Performance of broiler chicken on different litter materials under heat stress condition

Four hundred fifty day-old chicks were randomly allocated to 30 pens in an open sided partially controlled house to compare the feasibility of readily available and economical litter sources viz. cow dung (CD), shredded paper (SP), barley stalks (BS), rice husks (RH) and a mixture of them vis-a-vis wood shavings for rearing of broiler chicken under heat stress conditions. Average daily gain (1–14d), carcass weight (42d), feed intake (29–42 and 1–42 d), feed conversion efficiency (1–14d) were significantly influenced by type of litter (P<0.05). The litter pH (at 1, 14, 28 and 42d) differed significantly for various litter materials. The initial pH for all litters consistently declined up to 14d and then gradually increased till the end of the experiment. The mean moisture per cent was significantly different for various litters at 56d with the highest and lowest percentages for RH and CD, respectively. It may be concluded that CD, SP, RH and BS could successfully be used as alternative bedding materials for broiler chicken under extreme ambient temperatures where birds are under heat stress.