equal for all treatment groups and according to specifications of the management guide for broiler production. Eggs from each replicate were collected up to six times daily for nine weeks. Every three days, eggs were transferred to a hatchery and their characteristics were determined. The results showed 5- to 15-fold Vitamin E levels over the recommended daily dose had significant negative effects on hatchability and related parameters as well as on herd economic index (P<0.05)

Effect of feed restrictions on performance, blood variables and immunity of broiler chickens

Genetic selection has led to an increase in performance and lean tissue deposition in broiler chickens which have become increasingly susceptible to disease. To reduce this susceptibility, various feed restriction programs have been proposed, albeit with highly variable results. This study investigated the effects of the duration and intensity of quantitative feed restriction in the early rearing period on the performance, blood parameters and immunity of broiler chickens. Two hundred and seventy chicks were randomly assigned to a 4 7 2 factorial arrangement to examine the effects of 2 durations (7 and 14 d) and 4 levels of feed restriction (5, 10, 15, and 20%). One control (Con) group was included. Feed intake (FI) and weight gain (WG) were recorded, and the feed conversion ratio (FCR) calculated weekly. At slaughter (42 d of age), blood was collected, and the carcass composition and characteristics of the gastrointestinal tract were assessed. In comparison with the Con, feed restrictions improved FCR (P<0.01), increased relative weight (RW) of the breast (P<0.05), and abdominal fat (P<0.01), and reduced the RW, as well as the dimension of some gut segments. Feed restriction showed limited influence on blood variables, the humoral immune response to Influenza and Newcastle disease vaccinations, and on response to injection of sheep red blood cells. Feed restrictions up to 20% for 7 or 14 d are an appropriate strategy to improve the FCR and the RW of breast, with a limited effect on blood variables, and without significant effects on the immunity of broiler chickens

THE EFFECT OF SUPRAPHYSIOLOGICAL DOSES OF VITAMIN E ON PERFORMANCE OF BROILER BREEDERS FLOCK

The effect of supplementary vitamin E levels on the performance of broiler breeder flocks was studied. A completely randomized design with four treatments (100, 500, 1000, or 1500 IU vitamin E/kg) and three replicates per treatment was used. Each replicate included seven females and one male broiler breeder. Rearing conditions, lighting, temperature, humidity, amount of feed, and the amount of other nutrients in the diet were equal for all treatment groups and according to specifications of the management guide for broiler production. Eggs from each replicate were collected up to six times daily for nine weeks. Every three days, eggs were transferred to a hatchery and their characteristics were determined. The results showed 5- to 15-fold Vitamin E levels over the recommended daily dose had significant negative effects on hatchability and related parameters as well as on herd economic index (P<0.05). Key words: broiler breeder; hen; tocopherol; reproductive; performance   UČINEK SUPRAFIZIOLOŠKIH ODMERKOV VITAMINA E NA PRIRAŠČANJE VZREJNIH BROJLERJSKIH JAT Povzetek: V študiji smo raziskovali učinek dodajanja vitamina E na hitrost prirasta v vzrejnih brojlerskih jatah. Študija je bila zasnovana naključno s štirimi koncentracijami dodatka (100, 500, 1000 ali 1500 i.e. vitamina E/kg telesne mase) in tremi ponovitvami tretiranja za vsako koncentracijo dodanega vitamina E. Vsaka ponovitev je vključevala sedem samic in enega brojlerskega samca. Pogoji reje, razsvetljava, temperatura, vlaga, količina krme in količina drugih hranilnih snovi v prehrani so bili enaki za vse poskusne skupine in v skladu s specifikacijami reje pitovnih piščancev. Jajca iz vsake ponovitve tretiranj po skupinah so bila zbrana do šestkrat dnevno devet tednov. Vsake tri dni so bila jajca prenesena v valilnico, kjer smo določili njihove značilnosti. Rezultati so pokazali da so imele 5- do 15-kratne vrednosti vitamina E nad priporočenim dnevnim odmerkom značilno negativne učinke na sposobnost valjenja in sorodnih parametrov, kakor tudi na na čredni gospodarski indeks (P<0,05). Ključne besede: brojlerji; kokoš; vitamin E; razmnoževanj

Growth, body characteristics and blood parameters of ostrich chickens receiving commercial probiotics

This study was undertaken to determine the effect of four commercial probiotics on growth, body characteristics and haematological parameters of ostrich chicks. A total of 25 ostrich chicks (937±68.1 g) were individually allocated and fed the experimental diet for six weeks (n=5 per treatment). Experimental diets consisted of a corn/soybean meal-based diet unsupplemented (T1: Control), and four diets supplemented with probiotics according to the recommendations of the manufacturer (T2: 0.04% Bioplus 2B; T3: 0.09% Primalac; T4: 0.1% Thepax; and T5: 0.03% Protexin). Feed intake (FI), body weight (BW) and seven body characteristics (e.g. height) were measured every week. Blood samples and other body characteristics were also taken in the last week. There was an interaction effect between diet and time on all the growth variables and body characteristics (p0.05) for those fed the diet containing Thepax (T4, 79 mg/dL). In conclusion, the effects of commercial probiotics on growth performance, body characteristics and haematological parameters varied among probiotics

Short communication. Effect of soybean meal heat procedures on growth performance of broiler chickens

The aim of this research was to study the effect of soybean meal (SBM) heat procedures on growth performance of broiler chickens. A trial was carried out using 200 male Ross 308 strain chickens during 3 feeding periods (starter, grower and finisher, 42 days). The experiment was based on a completely randomized design with 5 treatments giving 4 replications of 10 broilers per treatment. Treatments consisted on: T1 (control, un-processed SBM), T2 (autoclaved SBM: 121ºC, 20 min), T3 (autoclaved SBM: 121ºC, 30 min), T4 (roasted SBM: 120ºC, 20 min) and T5 (microwaved SBM: 46ºC, 540 watt, 7 min). Growth performance of animals was examined by determining body weight (BW), body weight grain (BWG), feed intake (FI) and feed conversion rate (FCR). Higher BW (p&lt;0.05) and BWG (p&lt;0.05) and lower FCR (p&lt;0.05) were found in broiler chickens fed heat processed SBM diets compared to those fed a raw SBM diet, probably due to higher nutrient availability. However, no differences were found among heat SBM procedures (autoclaving, roasting and microwaving) on growth performance of animals for the starter, grower and finisher periods. From the results of this experiment, it is concluded that further research needs to be developed to establish the effect of temperature-time heat procedures on nutritive value of SBM in terms of levels of anti-nutritional factors (trypsin inhibitor activity and phytic acid) and amino acids profile and its influence on growth performance of broilers

Effect of soybean meal heat procedures on growth performance of broiler chickens: short communication

The aim of this research was to study the effect of soybean meal (SBM) heat procedures on growth performance of broiler chickens. A trial was carried out using 200 male Ross 308 strain chickens during 3 feeding periods (starter, grower and finisher, 42 days). The experiment was based on a completely randomized design with 5 treatments giving 4 replications of 10 broilers per treatment. Treatments consisted on: T1 (control, un-processed SBM), T2 (autoclaved SBM: 121°C, 20 min), T3 (autoclaved SBM: 121°C, 30 min), T4 (roasted SBM: 120°C, 20 min) and T5 (microwaved SBM: 46°C, 540 watt, 7 min). Growth performance of animals was examined by determining body weight (BW), body weight grain (BWG), feed intake (FI) and feed conversion rate (FCR). Higher BW (p<0.05) and BWG (p<0.05) and lower FCR (p<0.05) were found in broiler chickens fed heat processed SBM diets compared to those fed a raw SBM diet, probably due to higher nutrient availability. However, no differences were found among heat SBM procedures (autoclaving, roasting and microwaving) on growth performance of animals for the starter, grower and finisher periods. From the results of this experiment, it is concluded that further research needs to be developed to establish the effect of temperature-time heat procedures on nutritive value of SBM in terms of levels of anti-nutritional factors (trypsin inhibitor activity and phytic acid) and amino acids profile and its influence on growth performance of broiler

Effects of dietary inclusion level of a mixture of probiotic cultures and enzymes on broiler chickens immunity response

The current study was conducted to analyse the effect of a mixture of probiotic cultures and enzymes (Probio Enzyme, XVET GmbH, Germany) on the immune response and weight of central lymphoid organs and liver in broilers. A total of 270 male chickens were randomly divided into nine groups, with three replicates of 10 birds each. Treatment groups were fed for either 22 or 42 days with different levels of Probio Enzyme 250, 500, 750 and 1000 g/ton, whereas the control group fed a basal diet without Probio Enzyme. To analyse the effects of dietary supplementation on broilers humoral immune response, the antibodies titres for avian influenza (AI) and Newcastle disease virus (NDV) and to the sheep red blood cells (SRBC) challenge were assayed in birds from each experimental unit, along with the assessment of the weight of the main lymphoid organs and liver. The addition of the Probio Enzyme mixture did not significantly affect the titres of the antibodies against AI and NDV at day 42, despite the wide individual variation observed specially on the antibody titres at day 33. Treatments affected the production of IgG after the second challenge with SRBC (P = 0.003), which was transposed to the correspondent total Ig titres (P = 0.044). Conversely, a lower birdsâ\u80\u99 body weight (BW) was found in the majority of treated groups compared to control (P = 0.031). The spleen was the only lymphoid organ showing differences in the absolute and relative weight (P = 0.003 and P = 0.001, respectively). No differences were found in thymus and Bursa of Fabricius weights. In conclusion, broilers treated with Probio Enzyme showed a satisfactory immune response compared with control, despite the wide variation found after the first vaccine challenge against AI. Moreover, the probiotic mixture dose and duration modulated differently the immune response and the spleen weight, unaffecting the central lymphoid organs weight

Impact of Dietary Supra-Nutritional Levels of Vitamins A and E on Fertility Traits of Broiler Breeder Hens in Late Production Phase

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of dietary supplementation with supra-nutritional levels of vitamins A and E on fertility and productivity traits of Ross-308 broiler breeder hens during the late production phase. The trial was conducted for nine weeks, from 61 to 69 weeks of age, and designed to test four levels of vitamin A (100, 125, 150 and 200% above the Ross catalogue recommendations) and four levels of vitamin E (100, 200, 300 and 400% above Ross catalogue instructions), maintaining constant the other rearing conditions. Vitamins were combined in 16 treatments, with four replicates per treatment each including seven females, and one rooster broiler was used in every two replicates. A total of 448 hens and 32 roosters were used in the experiment. Fertility parameters were weekly evaluated. According to the results, egg-related parameters (number and weight of eggs, non-conform eggs and hatchability) were not affected by treatment, but dietary treatments increased and extended the hens&rsquo; productivity for an additional six weeks in most experimental groups. The chick-related parameters (number and weight of produced chicks) and chick yield differed significantly among groups (p &lt; 0.05). The best economic index was found in birds fed basal-diet plus 100% of vitamin A and 200% of vitamin E. In conclusion, the present study showed that a combination of dietary supra-nutritional levels of vitamins A and E allowed to extend the laying period and to reduce the decline of fertility in older breeder hens at the end of the laying stage; in particular, among the 16 tested treatments, feeding of supra-nutritional level of 100% vitamin A and 200% vitamin E lead to the best results

Dietary green tea powder affects the immunologic parameters of broiler chicks

Green tea powder diet supplementation effect on some immunological parameters in broiler chickens has been evaluated. To assess both the effect and the beneficial dose, the diet of 271 day-old Ross 308 male broiler chickens has been supplemented with 0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75 and 1.00% (w/w) green tea powder in addition to feed. The experiment lasted for 21 and 42 days, respectively, for each value of the green tea supplement and for separate groups of animals. Immune response against Newcastle disease, influenza viruses and sheep red blood cells, has been determined as well as lymphoid organ (bursa of Fabricius, thymus and spleen) weights. The sero-response to avian influenza ranged between 3.7 and 6.3 lg2 (33 days) and 3.9–3.8 lg2 (42 days) for all the animals treatment groups. The total sero-response to sheep red blood cells was moderate, in a range from 1.7 to 1.5 lgT after 21 and 42 days, respectively. The plots of the weight of immune organs did not show any relation between organ weight and immunoglobulin titre. While additional data would be needed to assess the optimum supplement feed dose, it can be concluded that green tea feed supplementation is not likely to be able to induce any negative effects on immunological parameters