Influence of dietary supplementation with kaolin on growth performance and haematological indices of broiler chickens

Abstract

A feeding trial was conducted to assess the impact of dietary kaolin (clay) as a feed additive on the growth performance and haematological characteristics of broiler chickens. A total of 180 day-old Arbour Acres broilers, with an average initial body weight of 50 g, were used for the 56-day experiment, which was arranged in a Completely Randomised Design (CRD). The birds were randomly allotted to five dietary treatments; each was replicated three times with 12 birds per replicate. The treatments consisted of: (1) a control group fed the basal diet only; (2) basal diet supplemented with 10 g kaolin/kg feed; (3) basal diet + 20 g kaolin/kg; (4) basal diet + 30 g kaolin/kg; and (5) basal diet + 40 g kaolin/kg. Results indicated that dietary inclusion of kaolin significantly (p < 0.05) improved growth performance, particularly in feed intake and feed efficiency. Results also showed that birds fed kaolin-supplemented diets had significantly (p <0.05) higher RBC, Hb, and MCV concentrations compared with the control, which supported normal or enhanced haemopoiesis and maintained adequate oxygen transport without causing anaemia. It was therefore concluded that kaolin inclusion in broiler diets has beneficial effects on growth performance without compromising blood cellular constituents.