ABSTRACT Fifty hens and five cocks from a random mating population of light local chicken ecotype (LLCE) were mated and the fertile eggs hatched to obtain the parent generation (G0) used for this study aimed at improving egg production traits in the LLCE using a selection index. The hens were monitored for short-term (90-days from first day of lay) egg production traits namely: Body Weight at First Egg (BWFE), Average Egg Weight (AEW) and Total Egg Number (TEN). Data obtained were subjected t...
ABSTRACT This study was conducted to investigate the effect of 45 and 60 minutes of exposure of crossbred (LW x Local) and exotic (LW) boars to tropical solar radiation on their body temperature pattern, libido, semen quality and haematological profile. 12 LW x Local and 12 LW boars of 10 months old were used for the experiment. The experiment was carried out in the Piggery Unit of the Department of Animal Science Farm, University of Nigeria, Nsukka for a period of eight weeks (4 weeks for th...
ABSTRACT An experiment was conducted to determine the metabolizable energy of maize pap waste (MPW) and rice milling waste (RMW) using adult male broiler birds. Eighteen male adult broiler birds were used in the experiment. Eight birds were assigned to each of the feedstuff with two birds left unfed which served as the negative control. Each of the samples was ground, made into slurry and force-fed to sixteen 10-week old finisher broiler birds that had been starved for 30 hours. The droppings...
ABSTRACT This study was to determine the effect of probiotics (L. acidophilus) on growth performance, carcass yield, and serum cholesterol level of broiler birds. A total of 128 day – old Anak broiler chicks were used for the study. The birds were randomly divided into four treatment groups T1, T2, T3, and T4 which contained 0.0g/ml, 0.4g/ml, 0.6g/ml and 0.8g/ml L. acidophilus respectively. Thirty-two birds were assigned to each treatment group which was replicated four times with 8 birds p...
ABSTRACT Two experiments were conducted at the piggery unit of the Department of Animal Science Farm, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, from July 2007 to March 2009, to determine the effect of nutrition and body condition at first mating on the reproductive performance of gilts. The first experiment evaluated the effects of feeding different combinations of protein and energy diets on age at onset of first observed oestrus, growth rate, backfat reserve and body condition score of the gilts from ...
Abstract A 56 day experiment was conducted to determine the effect of different dietary levels of palm oil sludge on the growth performance, carcass trait, and economic cost of feeding local turkeys. Forty local poults (mixed sexes) were randomly assigned to five treatment groups with eight poults per treatment. Each treatment was replicated twice with four poults per replicate in a completely randomized design. The poults were fed commercial broiler starter ration containing 24% crude protei...
ABSTRACT Twenty-four weaner pigs were used in a study to evaluate the response of weaner and grower pigs to diets containing graded levels of toasted soybean hull (SBH).In experiment 1(growing phase), twenty-four male hybrid (large white x landrace) weaner pigs, about 6 weeks old, weighing 5.92-6.85kg were randomly divided into four groups of six pigs each using a completely randomized design (CRD). Each group was randomly assigned to one of the four diets (1, 2, 3 and 4) containing 0% (contr...
ABSTRACT A 16-week study was conducted to investigate the effect of dietary protein and energy levels on the growth performance of African giant land snail (Achatina achatina). Two hundred and forty eight weeks old African giant land snails were used for the study. The snails were randomly divided into 16 groups of 15 snails each. The groups were randomly assigned to 16 diets in a 4 x 4 factorial arrangement involving four levels ((18%, 20%, 22%, and 24%) of protein and four energy levels (2....
In sheep production, the choice of bedding materials affects production, animal growth, and animal welfare; therefore a balance must exist between animal comfort, and well being, cleanliness, and efficiency. This study investigated the preference of weaned ram lambs raised on three bedding materials (Sand, Straw, and Wood shavings) and Cement floor. A total of Eight (8) ram lambs (10-15kg) were randomly housed in a pen that was subdivided into 4 areas. Three of these areas had 1 of the 3 type...
Abstract Diagnosis of trypanosome infections in tsetse (Glossina spp.) is currently based on dissection and microscopic examination of different organs of the vector for the presence of infecting trypanosomes. This procedure is slow and labour intensive, and it is not accurate. The work reported in this thesis was conducted with the objective of developing a field applicable, monoclonal antibody (MoAb)-based assay for the detection of, and differentiation between trypanosome species in infect...
ABSTRACT The ecology and biology of ijacromigcholdes aculeatus have been studied# The ant vas found to be widely distributed in southern (Sham and its distribution overlapped that of the forest zone. In cocoa farms it occurred sore casaonly and more abundantly in areas vdth dense shade than in &reas of +Mn shade. Light, predators, haaoptera and food availability were found to influence its distribution. It was found to be largely crepusacular and nocturnal. M. aculeatus has bean found to be ...
ABSTRACT Several strategies such as chemical treatment and supplementation have been used in an attempt to improve the quality of rice straw as a feed for livestock. Protein and energy supplementation has been shown to improve the nutritive value of straw. Three experiments were conducted on the hypothesis that ensiled water hyacinth, with or without cassava peels, will enhance the utilization of the basal diet of NaOH-treated rice straw and addition of dried cassava peels to ensiled water h...
ABSTRACT A baseline survey and three (3) experiments (one (1) on-farm and two (2) on-station) were conducted in a study to introduce some dry season feeding strategies to cattle farmers in the Accra Plains. The baseline survey was carried out in the Dangbe East and West Districts of the Accra Plains for two main reasons: (i) to ascertain the reasons why cattle farmers had not adopted dry season feeding strategies which had been known in Ghana for some time and, (ii) to find out the types of ...
Abstract Over the years, expenditures of public and private sectors are regulated by the activities in the oil and gas industry. The budget of Nigeria is hinged on the international price of crude oil and any shock on oil price affects the general activities in the country. With quarterly data from the period of 1981Q1 to 2020Q2, the study uses an exponential generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity approach to examine oil price volatility and inflation level in Nigeria. An ...
ABSTRACT Three experiments were undertaken to evaluate the nutritive value of urea ammoniated rice straw and urea-molasses block supplement for dry season feeding to sheep. Experiment One compared the feeding value of untreated straw (US), ammoniated straw (AS) and urea-molasses block supplemented straw (UMBS). Three fistulated and three "intact" sheep were assigned to a two 3 x 3 Latin Square designed. Parameters investigated include dry matter intake, lightweight changes and nutrient digest...