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Divergent Selection For Water Conversion Ratio In Broiler Populations, Joseph Hiltz

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Water scarcity is a global reality and with the anticipated population growth, freshwater resources will be further strained to meet both human needs and agriculture applications. To ensure a water sustainable and food secure future, all aspects of agriculture must become more efficient. Two strategies were explored. The potential of improving water efficiency in broilers was examined. The first strategy was to develop a more efficient and accurate method for measuring water consumption/inputs in agriculture. To date, water measuring technology has lacked the necessary sophistication to assure accuracy and repeatability of low flow water usage.

After establishing a low flow …

Efficacy Of Spirulina (Arthrospira Platensis) Utilization In Broiler Diets, Garrett James Mullenix

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Spirulina (Arthrospira platensis) is a cyanobacteria microalgae that has potential as an animal feed ingredient. Five experiments were conducted to further assess its ability to serve as a protein source in broiler diets. Experiment 1 consisted of an amino acid digestibility and apparent metabolizable energy assay. The results indicated that the standardized ileal amino acid levels of spirulina are comparable with typical soybean meal. Experiment 2 assessed the performance and processing parameters of broilers fed 10% spirulina in low crude protein diets, using published digestibility coefficients. Spirulina inclusion improved footpad quality and increased redness and yellowness of the breast, skin …

Reducing Dietary Crude Protein: Characterization Of Branched-Chain Amino Acid Antagonism In Modern Broiler Chickens, Craig William Maynard

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Reducing the crude protein content of broiler diets while maintaining performance has been a primary research area in nutrition. During the late 20th century, the bulk of this research has involved supplementing broiler diets with feed-grade amino acids and proving the economic benefits of their additions. To date, widespread adoption of feed-grade amino acids is limited to methionine, lysine, threonine, and to some extent valine. With valine and isoleucine gaining prevalence in commercial formulation, classic data on the antagonisms associated with the branched-chain amino acids has returned to the forefront of practical broiler nutrition research. Therefore, a series of 23 …

Practical Pullet And Breeder Nutrition, David J. Burnham

Proceedings of the Arkansas Nutrition Conference

Modern meat chicken breeding stock have been selected for extremely efficient conversion of feed into protein and rapid growth. As a result, it has become increasingly more difficult to rear pullets and breeders to achieve the healthy chick numbers needed to supply the ever-expanding poultry meat market. There are many factors involved in producing a healthy pullet and breeder chicken. These include; housing, lighting, temperature and air control, health, animal husbandry, feed management and nutrition. This presentation is titled, Practical Pullet and Breeder Nutrition. Feed nutrient composition is important, but feed management is critical to make the nutrition effective. The …

Nutrition And Coccidiosis, Po-Yun Teng, Fernanda Castro, Woo Kyun Kim

Proceedings of the Arkansas Nutrition Conference

Coccidiosis is the most common parasitic disease caused by Eimeria spp., leading to over $14 billion economic loss worldwide annually. The most prevalent Eimeria spp. in poultry include E. tenella, E. maxima, E. acervulina, E. brunetti, E. necatrix, E. praecox, and E. mitis and have different level of pathogenicity and specific infection sites in the intestine. Eimeria spp. invade intestinal epithelial tissues and induce intestinal damage, causing inflammation, oxidative stress, hemorrhage, and diarrhea. Furthermore, coccidiosis causes reduction of growth performance, intestinal integrity, nutrient digestibility, and increase of mortality and mobility in poultry. Nutrition strategies have been evaluated to mitigate detrimental …

Evaluation Of Nutritional Factors That Influence The Efficacy Of Tributyrin As A Feed Additive For Broilers, Brooke Bodle

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Tributyrin (TB) is a glyceride ester of butyrate that has the potential to improve broiler performance and intestinal development. Therefore, to fully evaluate this potential, three experiments were conducted to evaluate effect of tributyrin (TB) on broiler growth performance, nutrient digestibility, carcass characteristics, intestinal morphology, and gastrointestinal function in birds fed diets varying in composition reared in battery cages and floor pens. Experiment 1 explored the supplementation of graded doses of TB and its impact upon growth performance, nutrient digestibility, and carcass characteristics in a step-down program when added to a reduced energy and amino acid diet. A linear reduction …