Abstract
ABSTRACT The supply of salt water in the semiarid region is a recurrent practice, as there is a severe shortage of water for use in animal consumption. Thus, most of the times the water offered to the birds can contain salts above the recommended amount. The present study aimed to evaluate the production performance and morphometry of the organs of Japanese quails as they were supplied with drinking water with different concentrations of sodium chloride, while being maintained in comfort and under thermal stress. The birds received water with increasing electrical conductivity (1.5, 3.0, 4.5 and 6.0 dS m-1) and were kept in a climate chamber at thermoneutral air temperature (24 °C) and under thermal stress (32 °C), being distributed in a completely randomized design and 2 × 4 factorial scheme. Water electrical conductivities did not affect the performance of the birds, except for the weight of the gizzard, which showed an increasing linear effect as the electrical conductivities increased. At the stress temperature, there was reduction in feed intake, egg weight and mass, and in feed conversion per dozen eggs, but with no effect on the weights of the heart, liver and gizzard. Japanese quails in the production phase can consume water with electrical conductivity of up to 6.0 dS m-1, showing good production performance and without compromising organ morphometry.
Highlights
The difficulty to obtain drinking water has caused farmers to supply poultry with saline water
The present study aimed to evaluate the production performance and morphometry of the organs of Japanese quails as they were supplied with drinking water with different electrical conductivities, while being maintained in comfort and under thermal stress
At the air temperature of thermal stress, the feed intake of the birds was reduced, since this is one of the mechanisms used by birds to reduce the production of endogenous heat, such as that produced by digestion and metabolism of nutrients
Summary
The difficulty to obtain drinking water has caused farmers to supply poultry with saline water This is a recurring scenario in arid and semi-arid regions, such as northeastern Brazil, where the water offered may have salt levels above what is recommended (Melo et al, 2017; Khalilipour et al, 2019; Abdelsattar et al, 2020). Water with such characteristics can increase plasma osmolality, which stimulates the secretion of renin and angiotensin, enzymes that modulate thirst; this causes increased water consumption and renal excretion, which is rich in minerals such as sodium, chlorine and potassium (Alahgholi et al, 2014). The present study aimed to evaluate the production performance and morphometry of the organs of Japanese quails as they were supplied with drinking water with different electrical conductivities, while being maintained in comfort and under thermal stress
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