UTILIZATION OF FOUR SELECTED COMMERCIAL FEEDS BY BROILER CHICKENS

Abstract

The study was conducted to evaluate the utilization of four commercial diets by broiler chickens on growth performance, carcass characteristics and financial benefits. Two-hundred-day old broiler chicks were randomly allotted to four different commercial diets in two replicates with 25 chicks each in a completely randomized design coded as diets 1,2,3 and 4. The experiment lasted for seven weeks. Feeds and water were given ad libtum while vaccines and other management activities were carried out appropriately. Feed intake, weight gain and carcass parameters were measured during and at the end of the study. The result of the starter phase revealed that daily feed intake (74.79 -98.10g), daily weight gain (38.73 – 67.37g), final weight (2194.00 – 3144.00g) and feed conversion ratio (1.42 – 1.93) were significantly (P<0.001) affected by the diets. Daily feed intake at finisher (123.78 – 141.76g) and overall (108.13 – 115.74g) as well as daily weight gain (41.68 – 60.98g) at the overall phase were affected significantly (P<0.01). Similarly, weights of some carcass parameters were significantly (P<0.001) influenced by the diets with values ranging between 2.12 and 3.13kg (live weight), 2.00 to 2.86kg (plucked weight), 1.68 to 2.57kg (eviscerated weight), 1.50 to 2.27kg (carcass weight), 2.33 to 2.79g (head), 0.37 to 0.47g (heart) and 0.49 to 0.86g (caecum). Also, gizzard (1.27 – 1.64g) and liver (1.76 – 2.38g) were significantly affected at P<0.01 and P<0.05 respectively. Feed cost was higher on diet 2 (N 458.00/kg) and lower in diet 4 (N 350.00/kg), while feed cost/kg gain was found to be higher on diet 2 (N 996.61/kg) and lower on diet 3 (N 766.23/kg). From the result obtained in this study, it was concluded that using diet 3 in broiler chicken production is cheaper and most economical. It therefore recommended for higher cost saving among the commercial feeds studied.