Effects of substitution of antibiotics with medicinal plant leaf meals on egg-laying performance and egg qualities

Abstract

One hundred and forty-four (144) Isa brown laying hens, were used in a one hundred- and twenty-days (120) feeding study to evaluate the effects of substitution of antibiotics with selected medicinal plant leaf meal on their production indices. The study consists of eight treatment groups designated as T1 to T8. T1 was the control, T2 (5% Moringa oleifera leaf meal), T3 (5% Neem leaf meal) T4 (5% Spondias mombin leaf meal), T5 (2.5% combination each of moringa and Neem leaf meal), T6 (2.5% combination each of Moringa and Spondias mombin leaf meal) T7 (2.5% combination each of Neem and Spondias mombin leaf meal), and T8 (1.66% each of Moringa, Neem and Spondias mombin leaf meal) respectively. Productive performance indices such as the number of eggs laid, egg weight, hen house average, feed intake, internal and external egg parameter and biochemical parameters were evaluated for the laying hens. Data collected were subjected to a one-way analysis of variance using SPSS,22. Mean separation was done using the least significant difference. The result of the experiment showed that T8 and T5 had the highest (P<0.05) average number of eggs laid monthly. The weight of eggs laid was highest for T2; while T4, T6 and T7 had the lowest average weight of eggs laid. Egg shape index and shell thickness (P>0.05) did not differ. However, albumen weight, albumen height, yolk weight, yolk height and yolk diameter all differed significantly (P<0.05). The work therefore, recommends that medicinal plant leaf meal can be used in place of antibiotics growth promoters as they positively affect the number of eggs laid, egg weight.