Effect of fiber source on growth performance and gastrointestinal tract in broiler chickens

Abstract

This experiment was conducted to assess the effect of the addition of a fiber source on growth performance and gastrointestinal tract in 7–28 day broiler chicken. In total, of 1600 mixed-sex Cobb 500 chicks aged 7 days were assigned to 4 treatments composed of 4 replicates with 100 birds per replicate. The 4 treatments were: control diet (T1), control diet + 0.6% commercial fiber source 1 (T2), control diet + 1% commercial fiber source 2 (T3), control diet + 2% rice hulls (T4). The addition of fiber did not affect on growth performance, relative weight, and digestive length of broiler chickens aged 7 to 28 days. In summary, adding some fiber at a moderate level as insoluble fiber not any negative impact on growth performance and gastrointestinal development, and can be a strategy to reduce feed cost in broiler farming.