| dc.description.abstract | Two studies were carried out to investigate the effects of feeding mophane worm as a protein
source and cereals as energy sources on the chemical composition of offal and drumsticks of
guinea fowl (Numida meleagris). In study 1, 96 one day old keets were raised under intensive
management system in a typical poultry brooding unit in deep litter and randomly assigned to
four dietary treatments (i.e., 3% fishmeal (control), 4.5% mophane worm meal, 9% mophane
worm meal and 13.5% mophane worm meal). At four weeks of age, the keets were transferred to
16 pens with six birds per pen and four replicates per treatment. Birds were housed on concrete
floor pens with wood shavings as bedding material. The floor space was about 0.06 m2per bird
from one day to the end of experiment. At 13 weeks of age, all birds were sacrificed by cervical
dislocation and thereafter offal and drumsticks were obtained and analysed. Proximate analysis
was carried out on the gizzards, livers, hearts and drumsticks according to the AOAC standard
techniques. Data were analysed using the General Linear Model (GLM) procedure of statistical
analysis system (SAS®) software version 9.2 and least square means were reported. Dietary
treatment had no effect (P>0.05) on the chemical composition of guinea fowl meat and offal at
13 weeks of age. The moisture content of gizzards from birds on 13.5% mophane meal was
numerically higher (76.0±1.6%) than other treatments. Livers, hearts and drumsticks had
73.2±1.5%, 73.6±2.2% and 75.5±1.5%. The gizzards of guinea fowl fed 9% mophane meal had
numerically lower (1.3±0.1%) total ash content compared with livers, hearts and drumsticks that
had 1.33±0.1%, 1.27±0.1% and 1.28±0.8%, respectively…. | en_US |
