PRE - AND POST HATCH GROWTH OF NIGERIAN INDIGENOUS GUINEA FOWL AS INFLUENCED BY EGG SIZE AND HATCH WEIGHT.

Abstract

Two experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of egg size on embryonic growth during incubation and of egg size and hatch weight on growth to 12 weeks of age in the Nigerian indigenous Guinea fowl. Weight loss in eggs incubated was about 5.42% while weight gain was 1.02g with the fastest increase in the last trimester of incubation. At hatching, the keets were 72.42% of the weight of the eggs. Egg weight was positively significantly (P<0.05) correlated with embryonic weight and is reliable for estimating the small, medium and large size. Egg weight was embryonic weight. Body weight up to 12 weeks of age differed when eggs were classified into significantly (P<0.05) and positively correlated to body weight up to 4 weeks of age and egg weight was found to be reliable for estimating body weight up to 4 weeks only. Hatch weight was also significantly (P<0.05) and positively correlated with subsequent body weight to 8 weeks of age.