• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.581-585
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• 2011

Either the fasting during natural molting or the starvation in induced molting would be a severe metabolic stress to laying hens. The metabolic stress during starvation and subsequent refeeding syndrome could lead to unbalance of mineral homeostasis, including $Mg^{2+}$, $K^+$ and P required by ATP synthesis. Since $Mg^{2+}$ is a fundamental ion for normal metabolic processes and stress may not only increase in demands of $Mg^{2+}$ but also produce consequence of $Mg^{2+}$ deficiency, we investigated the changes of blood ionized and total ions related to starvation during molting in laying hens. We founded the significant decrease in blood $Mg^{2+}$ and $K^+$ accompanied by the changes of biochemical parameters relating to increased metabolic stress after molting. These results suggested that appropriate $Mg^{2+}$ and $K^+$ supplements to laying hens could have beneficial effects during molting and subsequent refeeding that could produce a severe hypomagnesemia and hypokalcemia.