Dietary phosphorus and food allowance of dwarf breeders affect reproductive performance of hens and bone development of their progeny. |
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| Authors: | Leterrier" target="_blank">C TriyuwantaLeterrier Y Nys |
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| Institution: | INRA, Station de Recherches Avicoles, Nouzilly, France. |
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| Abstract: | 1. An experiment was conducted with 144 caged hens to study the effects of different dietary concentrations of phosphorus and of food restriction on the reproductive performance of dwarf breeder hens and on the growth and the bone development of their progeny. 2. Severe food restrictions at 105 g/hen day compared to 115 g/hen day, decreased hen body weight and hen day egg production. Fertility was unaffected and hatchability slightly depressed by the more severe restriction. 3. Egg and one-day-old chick weights were decreased by limiting the food intake of the breeders but the negative effect disappeared at slaughter (7 weeks). 4. Shell quality decreased as the dietary phosphorus increased and was not affected by food allowance. Albumen quality was slightly impaired in severely restricted hens. 5. Serum inorganic phosphorus in hens and yolk phosphorus increased with increasing dietary phosphorus. Tibial breaking strength and tibial percentage ash of the progeny at hatching was markedly improved in proportion to maternal phosphorus and food intake. This improvement in bone quality was not maintained at 7 weeks. 6. The number of chicks affected by twisted legs (valgus) and dyschondroplasia were similar whatever the maternal diet. The frequency of valgus was higher in males than in females. 7. It is concluded that maternal food intake and phosphorus supply are of importance for the initial bone development of the progeny. |
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