Carcass and body organ characteristics of broilers supplemented with dietary sodium and sodium salts under a phase feeding system

The effect of sodium and sodium salts on carcass and body organ characteristics of broilers under a four phase feeding program were investigated. A basal diet (0.08% dNa with NaCl) was formulated and one of two sources of dNa (NaHCO3 and Na2SO4) were supplemented to obtain four different percentages of dNa (0.17, 0.26, 0.35, and 0.44%) for each treatment. There was a linear decrease in dressing percentage (DP) with source × level interaction (p ≤ 0.001), while there was a linear increase in breast yield and thigh yield with increasing dNa supplementation (p ≤ 0.001). Chicks fed 0.35% NaHCO3 and 0.44% dNa Na2SO4 supplemental salts had lower abdominal fat (p ≤ 0.04). Chicks that received increasing levels of dNa (from 0.17 to 0.44%) showed increasing gizzard weight (p ≤ 0.002) and decreasing spleen weight (p ≤ 0.02). When both salts were supplemented at 0.26% dNa, the chicks showed their lowest bursa weight (p ≤ 0.001). Consequently, chicks at higher dNa showed an increase in breast and thigh meat yield, and increasing capacity of their digestive organ. The higher levels of dNa should be tested with other cations and anions to fully understand acid base homoeostasis.