The Effect of Using Whole Wheat Grain in the Diet of Game Pheasants on their Body Weight, Dimensions and Development of Some Internal Organs

Abstract

The effect of using whole wheat grain in diet of game pheasants on their body weight, dimensions and development of some internal organs. Folia biol. (Kraków) 58: 101-106. The supplementation of game pheasant diet from 5 weeks of age with 30% whole wheat grain instead of feed mixture did not significantly affect their body weight nor most body dimensions. Female and male pheasants fed a diet containing wheat grain had smaller body and trunk lengths, greater chest circumference and greater length of breastbone, and lower thigh and shank size. Female pheasants were characterized by higher indices of compactness and long-leggedness, whereas male pheasants had higher indices of massiveness, compactness and long-leggedness than pheasants fed only feed mixtures. Cock pheasants receiving the wheat diet also had a statistically shorter trunk, however, hens possessed a statistically longer lower thigh. Length of intestine (174.2 cm) and individual parts of the intestine (small intestine 119.9 cm; caeca 43 cm; rectum 11.3 cm) was greater in cocks fed whole wheat grain compared to cocks receiving only feed mixtures (156.1; 107.6; 38.8; 9.7 cm, respectively). An opposite cocks was found in hens. Supplementation of whole wheat grain in the diets significantly (P#0.05) increased liver weight and percentage in females and significantly decreased testicular weight and percentage in males. It was also found that females of both feed-treatment groups had significantly lower weights of heart, liver and spleen, and hens fed only feed mixtures were also characterized by a significantly lower weight of the proventriculus.

Growth and development of young game pheasants (<i>Phasianus colchicus</i>)

“…The mean values of liver percentage were higher than those reported for pheasants aged about 5 months (males 1.30 and 1.48 %, females 1.38 %) by Ricard and Petitjean (1989) and for 20-week-old birds (control group 1.65 %, caponized group 1.72 %) by Severin et al (2006). Liver content in the analysed females was higher than in males, just as in 16-week-old pheasants fed a diet containing whole wheat grain (Kokoszyński et al 2010). The heart content in males was similar or the same, and in females lower than in earlier research (Ricard & Petitjean 1989, Kokoszyński et al 2010, whereas spleen percentage was lower than in breeding pheasants (males 0.11, females 0.12 %) of similar age investigated by Hell et al (2003).…”

“…Liver content in the analysed females was higher than in males, just as in 16-week-old pheasants fed a diet containing whole wheat grain (Kokoszyński et al 2010). The heart content in males was similar or the same, and in females lower than in earlier research (Ricard & Petitjean 1989, Kokoszyński et al 2010, whereas spleen percentage was lower than in breeding pheasants (males 0.11, females 0.12 %) of similar age investigated by Hell et al (2003).…”

“…Percentage of gizzard (ventriculus) in the analysed birds was greater than in pheasants of similar age (males 1.16 and 1.33 %, females 1.36 %) studied by Ricard and Petitjean (1989). Meanwhile, Kokoszyński et al (2010) found higher gizzard content in the body of males (1.6 %) and the same content in females (1.7 %) receiving only feed mixtures at 16 weeks of age as in the analysed birds, whereas Marzoni et al (2005) reported higher gizzard content in 120-day-old pheasants (control group 1.9 %, experimental group 1.8 %). The mean values of liver percentage were higher than those reported for pheasants aged about 5 months (males 1.30 and 1.48 %, females 1.38 %) by Ricard and Petitjean (1989) and for 20-week-old birds (control group 1.65 %, caponized group 1.72 %) by Severin et al (2006).…”

“…Reproductive organs of pheasants grow to 24 weeks of age with intensive development in February and March, which precedes the onset of lay (Mróz 2003). The structure, weight and length of the digestive tract and other internal organs of pheasants depend, among others, on housing system, nutrition and gender (Marzoni et al 2005, Baohua et al 2010, Kokoszyński et al 2010, Ricard & Petitjean 1989, Hell et al 2003.…”

The effect of feed additives in pheasants fattening: A review

“…Reproductive organs of pheasants grow to 24 weeks of age with intensive development in February and March, which precedes the onset of lay (Mroz, 2003). The structure, weight and length of the digestive tract and other internal organs of pheasants depend, among others, on housing system, nutrition and gender (Ricard and Petitjean, 1989;Hell et al, 2003;Marzoni et al, 2005;Baohua et al, 2010;Kokoszyński et al, 2010). Male and female game pheasants evaluated in other studies were characterized by lower body weight at 4, 8, 12, 16 and 20 weeks of age compared to those analysed in the present experiment (Adamski and Kuźniacka, 2006;Ipek and Dikmen, 2007).…”