Abstract:

This study was conducted to determine the effects of safflower (SM) and sunflower meal (SFM) combination (SSM) in quail diets on laying performance and some egg quality parameters during 8 week feeding period. A total of 192 (128 female, 64 male) eight-week-old Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica) were divided into 4 groups (n=48) involving one control group and three treatment groups. Each group was then divided into four replicate groups (n=12). The control group was fed with corn-soybean meal based diet without SSM supplementation. SSM was used at ratio of 10% (SSM10), 20% (SSM20), and 30% (SSM30) in treatment diets (safflower and sunflower meal ratio was 1:1 in each treatment group). There were no differences between the experimental groups in terms of initial and final body weights, feed intake, egg production, feed conversion ratio and egg weight (P>0.05). Moreover, egg shape index, shell thickness, albumen index, yolk index, Haugh unit and yolk color index were not affected by SSM supplementation (P>0.05). It may be stated that the combined dietary supplementation of safflower-sunflower meal up to 30% of the ratio, ratio had no adverse effects on laying performance and egg quality parameters in quails

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