Mohsen Zaker_Jafari; Mehrdad Mohammadi; Maziar Mohiti-Asli
Volume 24, Issue 4 , December 2022, , Pages 477-488
Abstract
The effect of chick initial body weight and dietary nutrients density on growth performance and immune response were investigated using 360 Ross 308 one-day-old straight run chicks (mixed sex) in a completely randomized design with 2×3 factorial arrangement of treatments, four replicates and 15 ...
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The effect of chick initial body weight and dietary nutrients density on growth performance and immune response were investigated using 360 Ross 308 one-day-old straight run chicks (mixed sex) in a completely randomized design with 2×3 factorial arrangement of treatments, four replicates and 15 birds per replicate. The initial body weight of chicks was grouped as 42±1 g (standard weight); 38±1 g (light weight; 10% under standard weight); 46±1 g (heavy weight; 10% over standard weight) while the nutrients density of the diet was either 5% lower than the nutritional recommendation of Ross 308 (typical commercial diet in Iran), or as recommended by Ross 308 manual (high-density diet). Chickens fed the high-density diet had higher daily weight gain and lower conversion ratio than chickens fed the typical diets (P<0.05). The effect of dietary density and initial body weight of chicks on carcass components and weight of internal organs were not significant except for heart. Broilers fed the high-density diet and heavy weight had higher antibody titers to sheep red blood cell (P<0.05). Light chicks fed the high-density diets had greater total anti sheep red blood cell and immunoglobulin G titers than light chicks fed the typical diets (P<0.05). Results indicate that feeding light chicks with high-density diets increases their growth rate compared to the chicks with standard or heavy weights. Moreover, feeding diets with a high density of nutrients to light chicks can improve immune responses.
Mahdie Nikbakhetzadeh; Heydar Zarghi; َAbolghasem Golian
Volume 22, Issue 1 , March 2020, , Pages 105-116
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of finisher diet nutrient density and slaughter age on energy and protein retention efficiency of broiler chickens. Three hundred 23-day-old Cobb-500 male broiler chickens were assigned in a 5×2 factorial arrangement of completely randomize ...
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The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of finisher diet nutrient density and slaughter age on energy and protein retention efficiency of broiler chickens. Three hundred 23-day-old Cobb-500 male broiler chickens were assigned in a 5×2 factorial arrangement of completely randomize design with 10 treatments, 6 replicates and 5 birds each. The experimental treatments included five nutrient levels of finisher diets (102.5, 100, 97.5, 95, and 92.5% levels of nutrient composition recommendations stated by the Cobb-500 Commercial Management Guide) and two slaughtered ages (38 and 46 days of age). As increased dietary nutrient density significantly and l inearlyincreased weight gain, feed efficiency, energy and protein retention efficiency and decreased maintenance energy requirements per unit of weight gain (P<0.05). By increasing slaughter age from d38 to d46, above indices significantly deteriorated (P<0.05). The highest residual feed intake belonged to birds fed the finisher diet with 97.5% of strain recommendation nutrients level. Dietary nutrient density level for optimal weight gain, feed efficiency, and energy and protein retention efficiency by linear broken line models were estimated 101.7, 98.7, 97.7 and 99.5% of strain recommendation, respectively. Whereas, these values were 2.3-5.5 percent less than those estimated by the quadratic broken-line model. As a conclusion, residual feed intake methodology can be a viable alternative to measure dietary energy efficiency. Formulation broiler finisher diet with nutrients concentration lowers than 97.5% of strain recommendation is not suitable.