Abstract
In a study to determine the influence of early skip-a-day (SAD) feed withdrawal on the heamatology and nutrient digestibility of broiler chickens, two hundred and twenty-five (225) Marshall broilers were, at day old, randomly assigned to 5 treatments of 45 chicks each, with each treatment having three replicates of 15 birds per replicate as follows: A full-fed control group (AL) and groups with feed withdrawn for 24 hours for 3 days (SAD-3), 4 days (SAD-4), 5 days (SAD-5) and 6 days (SAD-6) from 8th to 18th day of age after feeding them ad libitum for the first 7 days. Feed was provided ad libitum to all the chickens from 19 to 56 days of age. The birds were raised on deep litter. Heamatological variables measured or calculated on the 56th day included WBC, RBC, PCV, Hb, MCHC, MCH, MCV and total serum proteins. A metabolism trial was also carried out to determine the effect of feed restriction on nutrient digestibility/retention by the broilers. SAD feed withdrawal significantly (p 0.05). Serum protein was significantly lower for broilers feed-restricted for 5 and 6 days (5.90 and 5.60 g/dL respectively) than for the control, SAD-3 and SAD-4 treatments (6.40, 6.23 and 7.30 g/dL respectively). Variations in mean differential counts between treatments were not significant (p>0.05). However, basophil counts increased slightly while eosinophils decreased slightly in feed-restricted birds in relation to the control birds. Early feed withdrawal had no significant (p>0.05) effect on apparent dry matter and crude fibre digestibility. Nitrogen retention tended to increase as the severity of SAD feed withdrawal increased while mean fat retention for broilers subjected to 4, 5 or 6 days of SAD feed withdrawal were not significantly different from that of birds fed ad libitum. It was concluded that early skip-a-day feed withdrawal for up to 6 days did not lead to severe stress, or adversely alter nutrient digestibility and retention in the broilers.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
