RESPONSE OF BROILER CHICKENS TO FIVE COMMERCIAL DIETS IN BAUCHI METROPOLIS, BAUCHI STATE, NIEGRIA

The study was conducted to evaluate growth performance, carcass characteristics and cost benefit of broiler chickens fed five commercial diets in Bauchi town of Bauchi state. Two hundred and twenty-five (225) day old chicks were assigned to five dietary treatments in replicates of three containing fifteen chicks each in a completely randomized design. Feed and water were supplied ad libitum and the experiment lasted for 35 days. Growth performance parameters include daily feed intake, daily weight gain, final weight gain, total weight gain, feed conversion ratio and feed efficiency were studied. The final weight gain, total weight gain and daily weight gain were significantly (P<0.05) affected by the dietary treatments. The highest values of final weight gain (1522.70 g), total weight gain (1426.30 g) and daily weight gain (50.94 g) were obtained on diet 4, although it did not differ from those fed diet 1. Total feed intake (2077.30-2203.70 g), feed conversion ratio (1.54-1.74) and feed efficiency (0.58-0.66) were not affected by the diets. Most of the carcass characteristics were significantly influenced by the different commercial diets except weights of the head, large intestine, gizzard as well as the length of the small intestine. The highest dressing percentage value of 74.74% was observed in broiler chickens fed diet 4 which did not differ from the value of 71.21% for those fed diet 5. The feed cost per kilogram body weight gain ranged between N 456.90 and N 485.04 with the lowest value obtained in broiler birds fed diet 2. It was concluded that diet 4 gave the best growth performance and carcass yield with lower abdominal fat pad. However, diet 2 was slightly more commercial.