Optimum Requirement of Arginine for Growth of the French Guinea Fowl Broiler
Abstract
This study aimed to determine the optimal arginine requirement for the growth performance of the French guinea fowl broiler. 200-day-old French guinea keets were fed standard diets containing 1.30, 1.22, 1.10, and 0.98% arginine (arg.) from hatch to 7 WOA. Each dietary treatment was replicated five times. Feed consumption (FC), body weight gain (BWG), and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were measured and calculated weekly for 7 weeks. At 7 weeks of age, 20 percent of the experimental birds were slaughtered, and carcass characteristics were determined. Results revealed that birds fed 0.98% arginine had the poorest FC, BWG, and FCR in comparison to all other treatments. Birds fed 1.30% dietary arginine had the highest total BWG in comparison to all other treatments. Birds fed 1.22% arginine had the highest FC and BWG from hatch to 4 WOA. Birds fed 1.10% arginine had the highest overall total FC and BWG from 5-7 WOA in comparison to the other treatments. Birds fed dietary arginine at 1.10%, 1.22%, and 1.30% maintained lower FCR than birds fed 0.98% arginine. Birds fed 1.22% arginine had low FCR, better FC, and high BWG from hatch to 4 WOA, than all other treatments. Birds fed 1.10% arginine had lower FCR, high FC, and BWG from 5-7 WOA than all other treatments, suggesting a shift in dietary arginine concentration requirement with age for the French guinea fowl. The outcome of this research benefits the guinea fowl production industry by improving growth performance and feed efficiency of the guinea fowl.
Subject Area
Animal sciences|Food Science
Recommended Citation
Jaden LeAnn Battle,
"Optimum Requirement of Arginine for Growth of the French Guinea Fowl Broiler"
(2022).
ETD Collection for Tennessee State University.
Paper AAI29996988.
https://digitalscholarship.tnstate.edu/dissertations/AAI29996988