Abstract
ABSTRACT The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of Leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala) and Banana flour (Musa cavendishii) on performance of laying hens. Fifty laying hens (3 months of age) were randomly distributed into five experimental groups, each consisting of 10 laying hens. The groups were control (10 laying hens); L6 (Leucaena, 6 g/day (10 laying hens)); L8 (Leucaena, 8.0 g/day (10 laying hens)); L10 (Leucaena, 10 g/day (10 laying hens)); and L12 (Leucaena, 12 g/day (10 laying hens)), in addition, five levels of Banana flour control (10 laying hens); 25% (10 laying hens); 50%, (10 laying hens); 75% (10 laying hens); and 100% (10 laying hens), were assessed respectively. The experimental period lasted from 4 to 8 weeks. The results of this study showed that there were no significant differences between of treatments L6, L8, L10, and L12 for body weight during the first 30 days compared with the control, whereas for weight gain, statistically significant differences were observed between the control compared with the treatments L6, L8, L10, and L12 for days 10, 20 and 30 (p<0.05). Additionally, statistically significant differences were found between different levels of Banana flour for weight gain (g) between the control with the levels 25, 50 75, 100%, respectively for days 20 and 30. In the case of feed intake (g) statistically significant differences were found during day 30 between the control and 100%, also between the control and levels 25, and 75%, respectively. From the results, it can be concluded that the inclusion of Leucaena and banana flour have effects on weight gain, body weight and feed intake of laying hens.
Highlights
Many of the traditional ingredients used in hen’s diets are forecast to be in short supply within ten years
Data for chemical analysis of Leucaena leucocephala and Musa cavendishii are illustrated in Tables 1 and 3
This study has demonstrated that the feed intake of laying hens varies between the different levels
Summary
Many of the traditional ingredients used in hen’s diets are forecast to be in short supply within ten years. Leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala) is a plant native to Central America, it is grown extensively in many parts of the world (Agbede, 2003). This plant is considered as a protein source for the poultry sector (Alkarkhi et al, 2011). It is a plant rich in nutrients with high digestibility fibers, it contains toxic amino acid as the mimosine that are found mainly in the leaves and the dried seeds (Atawodi et al, 2010; Mutayoba et al, 2011). Limited research was published about the use of Banana flour in animal feed, in particular laying hens
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