Vol. 12, Special Issue 7 (2023)

Author(s):
Optimization threonine requirements for commercial broilers

Abstract:
A study on 250 commercial broilers (Ven Cobb) was conducted to evaluate the graded concentration of digestible threonine (75, 70, 65, and 60% of the digestible lysine) in broiler diets. The chicks were allocated into five treatments, each containing ten replicates and five chicks, owing to a completely random design. During the experiment, the birds were fed a diet made of corn and soy. Throughout the study period, supplementing digestible threonine at graded concentrations (75, 70, 65, and 60% of digestible Lysine) had no impact on growth rate, feed intake and FCR. Supplementing commercial broiler diets with digestible threonine in varied concentrations had no effect on the carcass characteristics, such as the dressing percentage, breast yield and abdominal fat weight. There was no significant difference in the serum biochemical constituents (glucose, uric acid, HDL, and LDL) between treatment groups. The very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) and serum triglycerides contents in Commercial broilers, however, significantly affected by variations in digestible threonine concentrations. In comparison to other treatment groups, the threonine supplemenation at 75% digestible lysine revealed increased VLDL concentration. It is concluded that digestible threonine concentrations during the pre-starter, starter, and finisher phases at 0.708, 0.630, and 0.570% (60% of the digestible lysine), respectively, are sufficient to optimise the production performance in commercial broilers without having a negative impact on the carcass and serum biochemical profile.