Growth Performance, Carcass Characteristics and Serum Biochemicals of Japanese Quails Fed with Oat Bran (<i>Avena sativa</i>) and Dill Seed (<i>Anethum graveolens</i>)

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the additional effects of two ground medicinal herbs oat bran (OB) and dill seed (DS) on serum lipids, carcass characteristics and growth performance in Japanese quails. A total of 240-twenty one day of age male Japanese quails were allocated randomly to 3 treatments with 4 replicates of 20 birds per cage. Birds during the 22-49 days on trial received 3 dietary treatments: 1) control diet, 2) diets with 3% OB and 3) diets with 3% DS. From 4-7 weeks of age, body weight gain was higher for OB-fed birds (P<0.05) compared to other treatments, while the body weight gain of DS-fed birds was intermediate (P>0.05). Birds that received diet containing DS consumed significantly (P<0.05) lower feed compared to two other groups. Over the experimental period<em>feed conversion ratio</em> (FCR) was significantly improved in the group that received 3% DS compared to other treatments (P<0.05). Carcass weight and carcass components was not positively influenced by the dietary treatments (P>0.05). Both DS and BO-fed birds showed significantly (P<0.05) lower very <em>low density lipoprotein</em> (VLDL) and triglyceride serum compared to control group. Furthermore, feeding DS significantly decreased the testosterone level of serum as compared to the control birds. DS group were very calm during the experiment which is a desirable effect from a management and nutrition points of view. Taken together, these results suggest the beneficial effects of DS on growth performance, efficiency of feed utilization and behavior of quails; thus, it can be considered as a potential natural growth promoter for quails breeding.