Date of Graduation
5-2020
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science in Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences
Degree Level
Undergraduate
Department
Animal Science
Advisor/Mentor
Kidd, Michael
Committee Member/Reader
Wideman, Robert
Committee Member/Second Reader
Erf, Gisela
Abstract
This study measured the effects of dietary Spirulina platensis supplementation on heterophil to lymphocyte ratio, footpad lesions, and growth performance parameters. One hundred and eighty Ross 708 broiler females were randomly divided evenly into fifteen pens with three dietary treatments for a total of five replications per treatment (twelve birds per replicate) for five weeks. The different treatments were a control diet of 20% crude protein, a diet of 17% crude protein, and a diet of 17% crude protein with 10% S. platensis added to the feed. Body weight, feed intake, and mortality rate was not significantly different between treatments (P>0.05). Body weight gain was significantly less among broilers fed Spirulina in their diets (PSpirulina in their diets (P0.05). These results indicate that adding Spirulina to broiler diets does not have any negative effects on the health of the broiler but could have negative impacts on the economic side of poultry production.
Keywords
spirulina, spirulina platensis, broilers, chickens, algae, stress
Citation
Tarkington, V. (2020). Effect of Dietary Spirulina platensis on Stress Levels and Growth of Female Broiler Chickens. Animal Science Undergraduate Honors Theses Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/anscuht/42