CONSEQUENCES OF ADDING BETAINE IN DUCKLINGS’ DIETS ON PERFORMANCE DURING THE FIRST TWO WEEKS OF AGE | ||
| Zagazig Journal of Agricultural Research | ||
| Volume 52, Issue 4, July and August 2025, Pages 897-905 PDF (864.24 K) | ||
| Document Type: Original Article | ||
| DOI: 10.21608/zjar.2025.451803 | ||
| Authors | ||
| Abd-Alwahab A. Abd-Elwahab* ; I. E. Ismail; M. S. El-Kholy; Laila A. Mohamed | ||
| Poultry Dept., Fac. of Agric., Zagazig Univ., 44511, Egypt | ||
| Abstract | ||
| This study was designed to evaluate the effects of dietary betaine supplementation at two levels (1.5 and 2.0 g/kg diet) on growth performance parameters of growing ducks during the first two weeks of age. A total of 150 healthy one- day-old Pekin ducks were randomly distributed into 3 experimental groups. Each group contained 5 replicates with 10 birds each. The first group received the standard diet with no supplementation, while the 2nd and 3rd groups received the standard diet supplemented with 1.5 and 2.0 g betaine per kg diet, respectively. The results showed that the live body weight (LBW) at the end of the first week was not significantly (P = 0.643) different among treatment groups. However, by the end of the second week, birds fed 2.0 g/kg betaine exhibited significantly (P = 0.039) higher LBW compared to the control group, with the 1.5 g/kg group showing intermediate values. Daily body weight gain (DBWG) during the first week was not affected (P = 0.361) by betaine supplementation. In contrast, during the second week (1–2 weeks), the 2.0 g/kg betaine group recorded the highest DBWG, which was significantly (P = 0.027) higher than the control group. Similarly, over the entire 0–2-week period, both betaine-treated groups had significantly greater (P = 0.029) DBWG compared to the control. Dietary betaine had no significant influence on daily feed intake (DFI) during 0-1 (P = 0. 200), 1-2 (P = 0. 400), and 0-2 (P = 0. 332) weeks of age. However, feed conversion ratio (FCR) was significantly improved with betaine supplementation, particularly at 2.0 g/kg. While no significant differences were found during the first week (P = 0.232), the 2.0 g/kg group showed a significantly better FCR during the second week and the overall period compared to the control group (P = 0.025 and 0.048, respectively). In summary, dietary betaine, especially at 2.0 g/kg, enhanced growth performance and feed efficiency without affecting feed intake, suggesting its potential benefit in improving productivity of ducklings during the early growth phase. | ||
| Keywords | ||
| Ducklings; Betaine; Early growth performance | ||
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