UTILIZATION OF DRIED POULTRY WASTE IN CHICK STARTER RATIONS

Abstract

Dried poultry waste (DPW) from chicks fed a basal diet was collected, analyzed and used as a feed ingredient in diets of equivalent nutrient composition. Chicks fed rations containing 20% recycled DPW weighed, at 4 wk of age, on the average, 10% lower than the controls. The weights of chicks decreased slightly with each of five successive recycles. The feed efficiency of chicks fed the 20% protein basal was 2.05, while that of the DPW-fed chicks was 2.30. Feed efficiency decreased as DPW was recycled. The addition of 0.20% lysine and 0.20% methionine increased the weights of chicks and improved feed efficiency 6% when added to DPW and control rations. The chemical analyses of DPW recycled five times showed no major changes in the composition except that the fat level increased from 3.04 to 9.6% and the calcium and phosphorus levels decreased from 1.94 and 1.88% to 0.88 and 1.10%, respectively. The five recycles of DPW were identical in amino acid composition. Plasma uric acid levels were raised to 6.0 mg% by feeding 20% DPW, compared to 3.4 mg% in control chicks. However, there was no correlation between plasma uric acid levels and the weight of chicks. The mineral composition of the tibia was not affected by the DPW content of the rations. Mortality in all experiments was less than 1%.