The Effect of Amino Acid Supplementation to Raw Soybeans and Cotton-Seed Meal on the Growth and Body Composition of Growing Chicks

Abstract

A study was conducted with 224 Baladi White (B.W.) laying-type chicks from the age of 1-day old to 8 weeks to investigate the effect of supplementing raw soybeans (RSB) or cottonseed meal (CSM) with probably deficient amino acids on the growth, performance and body composition.
Chicks fed the CSM rations were superior in their body weight than chicks fed the RSB rations indicating the relatively inferior quality of RSB. Addition of amino acids to RSB orCSM rations had practically no effect on thegrowthofchicksbut waseffective in reducing the mortality rate in the RSB-fed chicks.
Dressing and boneless meat percentages were higher in chicks fed the CSM as compared to those fed the RSB. Addition of methionine and cystine to CSM or RSB rations was correlated with higher concentrations of these amino acids in the whole chick bodies.