Dressed and internal organ weights of broilers fed toasted pigeon pea seed meal diet

Abstract

Toasted seeds of pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan), a tropical legume grown in Nigeria were investigated to determine its effect on the dressed weight and internal organ weight characteristics of broilers. The dry, brown coat coloured pigeon pea seeds were toasted at 100°C for 15minutes, cooled, made into a meal and stored in feed bags labeled TPSM. The TPSM at 0%, 20%, 30%, 40%, and 50% dietary levels each replaced 0%, 40%, 60%, 80% and 100% of soybean meal and 0%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% of maize respectively in formulated broiler starter diets. TPSM also replaced 0%, 50%, 75%, 100% and 100% of soybean meal and 0%, 18.18%, 27.27%, 36.36%, and 54.54% of maize respectively in formulated broiler finisher diets. Each diet was fed to 5 replicates of 6, 7-day old hubbard broilers in two regimes of 28 days each, for the starter and finisher diets respectively. At 63days of age, 3 broilers of comparable live weights per replicate were selected, starved of feed for 12 hours, slaughtered and eviscerated to determine the dressed weights and internal organ weights. The results obtained indicated a progressive increase in dressed weight with increasing levels of TPSM in the diet. Birds fed 50% TPSM recorded significantly (P<0.05) higher dressed weights and lower feed cost per kg dressed weights than birds fed other treatment diets. Birds on the control diet (0% TPSM) recorded a significantly (P<0.05) lower dressed weight than birds on other treatment diets. A similar pattern of progressive increases in weight of liver, gizzard and heart were obtained with increasing level of TPSM in the diet. There were no significant differences (P<0.05) in spleen and heart weights among birds in all the treatment diets .It appears that TPSM has an effect on the dressed weight, liver, gizzard and heart weights of broilers.

Keywords: toasted, pigeon pea meal, dressed weight, internal organs, broilers

International Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development Vol. 6 2005: 92-97