TY - JOUR
T1 - Effect of feed segregation on the commercial hen and egg quality
AU - Tang, P.
AU - Patterson, P. H.
AU - Puri, V. M.
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (grant no. ME 400468) and the Pennsylvania Agricultural Experiment Station for providing funding for this project. Also our thanks are extended to the management team from the commercial layer farm in Lancaster County, PA, for their generous support in facilities and experimental materials. We also thank Shaowei Liu, Eric S. Lorenz, and Xinsheng Xie for their help with this research.
PY - 2006
Y1 - 2006
N2 - Mash feed preparation is the widely practiced method of preparing and presenting feed to laying hens in the egg industry due to its economics, flexibility, and simplicity. However, this form of feed presents a wide range of particle sizes that are likely to segregate (i.e., large particles may separate from the small particles during feed delivery through either auger or drag-chain delivery systems). Two predominant segregation patterns were observed, including sieving and side-to-side segregation, during feed delivery. These segregation patterns promoted ingredient selection activities by the hens (mainly larger particles) that modified the nutrients in the feed and influenced the hens' ability to meet their daily nutrient requirements. This observation was quantified through a systematic study of the relationship of feed nutrients, feed particle size distribution, and hen performance, including BW and egg quality analysis. To minimize the feed segregation effect on hen performance and egg quality, 3 recommendations are proposed to improve feed fabrication and the feed delivery system.
AB - Mash feed preparation is the widely practiced method of preparing and presenting feed to laying hens in the egg industry due to its economics, flexibility, and simplicity. However, this form of feed presents a wide range of particle sizes that are likely to segregate (i.e., large particles may separate from the small particles during feed delivery through either auger or drag-chain delivery systems). Two predominant segregation patterns were observed, including sieving and side-to-side segregation, during feed delivery. These segregation patterns promoted ingredient selection activities by the hens (mainly larger particles) that modified the nutrients in the feed and influenced the hens' ability to meet their daily nutrient requirements. This observation was quantified through a systematic study of the relationship of feed nutrients, feed particle size distribution, and hen performance, including BW and egg quality analysis. To minimize the feed segregation effect on hen performance and egg quality, 3 recommendations are proposed to improve feed fabrication and the feed delivery system.
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U2 - 10.1093/japr/15.4.564
DO - 10.1093/japr/15.4.564
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:33845645566
SN - 1056-6171
VL - 15
SP - 564
EP - 573
JO - Journal of Applied Poultry Research
JF - Journal of Applied Poultry Research
IS - 4
ER -