A study was conducted to compare the testicular morphology and semen quality of three strains (FUNAAB-Alpha, ISA brown and Bantam) of chickens. A total of 45, thirty four week old cocks were used for the six months study. Semen samples were collected weekly by abdominal massage technique and semen volume, colour, pH, motility, percentage live, normal and sperm concentration were evaluated. Test...

It is well established that the use of alfalfa in diets for monogastric animals is limited by its high fiber content. However, alfalfa is a natural source of xanthophylls and gives poultry products a desirably yellow color. In addition, alfalfa saponins may contribute to reduce the levels of cholesterol in the meat and egg yolk. We have investigated the potential utilization of β-glucanases and...

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of particle size of a dietary Ca source on egg production and eggshell quality when added to hens’ diets that have different levels of calcium. The experiment was carried out on 216 ISA Brown hens (25 to 70 weeks of age), allocated to 9 groups of 12 replicates (cages), with two birds in each cage. A 3 × 3 factorial arrangement was used, wit...

The laying hen industry is implementing aviary systems intended to improve welfare by providing hens with more space and resources to perform species-specific behaviors. To date, limited research has examined spatial requirements of various strains of laying hens for performing key behaviors and none has been conducted within an alternative housing system. This study investigated the amount of ...

Propolis is a honeybee product showing several biological properties that enhance the immune response, depending on the concentration and intake period. Because propolis possesses an immunomodulatory action on mammals, the objective of our study was to investigate the effects of propolis on the humoral immune response of laying hens by evaluating antibody production. Laying hens (ISA Brown) wer...

At present the laying hen rearing is transformed into alternative housing systems which include a deep litter system. As for the poultry nutrition, the replacement of animal protein with vegetable protein in poultry feed is applied. Therefore, in an experiment we evaluated the quality of eggs from laying hens in the cage system as compared to the deep litter system with vegetable protein substi...

This study aimed to evaluate the long-term dietary effects of dried olive pulp (OP) on production performance, fatty acid profile and health lipid indices quality characteristics produced eggs, welfare indicators laying hens. It was carried out in a commercial poultry farm using 300 Isa Brown layers at 23 weeks age. The hens were randomly equally divided six groups CON, OP2, OP3, OP4, OP5 OP6, ...

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect rearing systems and genotypes on production performance egg quality. Isa Brown New Hampshire were used in study. These two housed floor organic systems. During experimental period, which lasted one year (52 weeks), following parameters recorded: production, daily mass, feed consumption, conversion efficiency, mortality. Fifteen eggs per group col...

Laying hens are strongly motivated to use nests for egg laying, and alternative production systems (e.g., aviaries) provide artificial sites to meet this need and ensure efficient collection of clean, undamaged eggs. However, nests are typically not provided to allow simultaneous use by all hens; therefore, competition or mislaid eggs can result. To understand the influence of strain on laying ...

Experiments were conducted to evaluate the potential for dietary garlic to influence egg yolk cholesterol concentrations and overall performance in different layer strains. Thirty-six, 28-wk-old, Hisex Brown,Isa Brown, Lohmann, Starcross, Babcock, and Starcross-579 strains (six hens per strain) were fed diets supplemented with 0 (control), 2, 4, 6, 8, or 10% sun-dried garlic paste for 6 wk. The...