Growth Performance and Carcass Yield of Heavy Female Broiler at Different Stocking Densities

This work was carried out to investigate performance and carcass yield of large-type broiler females at different stocking densities. Chicks (n = 492; 1-day-old; female; Arbor Acre broiler) were reared for six weeks (starter, 0 1 wk; earlier, 1 3 wk; finisher, 3 6 wk) and randomly divided into 3 treatments (4 replications/treatment, 36, 41 or 46 birds/replication). Treatments were T1 (10.9 birds/m 2 ), T2 (12.4 birds/m 2 ) and T3 (13.9 birds/m 2 ) by the stocking densities. Research indexes were livability, body weight, body weight gain, feed intake, feed conversion ratio, production efficiency factor, carcass yield and primal cuts ratio (wing, leg, back, breast and neck). Livability (%) was 90% or more for all treatments, but there was no significant difference on weekly livability (%). Body weight of T3 treatment were the lowest at 3 wk and body weight gain, feed intake, and feed conversion ratio were the lowest at 2 3 wk (P<0.05). Production efficiency factors of T1, T2 and T3 were 331.0, 340.8 and 336.0, respectively, and there was no significant difference among treatments. Leg meat ratio of T2 treatment was higher compared to other treatments at the age of 4 wk (P<0.05). Carcass yield of T1 treatment was the highest as 76.2% at the age of 5 wk (P<0.05). However, there was no significant difference on carcass ratio and partial meat ratio among treatments at the age of 6 wk. This result may provide the standard data of different stocking densities for heavy female broilers.