Different Levels Of Molasses Research Articles

The Effect of Water Restriction on Chicks Fed Different Levels of Molasses

PREVIOUS reports from this Station (Rosenberg, 1954a, b; 1955; and Rosenberg and Palafox, 1956) have shown that poultry can tolerate fairly high levels of molasses, good growth and egg production being obtained with levels as high as 34.5 percent molasses in the ration. However, the accompanying increase of moisture in the droppings, although in itself apparently not harmful to poultry, aggravated the problems of fly control and egg soilage. Unpublished results obtained at this laboratory have shown a very high positive correlation between water consumption and water excreted in the droppings. Preliminary studies by Maxwell and Lyle (1957) showed that wet droppings could be prevented in hens housed in individual wire pens by restricting the water intake to three 15-minute periods per day. No harmful effects were noted from this treatment.The purpose of this study was to determine whether water restriction could reduce the moisture of droppings from chicks …