Nutrient utilization, excreta moisture and intestinal viscosity of digesta in broiler chickens fed pearl millet based diet

An experiment was conducted to study the effect of processing and enzyme supplementation in pearl millet based diet for starter (0–4 week) and finisher (4–6 weeks) broilers. Day old broiler chicks (n=400) were randomly distributed into ten treatments having two replicates each. Control T1 (Maize-soybean based diet) was as per BIS (1992) whereas T2- 66 per cent maize replaced with pearl millet, T3- 100 per cent maize replaced with pearl millet, T4 – T1 + multienzyme, T5 – T2 + multienzyme, T6 – T3 + multienzyme, T7 – 66 per cent maize replaced with reconstituted pearl millet, T8 – 100 percent maize replaced with reconstituted pearl millet, T9- T7 + multienzyme and T10- T8 + multienzyme. The results revealed that dry matter retention significantly increased when pearl millet was incorporated at 66 per cent level and reconstituted pearl millet at 66 per cent and 100 per cent level. The significant improvement in per cent nitrogen retention was observed in pearl millet based ration, at all the levels of the substitution as such, reconstituted or with or without enzyme supplementation. The excreta moisture was significantly higher in treatments T2, T3, T6, T7, T8, T9 and T10 as compared to control (T1). Apparently higher intestinal viscosity was recorded in all pearl millet based diet. It was concluded that nitrogen retention, DM retention except (T3) and excreta moisture (except T5) were improved in with or without enzyme supplemented raw pearl millet and reconstituted pearl millet based diet, whereas gross energy metabolizability was lowered in raw pearl millet based diet.