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Vitamins in poultry nutrition
Vitamins are a group of organic compounds that poultry require in small quantities. Despite the low requirement levels, vitamins are essential for normal body functions, growth, and reproduction. A deficiency of one or more vitamins can lead to a number of diseases or syndromes. Vitamins are divided into two categories: fat-soluble and water-soluble. The fat-soluble vitamins are A, D, E, and K. Vitamin A is required for normal growth and development of epithelial tissue (skin and the linings of the digestive, reproductive, and respiratory tracts) and reproduction. Vitamin D3 is required for normal growth, bone development, and eggshell formation. Vitamin K is essential for blood clot formation. The water-soluble vitamins include vitamin C and the B vitamins. The B vitamins include vitamin B12, biotin, folacin, niacin, pantothenic acid, pyridoxine, riboflavin, and thiamin. The B vitamins are involved in many metabolic functions, including energy metabolism. Poultry can make vitamin C, so there is no dietary requirement established for this vitamin. Vitamin C supplementation is useful when birds are in stress.
Poultry feeds are referred to as "complete" feeds because they contain all the protein, energy, vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients necessary for proper growth, egg production, and health of the birds. Feeding any other ingredients, mixed with the feed or fed separately, upsets the balance of nutrients in the "complete" feed. Feeding additional grain or supplement with the complete poultry feed is not recommended. Young chickens or broilers kept for meat production are fed...
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An experiment was conducted using ninety-six, day old broiler chicks to study the effect of inclusion of heat-treated rock phosphate (HTRP) instead of dicalcium phosphate (DCP) on performance of broilers. Total four diets were tested. Control diet (T1) was prepared using maize 54.08 %, soybean meal 25.73 %, deoiled rice polish 9.19 %, fishmeal 8.00 %, mineral mixture (MM) 3.0 % and vitamin supplements. All the diets were isonitrogenous and isocaloric (22% CP and 2800 kcal ME/kg). ...
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SELENIUM: AN ESSENTIAL TRACE ELEMENT Incorporation of essential trace elements into the diets of all animals is required for maintenance of health, growth, and myriad biochemicalphysiological functions (Scott et al., 1982). Among these essential trace elements is selenium (Se). Selenium was discovered by Berzelius in Sweden in 1818, but a biological significance of this element was not recognized until it was identified as the toxic agent associated with ‘alkali disease’, now...
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The current physiological status of broiler breeder hens and how to meet their nutritional requirements has recently been examined (Renema and Robinson, 2004). The amazing genetic progress of modern breeders was greatly emphasized. Modern broiler stocks can grow at 4.6 times the rate of a 1957 random-bred strain (Havenstein et al., 2003a). The 6-fold improvement in carcass yield of 2001 stock fed a 2001-type diet compared to 1957 birds fed a 1957 diet is 85-90% due to genetics and only 10-15%...
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In 1974, when the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved selenium as a feed supplement, inorganic selenium, primarily as sodium selenite, became the traditional source for dietary supplemental selenium for poultry and livestock (Leeson and Summers, 1991). That decision in 1974 was based on cost of the selenium supplements and lack of information on selenomethionine, and it was ironic because the commonly used plant- and animal-based feed ingredients contain selenium almost...
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Zinc (Zn) is an essential nutrient for the normal growth and feathering of chicks (O’Dell and Savage, 1957; 1960). The zinc requirement for chicks was first defined as 30 ppm by Roberson and Schaible (1958) and later revised to 40 ppm for broilers (NRC, 1994). However, much of the data on which these requirements were based may not be applicable to modern commercial poultry strains (Leeson, 2005). Concomitantly, in recent years organically-complexed mineral sources, e.g., proteinates...
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Nutritional needs of food animals must be met by provision of nutrients from plants, soil, and even from prey animals. Many of the potential nutrients are minerals that exist in chemical complexes that are not readily available. This condition is advantageous for animals because many of the minerals can be toxic, but nutritionists have demonstrated that a large number of minerals, either as macronutrients or as micronutrients, are required for normal growth and development of animals...
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Dietary minerals are vital for maintaining life. They are involved in a myriad of metabolic and physiological processes critical to human and animal health and general well-being. With advances in mineral nutrition and detection capabilities, the importance of consuming adequate amounts of macro- (Ca, P, Na, Cl, Mg, K and S) and microminerals (Co, Cu, F, I, Fe, Mn, Mo, Se and Zn) has been emphasized. Furthermore, the function and deficiency/toxicity syndromes of most minerals...
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