Effect of strain and skip a day technique on growth performance and carcass characteristics of broiler chickens

Abstract

A skip a day feeding technique could mitigate the ever-increasing cost of feeds and the undesirable excessive adipose fat. The aim of this study was to determine effect of broiler strain (Ross 308 and Arbor Acres) and different regimes of the skip-a-day technique on growth performance and carcass characteristics of broiler chickens. A 2×3 factorial study was carried out to determine the growth performance and carcass characteristics of two broiler strains. Each treatment was replicated three times with 25 birds per replicate and thus a total of 450 unsexed chickens for this study. The treatments were as follows: (i) control-Adlibitum feeding, (ii) Treatment 1-birds were fed one day, and the next day was skipped, (iii) Treatment 2-birds were fed two days and the third day was skipped. Carcass weight, abdominal fat, mortality, and average weight gain were determined and recorded. Data was analysed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) for a 2×3 factorial experiment using the General Linear Model (GLM) procedures of Minitab 18 statistical software. Feed intake per bird per week (g) was significantly different between all three treatments (P<0.01) and followed a consistent yet unexpected pattern across strains with feeding regime zero (control pen)>FR0- Feeding regime one>FR1- Feeding regime two>FR2. Weekly feed intake per bird per week was significantly higher for FR0 (P<0.01) compared to FR1 and FR2 with the latter two treatments having non-significant means (P>0.05) and strain significantly affected feed intake where the Ross 308 strain consumed more feed than the Arbor Acres strain (P<0.05). Broiler strain as well as strain by skip-a-day level interaction effects were not significant for all the carcass parameters (P>0.05). The overall results of this study have shown that the Ross 308 and Arbor Acres broilers did not differ significantly in the body weight, body weight gain, feed intake, and abdominal fatness (P>0.05). However, the Ross 308 broilers strains consumed more feed than the Arbor Acres strain, but both strains converted the feed with the similar efficiency.