Asociación Latinoamericana de Producción Animal (ALPA)
Abstract
The effects on Japanese quail egg quality of rations containing 18% crude protein and five levels of total lysine (0.6%, 0.8%, 1%, 1.2%, and 1.4%) were evaluated using 400 birds, 70 d of age and 134.8 ± 3.6 g initial live weight, during a 84-d experiment divided into three 28 d periods. Significant (P < 0.05) quadriatic effects of lysine level were found on egg weight (10.69 g overall mean), weight of egg shell and of yolk, but not of albumin; and percentage of total egg weight constituted by yolk (29.87 mean), and by albumin (61.82 mean), but not by shell (8.3 mean). The treatments did not affect egg shell thickness (0.241 mm mean). The best result was obtained in each case with a lysine level near 1%. As the three periods progressed the absolute and percentage weight of egg shell and its thickness decreased while the opposite occurred with yolk weight
