Abstract

The study investigated the effects of inclusion of various levels of snail offal meal (SOM) on the performance of broiler chickens. The study was carried out in the animal farm of the Department of Animal Science, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka Anambra State. The experiment was designed on a 4×3 Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with four dietary treatments having 0, 2.5, 5 and 7.5% inclusion of SOM over a period of eight weeks. Twelve birds (12) were assigned to each of the dietary treatment and each replicated three times such that each replicate has four birds. The diet with 0% snail offal meal served as the control. The birds were housed in pens measuring 2 × 2 × 2.5 m3. A total of forty eight birds were used for the experiment. Twelve birds were assigned to each of the dietary treatment and each replicated three times such that each replicate has four birds. The diet with 0% snail offal meal served as the control. Results obtained showed that there was a progressive increase in weight gain over time in all the dietary treatment. The highest mean weight gain was recorded in the broilers subjected to treatment with 2.5% inclusion level of SOM. For the feed intake, the highest fed intake was recorded in the treatment with 2.5% SOM inclusion level followed by 7.5% inclusion level while the least was observed in treatment with 5% SOM inclusion level. For the linear body measurements, the highest thigh increase was recorded in treatments with 2.5 and 7.5% SOM inclusion level. For the carcass weight measurement, the broiler chicken fed different levels of SOM recorded high performance in their cut up parts. The treatment with inclusion of 2.5% has the highest mean weight of the cut up parts namely thigh, breast, defeathered and eviscerated while the least was recorded in the treatment with 7.5% SOM inclusion level. For the organ weight measurement, the broiler chicken in treatment with 2.5% SOM inclusion had the highest mean weight of the organs: liver, pancreas, heart, lungs, gizzard, caeca and small intestine while the least was observed in treatment 0% inclusion. The study recommends that waste from micro livestock such as snail should be incorporated in the diets of broiler birds to partially replace fishmeal in poultry feed formulation.

Key words: Linear body measurement, carcass weight, organ weight, growth performance.