*Corresponding Author: M.V.L.N. Raju,
In view of the increasing price of soybean meal, it has become necessary to use alternate protein sources in poultry diets. The feeding value of rice-based DDGS (r-DDGS) was evaluated in the diet of Vanaraja chicks during the nursery phase of rearing.
Two types of rice-based distillers dried grains with solubles (r-DDGS) having high (57%) and medium (47%) crude protein (CP) contents were evaluated separately at 5 and 10% levels in the diet of Vanaraja chicks on isocaloric and isonitrogenous basis and compared with the control diet without r-DDGS. A total of 300 Vanaraja chicks were divided at random into 5 experimental groups with 10 replicates of 6 chicks each and fed the diets during 0 to 6 weeks of life.
The body weight at 6 weeks was significantly (P<0.05) higher at the 5% level of r-DDGS and at the further higher level of 10% r-DDGS, the body weight, however, was similar to that of control. Feed intake was higher in the groups fed r-DDGS, whereas feed conversion efficiency was poor at the higher level of r-DDGS. Serum protein and cholesterol concentration, DM digestibility, protein retention, carcass yields and organ weights were not affected, except for the reduced weight of intestine in the groups fed r-DDGS. No significant differences were observed between the two types of r-DDGS for their effects on the variables studied. It is concluded that r-DDGS could be fed to Vanaraja chicks up to 10% in the diet without affecting growth performance, while beneficial effects on performance were noted at the lower level of 5% r-DDGS in the diet.
Diet, Rice-DDGS, Vanaraja chick
