Sasmita Panda

Effect of dietary supplementation of fermented fish silage on serum biochemical parameters of broiler Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica)

Aim: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of feeding fermented fish silage (FFS) on serum biochemical parameters of Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica). Materials and Methods: A total of 192, 7-day-old broiler Japanese quail chicks of either sex, were randomly distributed into four dietary treatments with four replicates in each group having 12 chicks in each replicate pen. The dietary treatments were T1 – Control diet, T2 – Diet containing 5% FFS, T3 – Diet containing 10% FFS, and T4 – Diet containing 15% FFS. Group body weight and feed consumption were recorded at weekly intervals. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) was derived by dividing the feed consumed with the weekly body weight gain. At the end of the experiment, 8 birds from each treatment were selected randomly and sacrificed by cervical dislocation to study the carcass traits expressed as % pre-slaughter live weight. At 5 weeks of age, about 2 ml of blood was taken from the jugular vein of each selected bird, and serum samples were separated after centrifugation. Total protein, albumin/globulin (A/G) ratio, calcium, phosphorus, triglyceride, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), very low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (VLDL-C), low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) were estimated in the serum. Result: The cumulative body weight gains from 1 to 5 weeks of age did not vary significantly between control and 5% FFS group. However, a linear decrease in body weight gain was observed by increasing the levels of FFS beyond 5% in the diet. The cumulative feed consumption was significantly higher in case of birds under control group during 1-5 weeks of age as compared to birds fed FFS based diet (5%, 10%, and 15%). No statistical difference in cumulative feed conversion ratio could be noticed during 1-5 weeks of age. The eviscerated yield decreased and giblet weight increased due to the dietary supplementation of FFS at 15% level. The breast meat yield decreased due to dietary supplementation of FFS at 10% and 15% level in the diet of broiler Japanese quails. The effect of FFS was found to be nonsignificant (p>0.05) with respect to serum total protein, globulin and A/G ratio under different treatments whereas significant difference observed in serum albumin concentration. Dietary supplementation of FFS at 10% and 15% level significantly increased the AST concentration in serum. There was no significant difference among the treatments regarding the parameters such as ALT, calcium, phosphorous, triglyceride, total cholesterol, HDL-C, VLDL-C, and LDL-C. Conclusion: The serum-biochemical parameters are influenced by the dietary supplementation of FFS in broiler Japanese quails.

Sex-related differences in hemato-biochemical indices of adult Vanaraja chickens during summer and winter seasons

Aim: The objective of this study was to evaluate the changes in hemato-biochemical indices in male and female Vanaraja chickens under tropical environment during summer and winter season. Materials and Methods: A total of 120 day-old sexed Vanaraja chicks were selected as experimental chickens and distributed equally in two groups having 60 female and 60 male chickens in each group, respectively. The experiment was continued for 8 weeks (56 days) and both male and female chickens were slaughtered by cervical dislocation method. All parameters were estimated at the end of the experiment in both seasons. Results: Male had higher blood glucose, Ca and P level. Blood glucose level significantly (p<0.05) reduced in summer. Female had higher total protein, albumin, globulin, and albumin/globulin ratio. Alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase enzyme concentration were significantly (p<0.05) higher in summer. Total erythrocyte count, total leukocyte count, hemoglobin (Hb), Hb/lymphocyte ratio, and packed cell volume were significantly (p<0.05) higher in males. Mean corpuscular volume and mean corpuscular Hb were significantly (p<0.05) higher in females. Conclusion: Sex of chickens had a significant (p<0.05) effect on different parameters whereas season had nonsignificant (p>0.05) effect in most of the observed parameters. Hence, Vanaraja chickens are adaptable to local tropical climate and can be reared efficiently as backyard poultry.

Effect of feeding fermented fish silage on the meat quality of broiler Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica)

The research work was carried out for a total period of 4 weeks to study the effect of dietary supplementation of fermented fish silage on the meat quality of broiler Japanese quails. 192, seven-day old broiler Japanese quail chicks of either sex were randomly distributed into four dietary treatment groups with four replicates in each group with 12 chicks in each pen. The dietary treatments were T 1 control diet, T 2 diet containing 5 per cent fermented fish silage, T 3 diet containing 10 per cent fermented fish silage and T 4 diet containing 15 per cent fermented fish silage. The chemical composition like moisture, crude protein (CP) and ether extract (EE) content of the broiler quail meat taken from the breast region of birds did not vary significantly among the dietary treatments; however, there was a significant difference (P<0.05) in the total ash content. The total ash content in the meat samples of the birds fed diet containing 15 per cent fermented fish silage (FFS) was significantly higher (1.94±0.06%) compared to all other dietary treatments. The inclusion of FFS had no adverse effect on meat composition (CP and EE). Further, FFS inclusion in the diet had a beneficial effect on meat ash content.

Effect of Age and Sex on Litter Moisture Level in Deep Litter Rearing of Vanaraja Chickens

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of age and sex on moisture level of litter material in Vanaraja chicken for nine weeks. One hundred fifty Vanaraja chicks (75 male+75 female) were used for experiment. Litter moisture levels were measure at an interval of 3 weeks. Litter from male group had a significantly (p<0.05) higher moisture per cent than that of other two groups. Similar trend was also observed at 42 days of age. Moisture level between all three groups varied significantly (p<0.05). But at 63 days of age continued trend changes and litter materials from female group had a significantly (p<0.05) higher moisture per cent than that of other two groups. Litter moisture per cent is a good indicator of antibacterial property of litter materials so it should be monitored regularly and should be changed at a regular interval.

Carcass Characteristics of Male and Female Japanese Quails at 6 Weeks of Age

The objective of this study was to evaluate the carcass characteristics of male and female Japanese quails at 6 weeks of age. A total of 100 one-day old Japanese quail chicks were procured and placed in two separate pens each containing 50 chicks. Sex determination was carried out in day-old chicks by cloacal method. All the birds were provided with a balanced diet containing 2900 kcal of ME/kg of ration and 24 per cent CP with ad lib provision of water during the entire experimental period. At the end of the experiment, five birds from each group were sacrificed by cervical dislocation and different parameters like eviscerated yield, neck yield, wing yield, back yield, breast yield, giblet yield, thigh yield and drumstick yield were studied. A significantly higher (P<0.05) percentage of eviscerated yield, giblet yield and breast yield was observed in case of the female Japanese quails as compared to males; however, no significant difference was noticed in terms of neck yield, wings yield, back yield, thigh yield and drumsticks yield among both male and female Japanese quails.

Effect of Serum Leptin Concentration on Cognitive Ability of Male and Female Vanaraja Chickens

In males, the intelligent birds had significantly higher level of serum leptin than the dull birds (0.62 ±0.06 vs. 0.42b±0.08ng/ml). Similar trend was also visible in female birds (1.03±0.13 vs. 0.78b±0.12 ng/ml). Leptin acts to facilitate long-term potentiation in the hippocampus, a process important for memory processing, which was evident from the present study. Hence, this may be a reliable indicator of cognition. Females had a higher level of leptin concentration in serum than males, but that did not necessarily reflect their performance in terms of cognitive and conditioning abilities. This might be due to higher adiposity in females than males.