LOCALLY FORMULATED FEEDS: MATERIALS AND METHODS | HOMEMAED STARTED AND FINISHER DIET

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.

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