Storms and chickens

[Danni]

Hey Everyone,

I really hoping someone will be able to help me, I've kept chickens for many years but my friend has come to me asking if I could give her some pointers. She's a dog and cat nutritionist, but has been asked if she could comment on the composition of a broiler starter food. the composition is:

Ingredients, g/kg
Maize			353.7
Wheat			182.0
Soybean meal			360.0
Soybean oil			47.0
Dicalcium phosphate			28.0
Limestone			19.0
DL- Methionine			2.2
L-Lysine			5.0
Sodium bicarbonate - NaHCO3			3.0
Phytase			0.1

Digestible Nutrients & Energy			Amino acids, g/kg
Protein, g/kg	226.20		Arg	13.27
AME, MJ/kg	12.50		Ile	8.26
Ca, g/kg	13.40		Leu	15.81
Total P, g/kg	10.10		Lys	14.50
Available P, g/kg	7.45		Met	5.12
Na	0.93		Cys	3.08
K	9.47		Thr	7.23
Cl	0.70		Trp	3.16
			Val	8.99

Would anyone be able to tell me what the main role for each of the ingredients are, also if there's any formulation issues with this diet and if there are how to correct them.

Thank you ever-so-much for your help, it would be lovely to give her some pointers.

 

[Beantree]

All I can do is compare it with the growers pellets here, which they use for the broilers from 5 weeks until they are slaughtered at 14-16 weeks (or later). Take a while to translate it though as it's in French. But two things I've noticed immediately are the list above has no Copper, nor digestive enzymes that I can see and they are vital for rapid growth. Also our Lysine is 83, not 5. Best if I just type it out tomorrow; might help point you in the right direction?

[mullethunter]

Presumably copper is only needed in trace amounts though and would probably be found in the maize, wheat and soya.

[Danni]

Awww, thank's ever-so-much Beantree, that would be amazing if you could, and thank you for the info so far

[Beantree]

When we bought our broilers their poos were terrible, so presumably the farmer was buying something different or compounding his own, because a week on these pellets and all the poos were normal. Four weeks after that and they started laying, so switched to layers pellets. Occasionally I add some of these rearers pellets for their digestion.

Basic ingredients as percentage:- (some in french)

Protein 16, ash 3.9, fats 3, cellulose 5.8, méthionine 0.39, lysine 0.84, calcium 0.4, phosphorus 0.5, sodium 0.12

Additives per Kg:-

Vitamins A 9000UI, D3 2000UI, E 18UI, copper 10mg, iodine 1.5mg, iron 27mg, manganese 80mg, zinc 55mg, selenium 0.2mg, preservative citric acid, plus digestive enzymes (phytase, beta xylanase, beta glucanase, another beta glucanase).

Perhaps it will help further to compare with UK rearers pellets?