THE REALITIES ABOUT POULTRY The Modern Farm - The Realities About Poultry_Seco

Ω Acceptability to the birds. The ration being formulated has to be palatable enough to stimulate intake by the birds. Feed refused by the birds is worthless, since feed has to be consumed and utilized. Ω Digestibility of the feed. The nutrients in the feed have to be digested and released into the gastrointestinal tract to be utilized by the birds. Rations with high fiber content cannot be tolerated. Ω Cost of feed ingredients. The requirement of the birds can be met through several combinations of feed ingredients. However, when the cost of these ingredients is considered, there can only be one least-cost formulation. The least-cost ration should ensure that the requirements of the birds are met. Ω Presence of anti-nutritional factors and toxins. The presence of anti-nutritional factors in the feed, such as anti-trypsin factor in soybean meal, affects the digestion of some nutrients by making them unavailable to the animal. Some feed ingredients may also contain toxic substances, which may be detrimental to the animal when given in excessive amounts. The inclusion of these feed ingredients should therefore be limited or eliminated from the formulation. What composes a ration? The feed ration must consist of feeds appropriate to the bird’s anatomy. The volume and content of the dry matter of feed must correspond to the capacity of the digestive system. The ration should include a variety of feeds (carbohydrates, proteins, minerals, and vitamins, among others). The ration’s structure (feed ratio) varies with the type of bird, age; intended use (layers (eggs) or broilers (meat), and manner of feeding. Standards for planned rather than actual productivity are used. A ration should be well composed as shown in the tables below: Layers - Rations for Starter (Chick & Duck), Grower and Layer Birds Item Birds’ Classification Starter - Chick & Duck (0-6 weeks) Grower (6-18 weeks) Layer (18 weeks & above) 100 kg 100 kg 100 kg Shells 2 kg 4 kg 8 kg Cotton seed cake 12 kg 8 kg 12 kg Sunflower meal 10 kg 15 kg 10 kg Fish meal 20 kg 15 kg 20 kg 150 grams - 150 grams Maize bran Lysine Page 83 of 163

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