• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.7-13
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• 2001

This study conducted to investigate the effects of feeding Fermkito 50 on the egg production and egg quality hens. One hundred forty four, 50 weeks old ISA brown commercial layer, were used in a 28 d growth assay. Dietary treatments included 1) control(basal diet), 2) FERMO.5(based diet+0.5% Fermkito), 2) FERM1.0(basal diet+1.0% Fermkito), 3) FERM+YU(basal diet+0.5% Fermkito and 0.05% yucca extract). Overall (d 0 to 28), egg production tended to increase as the concentration of Fermkito 50 in the diets was increased without significant difference(P〈0.05). As adding level of Fermkito 50 increased in the diets, egg weight tended to increase. Laying hens fed FERM+YU diet were higher egg weight than laying hens fed control diet(P〈0.05). Egg shell breaking strength was not influenced by Fermkito 50. As adding level of Fermkito 50 was increased in the diets, yolk color tended to increase. Laying hens fed FERM+YU diet had improved egg yolk index compared to laying hens fed control diet. Total-cholesterol of egg yolk in FERM1.0 and FERM+YU treatments was significantly decreased compared to that in control diet(p〈0.05). Total-cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations in serum tended to increase as the concentration of Fermkito 50 in the diets was decreased(P〈0.05). Also, HDL-cholesterol concentration in serum with FERM1.0 and FEUM+YU treatments was significantly higher than control diet(P〈0.05). However, LDL-cholesterol concentration in serum with FERM1.0 and FERM0.5+YU treatments was significantly lower than control diet(P〈0.05). In conclusion, supplemental Fermkito 50 in laying hen diets can be used to improve egg quality.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.35 no.9
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• pp.1426-1433
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• 2022

Objective: The present research was conducted to evaluate the interactive effect of dietary concentration of calcium (Ca) and 25-hydroxy vitamin D3 (25OHD3) on the performance, blood composition and digestibility of laying hens. Methods: A total of 540 Hy-line brown laying hens aged 61 to 70 weeks were randomly allotted in a 3×3 factorial arrangement, consisting of three levels of 25OHD3 (0, 25, and 50 ㎍/kg) and three levels of Ca (3.5%, 4.0%, and 4.5%). All diets had basal concentration of 3,000 IU/kg of vitamin D3 including the 2,800 kcal/kg of metabolic energy and 16% of crude protein. Results: The results showed that interactive effect (p<0.05) between Ca and 25OHD3 was such that dietary 25OHD3 linearly increased interleukin-6 at all levels of Ca inclusion. Interaction (p<0.05) occurred with the highest parathyroid hormone in laying hens that received dietary concentration of Ca (3.5%) with 25OHD3 (50 ㎍/kg), and Ca (4.0%) with 25OHD3 (50 ㎍/kg). Egg production and egg weight significantly (p<0.05) increased in the 4.5% Ca group compared to the 3.5% to 4.0% Ca groups. Egg shell thickness and tibia bone length also increased (p<0.05) in groups fed a high-Ca diet (4.0% to 4.5%). Phosphorus digestibility significantly (p<0.05) increased along with dietary Ca level. Among the tested 25OHD3 groups, higher (p<0.05) egg production and tibia thickness were present in hens fed 50 ㎍/kg of 25OHD3. Furthermore, Ca digestibility serum Ca and 25OHD3 were significantly increased in group offered 50 ㎍/kg of 25OHD3. Conclusion: The results gathered in this study indicate that dietary concentrations of 4.0% to 4.5% Ca and 50 ㎍/kg 25OHD3 improve the performance of hens from 61 to 70 weeks of age.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.498-505
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• 2023

Objective: This study was conducted to determine the optimal dose of novel iron amino acid complexes (Fe-Lys-Glu) by measuring laying performance, egg quality, egg iron (Fe) concentrations, and blood biochemical parameters in laying hens. Methods: A total of 1,260 18-week-old healthy Beijing White laying hens were randomly divided into 7 groups with 12 replicates of 15 birds each. After a 2-wk acclimation to the basal diet, hens were fed diets supplemented with 0 (negative control, the analyzed innate iron content was 75.06 mg/kg), 15, 30, 45, 60, and 75 mg Fe/kg as Fe-Lys-Glu or 45 mg Fe/kg from FeSO₄ (positive control) for 24 wk. Results: Results showed that compared with the negative and positive control groups, dietary supplementation with 30 to 75 mg Fe/kg from Fe-Lys-Glu significantly (linear and quadratic, p<0.05) increased the laying rate (LR) and average daily egg weight (ADEW); hens administered 45 to 75 mg Fe/kg as Fe-Lys-Glu showed a remarkable (linear, p<0.05) decrease in feed conversion ratio. There were no significant differences among all groups in egg quality. The iron concentrations in egg yolk and serum were elevated by increasing Fe-Lys-Glu levels, and the highest iron content was found in 75 mg Fe/kg group. In addition, hens fed 45 mg Fe/kg from Fe-Lys-Glu had (linear and quadratic, p<0.05) higher yolk Fe contents than that with the same dosage of FeSO₄ supplementation. The red blood cell (RBC) count and hemoglobin content (linear and quadratic, p<0.05) increased obviously in the groups fed with 30 to 75 mg Fe/kg as Fe-Lys-Glu in comparison with the control group. Fe-Lys-Glu supplementation also (linear and quadratic, p<0.05) enhanced the activity of copper/zinc-superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn-SOD) in serum, as a result, the serum malonaldehyde content (linear and quadratic, p<0.05) decreased in hens received 60 to 75 mg Fe/kg as Fe-Lys-Glu. Conclusion: Supplementation Fe-Lys-Glu in laying hens could substitute for FeSO₄ and the optimal additive levels of Fe-Lys-Glu are 45 mg Fe/kg in layers diets based on the quadratic regression analysis of LR, ADEW, RBC, and Cu/Zn-SOD.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.181-187
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• 2000

This work was designed to investigate the performances of broiler breeder hens upon the addition were vitamin and mineral supplements in feeds. Animals were divided into for feed groups such as control, T$_1$,T$_2$and T$_3$, and each treatment has four replications. All broiler breeder hens were housed individually, and were fed with identical iso-metaboilic energy and iso-protein, except for vitamins and minerals. Different sources and levels of vitamins and minerals were added to the basic feeds according to the treatments. At the end of the experiments, general laying rate(hen days), average egg weight, hatching egg laying rate(Hen day) every day. Hatching egg weight, sterility, embryo mortality, hatching rate and chick weight were examined. Although, early laying rate in all treatment groups were reduced during cold term management, general egg laying rate was increased only T$_3$group which was contanining vitamin C. However, similar results were obtained in the rates of general and hatching egg laying. General egg laying rate were somewhat higher of Control, T$_2$and T$_3$ groups than that of T$_1$group. In addition, the laying rates of general and hatching eggs slightly improved in the T$_3$group rather than those of Control group. Egg weight was reduced with the increasing of laying rate, showing the highest in the T$_3$group. The laying rate showed significantly lower value than those of any other groups. Egg weight was about 65g in T$_3$group. The results of hatching performance for production ability of Broiler breeder hens were fed experimental diet, although the rates of non-hatched and hatched eggs increased in order of Control, T$_1$T$_2$and T$_3$groups. However, the rate of embryo mortality was declined in order Control, T$_1$T$_2$and T$_3$groups.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.887-894
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• 2016

This study was conducted to compare the effects of layout of furniture (a perch, nest, and sandbox) in cages on behavior and welfare of hens. Two hundred and sixteen Hyline Brown laying hens were divided into five groups (treatments) with four replicates per group: small furnished cages (SFC), medium furnished cages type I (MFC-I), medium furnished cages type II (MFC-II), and medium furnished cages type III (MFC-III) and conventional cages (CC). The experiment started at 18 week of age and finished at 52 week of age. Hens' behaviors were filmed during the following periods: 8:00 to 10:00; 13:00 to 14:00; 16:00 to 17:00 on three separate days and two hens from each cage were measured for welfare parameters at 50 wk of age. The results showed that feeding and laying of all hens showed no effect by cage type (p>0.05), and the hens in the furnished cages had significantly lower standing and higher walking than CC hens (p<0.05). The birds in MFC-III had significant higher preening, scratching and feather-pecking behavior than in the other cages (p<0.05). No difference in nesting behavior was found in the hens between the furnished cages (p>0.05). The hens in MFC-I, -II, and -III showed a significant higher socializing behavior than SFC and CC (p<0.05). The lowest perching was for the hens in SFC and the highest perching found for the hens in MFC-III. Overall, the hens in CC showed poorer welfare conditions than the furnished cages, in which the feather condition score, gait score and tonic immobility duration of the hens in CC was significantly higher than SFC, MFC-I, MFC-II, and MFC-III (p<0.05). In conclusion, the furnished cage design affected both behavior and welfare states of hens. Overall, MFC-III cage design was better than SFC, MFC-I, and MFC-II cage designs.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.62 no.2
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• pp.276-291
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• 2020

This study was conducted to investigate behavioral changes in laying hens (Hy-Line Brown) after transfer to a multi-tier system from the floor system and to examine their production performance. The hens were randomly divided into two groups and were allocated to the multi-tier system and the floor system at a commercial farm. Behavior of the laying hens was recorded by CCD (charge-coupled device) cameras and a digital video recorder. The data were scanned every 2 min to obtain an instantaneous behavioral sample or were immediately counted whenever the hens exhibited a designated behavior. Behavior changed dramatically during the first seven days. Egg production was higher in the multi-tier system, while cracked and dirty eggs were more frequent in the floor system (p < 0.05). No differences in mortality rate or egg quality were observed between the groups. In conclusion, the hens needed at least seven days to adapt to the multi-tier system. The multi-tier system was more efficient than the floor system in terms of production performance.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.277-285
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• 2020

Objective: This study was performed to investigate the effects of supplementing sesame seed meal (SSM) with phytase and lysine on performance, egg quality, blood biochemical and antioxidant status of laying hens. Methods: A total of 960, 56-wk-old laying hens were divided into 12 dietary groups with eight replicates per group (10 birds per replicate). A completely randomized design with factorial arrangement 2×3×2 consisted of two levels of lysine supplement (0% and 10% over requirement), three SSM levels (0%, 10%, and 20%) with or without phytase (0 and 300 g/ton). The feeding trial lasted 10 weeks. Results: Birds fed diets with 10% SSM had higher feed intake than groups fed 0% and 20% SSM. The addition of phytase to experimental feeds, improved feed conversion ratio, increased egg weight and mass (p<0.01). Egg quality criteria was not affected by supplementing phytase; however, supplementing 300 g/ton phytase to hens diet, led to a significant (p<0.05) increase in egg shell strength. Egg yolk cholesterol and serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, atherogenic index and total cholesterol were decreased (p<0.01) by diet containing 20% SSM. The high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was increased (p<0.05) in serum of hens fed 20% SSM than the other groups. It was also observed that total antioxidant capacity and total superoxide dismutase content of hens fed 20% SSM was significantly higher than control group (p<0.05). Conclusion: As from results, dietary supplementation of SSM and phytase had no negative effects on laying hens performance or egg quality while improving the egg oxidative stability.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.20 no.10
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• pp.1606-1611
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• 2007

The experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of dihydropyridine on laying performance and fat metabolism of laying hens. Five hundred and forty laying hens, 40 weeks old, were randomly allotted to three groups, each of which included four replicates of 45 hens. The groups were given a basal corn-soybean meal diet supplemented with 0, 150 mg/kg and 300 mg/kg dihydropyridine. Results showed that compared with the control group (0 mg/kg dihydropyridine), supplements of 150 and 300 mg/kg dihydropyridine increased egg production rate by 9.39% (p<0.01) and 12.97% (p<0.01), increased mean egg weight by 3% (p>0.05) and 4.8% (p>0.05), and improved feed efficiency by 9.54% (p<0.05) and 7.25% (p<0.05), respectively; The addition of 150 and 300 mg/kg dihydropyridine decreased percentage of abdominal fat by 35.4% (p<0.05) and 46.9% (p<0.05), decreased liver fat content by 32.4% (p<0.05) and 10.5% (p<0.05), increased HSL activity of abdominal fat by 39.64% (p<0.05) and 48.48% (p<0.05), increased HSL activity of liver by 9.4% (p>0.05) and 47.34% (p<0.05) and increased the content of cAMP in adenohypophysis by 14.67% (p<0.05) and 10.91% (p<0.05), respectively; The inclusion of 150 mg/kg dihydropyridine increased liver superoxide dismutase activity by 69.61% (p<0.05), and increased hepatic apoB concentration by 53.96% (p<0.05); The supplementation of 150 or 300 mg/kg dihydropyridine decreased malondialdehyde concentration of hepatic mitochondria by 30.90% (p<0.01) and 10.39% (p<0.05), respectively; Supplemented dihydropyridine had no significant effects on TG, Ch HDL-C and VLDL-C concentrations in serum; addition of 150 or 300 mg/kg dihydropyridine increased T3 levels in serum by 15.34% (p<0.05) and 11.88% (p<0.05) and decreased insulin concentration by 40.44% (p<0.05) and 54.37% (p<0.05), respectively. The results demonstrated that adding dihydropyridine had the tendency of improving very low density lipoprotein receptor (VLDLR) content in the ovary. It was concluded that dihydropyridine could improve laying performance and regulate the fat metabolism of laying hens and that 150 mg/kg dihydropyridine is the optimum dose for laying birds in practical conditions.

• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.205-218
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• 2008

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary pitamin, pine bark extracts, as a organic livestock feed additives on the egg production and egg quality of laying hens. One hundred-fifty laying hens (Hyline brown) were randomly allocated to one of the following 3 treatment groups for 6 weeks: control, pitamin 0.1% and pitamin 0.2%. The egg production of hens fed the diet containing 0.1% pitamin was similar to that of the control; however, the egg production of the pitamin 0.2% group was significantly lower than that of the other groups (p<0.05). Additionally, the Haugh unit was higher in groups fed diets that contained 0.1% or 0.2% pitamin than in the control group (p<0.05), but no significant difference in egg shell thickness and egg shell breaking was observed between the pitamin 0.1% group and the control group. Furthermore, the concentration of cholesterol in eggs produced by the pitamin 0.1% group was significantly lower than that of the other groups (p<0.05). Moreover, the saturated fatty acid content of eggs from hens in the pitamin 0.2% group was lower than that of eggs produced by hens in the other groups, whereas the unsaturated fatty acid content of eggs produced by hens in the pitamin 0.2% group was higher than that of eggs produced by hens in the other groups (p<0.05). Finally, the values corresponding to the storage days, Haugh unit, yolk index and albumin index of eggs produced by hens that were provided with a diet that contained 0.1% or 0.2% pitamin were significantly higher than those of the control group (p<0.05). Taken together, these results suggest that providing hens with a diet supplemented with 0.1% pitamin as a organic livestock feed additives may extend the shelf-life of eggs with maintaining the egg quality and egg production in laying hens.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.22 no.12
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• pp.1661-1666
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• 2009

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of Se-enriched bean sprout, Se-enriched yeast and sodium selenite on productivity, egg quality and egg Se concentrations in laying hens. Using a Completely Randomized Design, 144 Rohman laying hens at 71 weeks of age were divided into four groups. Each group consisted of four replicates and each replicate contained nine hens. The dietary treatments were T1: control diet, T2: control diet plus 0.3 mg Se/kg from sodium selenite, T3: control diet plus 0.3 mg Se/kg from Se-enriched yeast, T4: control diet plus 0.3 mg Se/kg from Se-enriched bean sprout. The results showed that there was no significant difference (p>0.05) in feed intake, egg production and egg quality among treatments. Selenium supplementation from Seenriched yeast and Se-enriched bean sprout markedly increased (p<0.05) egg Se concentration as compared to the control and sodium selenite groups. The results indicated that Se-enriched bean sprout could be used as an alternative Se source in diets of laying hens.