Growth, carcass, digestive enzymes, intestinal microbiota and economics in growing Egyptian geese as affected by dietary fiber and fat levels

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the effect of dietary crude fiber and fat levels on growth, carcass, digestive enzymes, intestinal microbiota and economics in growing Egyptian geese. A total number of 150 Egyptian goslings, 4 weeks old, with nearly the same body weights were randomly distributed in to six groups in a 3 × 2 factorial arrangement included. Three levels of fiber (8, 10, and 12%) and two levels of fat (5 and 6%) were used. Results showed that the highest (p = 0.029) body weight (BW) value was found in the experimental group fed 8% fiber diet compared to the other groups. The same trend was observed with increasing the dietary fat level from 5 to 6%. The best feed conversion ratio was associated with feeding geese on the lowest fat level (5%) comparing with the highest one (6%). The highest values (p ˂ 0.05 or 0.01) of the cecal length and weight were recorded in birds fed the high-fiber diet (12%) compared to the other levels. Increasing the level of dietary fat positively affected the concentrations of lipase enzymes. Feeding geese on the high-fiber diet (12%) accompanied with the highest (p ˂ 0.01) counts of beneficial lactic acid bacteria and the lowest (p ˂ 0.01) counts of E. coli and Salmonella compared to the other fiber levels. From an economic point of view, the diet contained 12% crude fiber and 5% crude fat was more suitable for the geese kept from 4 to 12 wks of age without any adverse effects on growth performance.