Nitrogen and phosphorus utilization and amino acid digestibility in young chickens, ducks and geese fed triticale diets supplemented with enzymes

Two experiments on 7-day-old male chickens (middle-heavy Messa 243 and Vede tte hybrid), ducks (Barbarie and Mulard) and Landaise 1. and 2. geese were simultaneously carried out. The birds were divided into three groups (consi sting of 27 battery-cages in each experiment) and kept under the same condi tions. The animals were fed semi ad libitum with two mixtures containing 54 % ground maize and wheat (I) or 40% triticale (II). The calculated contents of pentosanes in the mixtures were 27.9 or 32.8 g/kg and beta-glucan 6.2 o r 6.1 g/kg, respectively. The mixtures contained the crude protein at a mea n of 22.5%. The metabolizable energy level was 11.2-11.4 MJ/kg of the mixtu re. The animals of all species were fed with control mixture (I), experimen tal mixture (II) or experimental mixture supplemented with 200 p.p.m, of Ro xazyme G (III). In each experiment two series of N and P balances were carried out and the apparent digestibility of amino acids was evaluated. All means of the N and P utilization were high and as follows: for chickens 47% (N) and 51% for P , for ducks 47.8 and 54.5% and for geese 50.9 and 50.8%, respectively. One unexpected profitable result obtained in negative control groups (II), conc erned the Roxazyme supplement in the tricticale mixtures which in some case s was more effective. Enzyme supplementation caused a negative reaction in the slowly growing Messa chickens only, while in the Vedette hybrids the me ans for group II and III differed slightly. In contrast, in young ducks the enzyme supplementation caused an increase i n N utilization at 6.5% (Barbarie) and 4.8% (Mulard) as well as a higher le vel of phosphorus utilization (6.8 and 3.1%, respectively. In geese, the gr oup differences were lower and amounted to approximately 3.7% (Landaise I, 2) for nitrogen and 3.8% or 4.5% for phosphorus utilization. In the apparen t digestibility of amino acids a lower changeability was noted. Supplementa tion of Roxazyme G increased the apparent digestibility of amino acids in c hickens only; in the other bird species this effect was not observed.