- Title
- The potential use of baobab (Adansonia digitata) seedcake as a commercial diet replacement and in feed formulation for broiler chickens
- Creator
- Nxele, Sibusiso Kabelo
- Subject
- Broilers (Chickens) Adansonia digitata Chickens -- Feeding and feeds
- Date
- 2016
- Type
- Thesis
- Type
- Masters
- Type
- MSc
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10353/12259
- Identifier
- vital:39224
- Description
- This dissertation is composed of two trials that were aimed at evaluating the effects of partially supplementing Baobab seed cake in broiler diets. In the first trail, performance and cost analysis of feeding birds a commercial starter diet from day-old to 21-days of age; then feeding a blend of the commercial finisher diet diluted by a mixture of baobab seedcake and ground maize from day 22nd to 35th were evaluated. The trial was conducted in an environmentally controlled deep litter housing system using 160 Ross 308 chicks of mixed sex that were randomly allocated into 4 treatments consisting of 16 pens of 1X2m2 area per pen, within similar environmental conditions. The trial diets were formulated as follows: T1 was 100 percent standard commercial starter diet, as a control; T2 had 95 percent (112g) commercial starter diet and 5 percent BSC-maize blend (2g BSC: 4g Maize); T3 had 85 percent (102g) of the commercial starter diet and 18percent BSC-maize blend (6g BSC + 12g Maize); and T4 had 75 percent commercial starter diet and 25 percent BSC-maize blend (10g BSC + 20g Maize). All diets (T1, T2, T3 and T4) percentages were calculated based on 120g being 100 percent of the diet. Each treatment consisted of 40 birds and 4 replicates, each replicate consisting of 10 birds per pen. Feed and clean water were provided ad libitum. Feed allocation and body weights were measured at placement, then weekly. Feed intakes (FI), body weight gain (BWG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were calculated; then the cost analysis of feeding each diet was conducted. No significant differences (P>0.05) were found amongst all growth performance parameters. The cost efficient treatment to feed, which accumulated the cheapest cost of feed per weight gain (R33.62/kg gain) was T2 (5percent BSC+MM). The second trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of feeding diets containing graded levels of baoabab (A. digitata) seedcake on performance, apparent digestibility and digestive organ weights of broilers chickens. A total of 200 Ross 308 day-old chicks of mixed sex were randomly allocated into 4 treatment groups (T1, T2, T3 and T4). The trial diets were as follows: T1 (control), was a commercial starter diet; while T2, T3 and T4 diets contained baobab seedcake meal at 0, 5, 10, and 15percent; respectively. Inclusion of BSC in diets only affected FI during the first and third weeks. In the first week, FI had significant differences (P < 0.05) during the first and third week of the trial, respectively. Birds in T4 had the least FI, while those in T3 had the highest (P<0.05). In the third week, T3 birds had the highest FI (P<0.05), while T1 birds had the lowest. Significant differences for changes in bodyweight were only evident in the second and forth weeks of the study. During week 2, birds in T had the highest BWG, whereas T4 birds had the lowest (P<0.05); however, in week 4, there were no statistical differences (P>0.05) amongst birds in T1, T2 and T4; respectively, while T4 had the lowest BWG (P<0.05). The FCR was not statistically different among treatment groups, except in week 3, where it was highest in T4birds with T3 birds having the lowest (P<0.05). No significant differences (P>0.05) were observed among treatment groups for all parameters that were considered for digestibility and digestive organ weights. Due to the fact that two different trials were conducted, it was concluded that blend of baobab seedcake and maize from the first trial can be supplemented up to 5 percent replacement level for optimum production; while up to 10 percent baobab seedcake graded level can be used on the second trial without resulting in any negative consequences on growth performance, nutrient utilization and digestive organ weights.
- Format
- 101 leaves
- Format
- Publisher
- University of Fort Hare
- Publisher
- Faculty of Science and Agriculture
- Language
- English
- Rights
- University of Fort Hare
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UFH Department of Livestock & Pasture Science
| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | SOURCE1 | MSc Agric (Animal Science) NXELE, SK.pdf | 952 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |