Studies on the Grower Diet for Meat-type Pullet

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Abstract
Two explorative experiments were carried out in 1966 and 1967, with 8 lots of 8 females and one male each of White Cornish breed in each of the experiments, to obtain a fundamental idea on the limit of dietary levels of nutrients and of restricted feeding program for meat-type growing pullets. The experiments were the preliminary one to develop further the knowledge obtained in the first paper1) on this subject and to pave the way for the proceeding experiments in collaboration with the Prefectural Poultry Experiment Stations.1) Pullets fed high energy diet throughout growing and laying periods grew normally with better feed conversion (feed/gain) than and comparable egg production and hatchability to those on the control diet. Unexpected as it was, carcass fat content of this group at 51 week-old was similar to that of the control, indicating no obesity.2) Pullets on alternative day feeding throughout growing and laying periods grew slowly mainly due to 16% less feed intake than of the pullets fed every day. Maturity, shown by date of 50% lay was delayed and body weight at 44 week-old was 11% less than those of the control pullets fed every day. Little difference was observed between the 2 groups in egg production, feed conversion, hatchability after 82 week-old and viability.3) Pullets on extremely high energy, low protein grower diet, composed of 95% of yellow corn, 2% of fish meal and minerals and vitamins, grew slowly but showed good egg production on balanced layer diet fed every or alternative day, although maturity was delayed.4) Pullets on extremely low energy grower diet composed mainly of 77.7% of extracted rice bran took more feed but grew slower than those on the control. The egg production on balanced layer diet was normal except delayed maturity.5) Pullets on extremely high protein diet composed mainly of 87% of soybean meal and 9.7% of fish meal, on which male White Leghorn chicks grew slowly but developed normal reproductive ability2), grew slowly but their egg production after feeding balanced layer diet was similar to those of the control.6) Regardless of type of grower diet tested, the procedure of feeding balanced layer diet alternative day resulted in good egg production except delayed maturity with significantly smaller body weight throughout laying period than that on full-feeding program. The procedure is certainly worthy of further examination, since smaller body weight rewires less maintenance feed, resulting in better feed efficiency of egg production.7) Highly significant linear correlation with r 0.969 was observed between carcass fat content and abdominal fat content as shown in Fig. 2. Abdominal fat content will be a useful guide to check obesity of the layers without any chemical procedure.

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