Journal of Applied Poultry Research最新文献

Understanding the influence of feed processing on early broiler growth is essential for maintaining production and increasing profit. The purpose of this research was to assess the effects of 3 retention times (RT) during the conditioning process prior to pelleting on broiler performance, AME, and apparent ileal digestibility (AID) of nutrients from 1 to 21 d of age. During 2 repeated studies, broilers were fed crumbled starter diets differing only in RT (40, 80, or 120 s). Targeted RT were achieved by utilizing a variable speed feed hygieniser. Varying RT did not influence AME during early broiler growth. Early FCR (d 7–14) was decreased with RT of 40 and 80 s compared to 120 s. Opposingly, phosphorus digestibility was observed to increase with longer RT (80 and 120 s). Overall, RT during the conditioning process did not substantially influence broiler growth nor nutrient AID during the starter phase.

Avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) cause colibacillosis in commercial poultry resulting in significant flock health and economic burden. Evolving production practices and antimicrobial resistance may challenge traditional colibacillosis prevention and management, emphasizing the need for nonantibiotic solutions promoting resiliency against or amelioration of infections. This study evaluated the effect of a feed additive prototype (Diamond V, Cedar Rapids, IA) containing a Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation product with a Quillaja saponaria ingredient (SCFP+), alone or in combination with vaccination, to ameliorate the severity of clinical colibacillosis in broilers intratracheally challenged with APEC O78 at d 28. Necropsy on ds 35 and 42 included lesion scoring for perihepatitis, pericarditis, and air sacculitis with sample collections from liver, lung, heart, and airsac tissues for microbiological analysis. All treatment groups resulted in numerical improvements in mean lesion scores and livability when compared to the challenged control during acute infection at d 35. SCFP+ treatment alone resulted in mean lesion score improvements equivalent to or slightly enhanced when compared to the vaccine alone and co-administration did not reveal any adverse effects. SCFP+ application in feed was observed to have some corresponding reductions in APEC tissue loads. Select blood cytokine levels (pg/mL) were generally lower in all treated groups. By d 42, lesion scores and microbiological data suggested live birds had largely recovered from challenge. This study indicates the SCFP+ prototype, alone or in combination with vaccination, may be a viable, nonantibiotic solution to support reduction in the severity of clinical colibacillosis in broilers.

Sonali chicken farming in the northern part of Bangladesh has been rapidly progressing. One of the major problems in rearing Sonali chicken in this area is considered the occurrence of various diseases although there are no data. The research was designed to determine the proportionate prevalence of the diseases and their associated risk factors including prescribed antimicrobials against each diseased Sonali chicken case presented at Upazila Livestock Office and Veterinary Hospital, Ullahpara, Sirajgonj, Bangladesh for a period of 2 mo. A total of 73 clinical cases were examined for the diagnosis of different diseases based on history, clinical findings, and postmortem lesions. This study revealed that most of the farmers were male (74%), middle-aged group (31–yr) (49.3%), were poorly educated (74.1% up to secondary level), and were relatively new in farming (1–4 yr) (72.6%). The flock size (501–2500) of most of the farms was medium (52.1%). Classic Sonali chicken dominated the farms (60.3%). Results also demonstrated that the prevalence of viral diseases was the highest (39.3%) in Sonali chicken followed by protozoal (31.0%), and bacterial diseases (20.2%). Among the diseases, Coccidiosis (31.0%), Newcastle Disease (14.3%), Infectious Bursal Disease (13.1%), Colibacillosis (11.9%), Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza (4.8%), and Necrotic enteritis (4.8%) were more predominant diseases observed in studied birds. The odds of coccidiosis being positive were significantly higher in male-operated farms (OR = 6.8) and farms with flock sizes of 501 to 5100 (OR = 2.93) in the Sonali chicken farm (P ≤ 0.05). The odds of colibacillosis being positive were significantly higher in day-old chick (DOC) sourced from feed and chick dealers (OR = 10.00) and significantly lower occurrences 29 to 70 d of age (OR = 0.23) in the Sonali chicken (P ≤ 0.05). Sulfa-quinoxaline (27.4%), Enrofloxacin (16.4%), Levofloxacin (13.7%), and Colistin (6.9%) were commonly prescribed antibiotics for different Sonali chicken cases. Ciprofloxacin and gentamicin were included in the category critically important for veterinary and human use. Proper farm management and good quality chicks should be taken into consideration for effective control of coccidiosis and colibacillosis with decreased antimicrobial usage.

Commercial turkeys are traditionally reared in floor barns, however, like most poultry species, turkeys display a natural desire to perch when given the opportunity. Perch use has typically been evaluated in laying hens, however due to size, weight, and postural differences, turkeys may have different preferences in perch design. The objectives were to examine perching preferences of turkey hens reared to 11 wk, as well as to examine the impact of perch use on hen health and performance. Nicholas Select (n = 620) 11-d old turkey hens were randomly allocated to 20 pens (4 pen replicates/treatment) and assigned 1 of 5 perch design treatments (no perch [NP], 5 cm round dowel [5Rnd], 5 × 5 cm [5Sq], 10 × 5 cm [10Rec], or 15 × 5 cm [15Rec]). Data were analyzed via ANOVA as a complete randomized design, with significance declared when P ≤ 0.05. Perch design did not affect hen performance or keel bone deviations and no fractures were found. Perching treatment had no effect on gait or footpad score at wk 7. At wk 11 gait scores were poorer in NP hens compared with 5Rnd (P = 0.04) and footpad scores were poorer in NP hens compared with 15Rec (P = 0.02). There were more turkey hens on the perch, as perch width increased at both 9 and 11 wk of age, demonstrating a preference for wider and flat perches. The results of this study demonstrate that turkeys will utilize perches when given the opportunity, with no detrimental effects seen on performance or bird health.

Dietary CP reductions in broilers can result in increased FCR when 6 or 7 feed-grade amino acids are allowed to enter formulation, and a partial explanation may be a dietary limitation of His. Histidine requirement data are sparce in the current body of literature, especially beyond 3 wk post-hatch. Therefore, a His dose-response experiment (expressed as a percentage of Lys) was conducted with male Cobb 500 broilers from 15 to 35 d post-hatch. A His deficient test diet was formulated to contain a digestible His to digestible Lys (dHis:dLys) ratio of 28.0%. Graded increments of L-His were added to the test diet to produce additional diets containing dHis:dLys ratios of 30.5, 33.0, 35.5, 38.0, 40.5, and 43.0%. A positive control (PC) diet was formulated to contain a dHis:dLys ratio of 38.0% met solely with intact protein. The PC diet outperformed the test diet in all live performance parameters and had a reduced peritoneal cavity fat yield. Linear responses to His were observed for final BW, BW gain, and FCR. In addition, a linear His response was observed for carcass yield and both linear and quadratic responses were observed for breast filet and tender yields. The 95% quadratic max method was used to derive the optimal dHis:dLys ratios of 39 and 37% for breast filet and tender yields, respectively. To accurately estimate quadratic asymptotes for live performance parameters, future His dose-response experiments may need to incorporate dHis:dLys ratios higher than 43%.

A variety of milling conditions can impact the physical quality (pellet durability index (PDI) and feed form (FF) composition) of broiler diets. Likewise, FF composition has been observed to affect broiler prehension and feed consumption patterns. Numerical differences in nutrient composition between pellets and fines have also been reported. Therefore, feeding diets with poor physical quality may lead to variations in nutrient intake among broilers. Reductions in the physical quality of feed could be partially related to frictional die wear. However, no research has indirectly evaluated the effects of die wear (i.e., production time) on the physical quality of finished feed from commercial feed mills. Therefore, the objective of this experiment was to quantify the effects of production time, die condition (new or reconditioned), and feed mill on PDI and FF composition of finisher 1 broiler diets from 4 commercial feed mills over a 12-wk production period. Production time (P > 0.05) did not affect dietary PDI and FF composition during each production period. Die condition and feed mill interacted (P < 0.05) to affect FF composition at one feed mill with the new die producing a higher and lower concentration of pellets and crumbles, respectively, than the reconditioned die. However, feed mill (P < 0.05) affected all measures. Thus, the physical quality of broiler diets is not affected by production time but die condition may influence FF composition. However, this effect was feed mill dependent. Overall, feed mill was most responsible for the physical quality of broiler diets.

Nutritional content of egg can be manipulated by altering hen feed. Developing an economical fowl feed supplement to produce omega-3 enriched egg from purified fish oil, produced using a proprietary method, leads to a value-added product. The objective of the study was to evaluate the effect of feeding an omega-3 enriched fowl feed supplement on the concentration and/or levels of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and omega-3 content in eggs obtained thereafter. Thirty BV-380 strain hens were divided into 5 groups and fed varying doses of the omega-3 supplement along with their regular feed. Eggs collected over 180 days were analyzed for EPA, DHA, and omega-3 content. Results showed that as the supplement dose increased, so did the EPA, DHA, and omega-3 concentrations in the eggs, with significant differences compared to the control group. Specifically, after 180 days, the EPA, DHA, and omega-3 content in eggs ranged from 11.4 to 28.71 mg/100 g, 116.41 to 206.62 mg/100 g, and 172.03 to 327.78 mg/100 g, respectively, depending on the supplement dose. This research demonstrates the feasibility of enhancing the nutritional value of eggs through dietary manipulation, offering a practical method for producing omega-3 enriched eggs.

The emergence of uncommon Salmonella serotypes with the potential to cause foodborne outbreaks linked to turkeys demands sustainable broad-spectrum preharvest safety approaches. We investigated the effects of 3 preharvest interventions [turkey-origin probiotic, Lactobacillus salivarius UMNPBX2 (LS), dairy-origin probiotic, Propionibacterium freudenreichii subsp. freudenreichii (PF), and a live, attenuated S. Typhimurium vaccine (VC)] against a cluster of 3 emerging commercial turkey-sourced Salmonella serotypes (S. Reading, S. Saintpaul, and S. Agona) in 6-wk-old growing turkeys. Two experiments were conducted. In each experiment, 42, one-day-old turkey poults were randomly distributed into 2 control groups [Negative control (NC) and Positive control (PC) groups], LS group, PF group, VC group, and 2 combinations (LSVC = LS+VC and PFVC = PF+VC) groups with ad libitum access to feed and water. Poults in the probiotic-supplemented groups (LS, PF, LSVC, PFVC) received 10⁵ CFU/mL through drinking water until 6 wk of age. Poults in the vaccination groups (VC, LSVC, PFVC) received the Salmonella vaccine on day 1 and 2 boosters. At week 5, all birds except the NC group were inoculated with 6 log₁₀ CFU/bird Salmonella (3-serotype mixture) by crop gavage. Salmonella was recovered from the cecum, liver, spleen, and crop 7 d after inoculation. Statistical analysis was performed using ANOVA, and a significant difference was determined at P < 0.05. All treatments significantly reduced Salmonella colonization in the cecum of growing turkeys by 1.4 to 2 log₁₀ CFU/g compared to PC (P < 0.05). Treatments also effectively reduced Salmonella dissemination to the liver and spleen and crop recolonization. No pathological differences between the treatment groups were apparent in histopathology and immunohistochemistry analyses of liver samples. This study indicates the potential of novel preharvest approaches against multiple serotypes of Salmonella colonizing in tandem in commercial growing turkeys.

Adjustments in dietary amino acid density, CP levels, and feed scheduling influence broiler performance, carcass traits, and integrator profitability. Therefore, 2 experiments were conducted to assess the former factors on the live performance and carcass traits of female Ross 708 broilers grown for a high-value bone-in market (36 d processing). Experiment 1 evaluated 4 amino acid densities while Experiment 2 was arranged as a 2 × 2 factorial evaluating dietary CP and feed scheduling. Amino acid density in Experiment 1 had no effect on any performance or processing parameter except feed conversion which was decreased for birds fed the Medium diet. The lack of substantial improvement in live performance resulted in increased feed, live BW, and carcass costs per kg. Neither feed scheduling nor dietary CP had an effect on live performance in Experiment 2. However, feeding low CP diets resulted in increased total breast meat yield, whereas increasing the number of feeding phases decreased total breast meat yield. In conclusion, dietary alterations in amino acid density in female broiler broilers warrants further attention.

Spirulina platensis is an emerging poultry diet source due to its essential nutrition and bioactive ingredients. Spirulina microalgae confers beneficial effects on broiler's growth performance, immune response, and antioxidant activity. We investigated the effect of Spirulina platensis on BCO lameness, one of the most driving factors for economic and animal well-being concerns in the poultry industry. Additionally, supplementation of Availa ZMC containing organic trace minerals – zinc, manganese, and copper – was shown to alleviate lameness by 20 to 25%. We hypothesized that pairing microalgae and organic trace minerals might confer a synergistic effect in reducing BCO. A 2 × 2 factorial study, with microalgae (5% Spirulina platensis and 5% Spirulina platensis plus 0.15% Availa ZMC) and without microalgae (0.15% Availa ZMC and a negative control diet), plus one BCO source group were applied to 1,320 one-day-old chicks with 5 replicates of 60 chicks per treatment for lameness assessment. No significant difference in lameness was observed between the negative control and BCO source group (60.0% vs. 54.5%, P = 0.56). Compared to the negative control, Availa ZMC significantly reduced lameness by 51.2% (60.0% vs. 29.3%, P < 0.001), while microalgae slightly increased lameness by 6.3% (60.0% vs. 63.8%, P = 0.1). Availa ZMC plus microalgae alleviated lameness by 16.7% (50.0% vs. 60.0%, P = 0.005) compared to the negative control, which was statistically lower than microalgae alone and higher than Availa ZMC alone. These findings suggested the inclusion of 5% Spirulina platensis did not reduce BCO lameness, while Availa ZMC significantly alleviated lameness. When combined, there was no significant interaction between Availa ZMC and microalgae in mitigating broiler lameness.