CHAPTER THREE
3.0 MATERIALS
AND METHODS
3.1 Location
and Duration of the study.
This
experiment was carried out at the Poultry Unit of Teaching and Research Farm of
the Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources
Management, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki.
The experiment lasted for 56 days.
3.2 Experimental
Diet
The feed was formulated with locally
sourced materials/ingredients that are cheap and affordable (Tables 1 and 2)
below. They were formulated to contain digestible energy and comparable level
of crude protein to meet the daily requirement of the birds. (Table 3).
TABLE 5 COMPOSITION OF COMMERCIAL AND
HOME MADE DIET (STARTER)
Commercial diet Home
made diet
Ingredients %
composition Maize chaff 35
Maize 54.15 Soya
bean 15
Soya
bean 20 Fish
scrap 5
Fish
meal 3 Cassava peel
meal 10
Wheat
offal 10 Groundnut
cake 10
Groundnut
cake 12 Bambaranut
waste 15
Limestone 2 Limestone 4.15
Bone
meal 2 Bone
meal 5
Vitamin
premix 0.25 Vitamin
premix 0.25
Methionine 0.25 Lysine 0.25
Lysine 0.25 Methionine 0.25
Salt 0
1 Salt 0.1
Total 100 Total 100
Calculated
Composition
Crude
protein(%) 23.0 Crude
protein(%) 22.95
Metabolizable 2900 Metabolizable
energy 2850
Energy
(kcal/kg) (kcal/kg)
Crude
fibre (%) 3.89 Crude fibre
(%) 3.97
Crude
fat(%) 7.29 Crude
fat(%) 4.02
Calcium
(%) 0.24 Calcium
(%) 0.20
Phosphorus
(%) 0.40 Phosphorus
(%) 0.24
TABLE 6: COMPOSITION OF COMMERCIAL AND
HOME MADE DIET (FINISHER)
Commercial
diet Home
made diet
Ingredients % composition Ingredient %composition
Maize 52.15 Maize
chaff 30
Soybean 8 Soybean 5
Fish
meal 3 Fish scrap 5
Wheat
offal 12 Cassava
peel meal 20
Groundnut
cake 15 Groundnut
waste 10
Limestone 4 Bambaranut
waste 20
Bone
meal 5 Limestone 4.15
Vitamin
premix 0.25 Bone
meal 5
Methionine 0.25 Vitamin
premix 0.25
Lysine 0.25 Lysine 0.25
Salt 0.1 methonine 0.25
Total 100 Salt 0.1
Total 100
Calculated Composition
Crude
protein(%) 19.00 Crude
protein(%) 19.7
Metabolizable 2900 Metabolizable energy 2990
energy
(kcal/kg) (kcal/kg)
Crude
fibre(%) 3.39 Crude fibre(%) 4.65
Crude
fat (%) 6.0 Crude fat (%) 4.18
Calcium
(%) 0.22 Calcium
(%) 0.21
Phosphorus
(%) 0.40 Phosphorus
(8%) 0.30
TABLE
7: PROXIMATE ANALYSIS OF THE EXPERIMENTAL DIET
Starter Finisher
Crude
protein 20.97 18.79
Crude
fibre 4.93 4.83
Crude
fat 3.58 3.61
Ash 6.51 6.33
Moisture 9.97 9.91
Dry matter
90.03 90.09
AOAC, 2005
%fibre = W1
x W2 x 100
Wt-of sample
1
3.3 Experimental
Animals
Fifty-six (56) Anak broiler
chicks were sourced from Obasanjo poultry farm Otta, Ogun State. The birds were
randomly allocated to the two different diets, prior to chicks arrival, all
necessary sanitary measures were done, which includes thorough washing,
disinfection using detergent and Izal. Three days before the chick’s arrival,
fresh litter of saw dust of 5cm deep was evenly spread in the poultry house.
Lightening and heating equipments were used.
Two days before chick’s arrival
everything was in place and tested. Three to five hours before chick’s arrival,
all heating and lightening systems were put on, fresh water and feed were also
ready. On arrival, the chick boxes were directly carried into the poultry house
near source of light and heat which were randomly assigned to two treatments.
Twenty-eight birds per diets which were replicated eight times, with seven
birds per replicate. Vitality in water was used as anti-stress for five days.
The birds were allowed to acclimatize for one week during which they were fed
with commercial feed. All treatment and vaccinations schedules were duly
observed.
3.4
Parameters Measured
Growth
Growth was measured as change in
body weight, before the introduction of the treatments to the chicks. The
initial body weight was determined and recorded accordingly. Hence, weighing of
each bird was done on weekly bases.
- Initial bodyweight
These
were determined immediately on the birds arrival using a weighing scale.
-. Final body weight
These
were determined by weighing the birds at the end of the experiment.
- Gain in weight
Body
weight gain was obtained by subtracting the initial body weight from the final
weight.
- Daily weight gain
This
was obtained by dividing the total body weight gain by the number of days the
experiment lasted.
-Weekly weight gain.
This
was obtained by dividing the total feed intake by the number of weeks the experiment
lasted.
- Feed conversion ratio
The
feed conversion ratio was determined mathematically at the end of the
experiment as average daily feed intake divided by the average daily weight
gain.
FCR
= average daily feed intake
Average daily weight gain
3.5 Economy of Production
Economies
of production were determined using the formular:
Feed
cost = Total cost of feed
Total feed consumed (kg)
-Total cost of production =
Cost of feeding + cost of Stock
bird + miscellaneous.
-. Total revenue generated = Total selling price x number
of birds.
- Net returns = Revenue
- cost of production.
- Cost benefits ratio = Total revenue generated (N)
Net returns
3.6 Experimental
Design
The
data collected were analyzed using students t-test according to Steel and
Torrie (1980).
CHAPTER FOUR
4.0 Result
4.1
Growth
Performance
The performance of broilers fed
commercial and home made feed are shown below.
Table
8 Growth performance of the birds
Parameter T1 T2 SEM
Av
initial body weight 122.5 120 1.25
Av
final body weight 2800a 2025b 387.50
Av
total weight gain 2657.5a 1905b 376.25
Av
weekly weight gain 332.19a 237.81b 47.19
Av
daily weight gain 47.46a 34.02b 6.72
Av
total feed intake 6795 6611.5 91.75
Av
weekly feed intake 849.38 826.44 11.47
Av
daily feed intake 121.34 118.06 1.64
Feed
conversion ratio -- 2 56a 3.48b 0.46
a,
b means having different superscript on the same row and are significantly
different (p<0.05). Birds fed commercial diets had significantly (p<0.05)
low feed conversion ratio (2.56) than those on homemade feed (3.48).
There was no significant (p>0.05)
effect on the feed intake with those on commercial diets having 6795g while
those on home made feed had 6611.5g. It could be noticed that both feeds were
palatable to the birds.
4.2 Economy
of Production
The cost analysis of broiler
production fed commercial and home made feed are as shown below.
Table 9: Economy of Production
Parameter TI T2 SEM
Total
cost 903.7a
66653b 118.59
Cost
(#)/kg weight gain 279.86 269.18 5.34
Cost
(#)/kg feed intake 747.45a 51028b 118.59
Revenue 5366.68a 388126b 742.72
Benefit 4619.22a 337098b 624.13
Cost-benefit
ratio 0.19 0.20 0.01
a,b
means having different superscript on the same horizontal column are
significantly different (P<0.05). There was a significant (p<0.05)
difference on the revenue, birds fed commercial feed made a revenue of N5366.68, while birds on home made a revenue of #3881 26.