Effect of Sucrose in the Initial Drinking Water of Broiler Chicks on Mortality and Growth

Commercial poultry companies in the Southeastern United States have experienced high mortality when chicks are hatched from eggs laid by young breeding flocks. Hatching eggs weighing 47–54 g from 28-week-old breeders were collected on the farm, hatched in a commercial hatchery, and housed in a typical environment-controlled broiler house. A total of 7600 mixed-sex broilers was used in two experiments to determine the effect of adding sucrose to the drinking water on broiler chick mortality and growth. In each experiment, four groups of 950 broilers each were offered either an 8% sucrose solution or tap water, with or without feed, for the first 15 hr after housing. Broiler chick mortality was reduced from an average of 4.60% for the group of birds not receiving the sucrose treatments to 2.90% for die groups receiving the sucrose treatments. Presence or absence of feed during the first 15 hr of housing had no effect on mortality. Body weights were unaffected by dietary treatments. Thus, sucrose added to the initial drinking water of broiler chicks successfully reduced mortality of broilers without sacrificing market body weights.