Effects of Dietary Supplementation with Perlite and Zeolite on Performance, Litter Quality and Carcass Characteristics of Broilers from 7-42 Days of Age

Abstract:An experiment with 300 one-day-old Ross mixed-sex broiler chicks was conducted to determine the effects of perlite and zeolite on broiler performance, litter quality and carcass characteristics. Five experimental diets [control, perlite (2 or 4 %), zeolite (2 or 4 %)] were formulated according to NRC (1994) recommendation for starter and grower phases. The experimental design was a completely randomized with 4 replicates of 15 chicks each. During the experiment, energy efficiency ratio (EER) and European efficiency factor (EEF) were measured at starter (7-21 d) and grower phase (21-42 d). Litter moisture and nitrogen were also measured at 21 and 42 d at the end of experiment, two chicks per replicate were slaughtered to determine carcass characteristics. The results indicated that except for 4 % perlite supplemented group, control group had significantly higher EER compared to other treatments (P < 0.05). Also, 2 % perlite supplementation to the diet decreased litter moisture, significantly at 42 d (P < 0.05). Litter nitrogen content was decreased significantly by dietary supplementation of 4 % zeolite at 42 d (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences (P > 0.05) among treatments during the experiment for EEF and carcass characteristics, although, 4 % perlite supplemented group had the highest carcass performance, numerically.