The Niacin Requirement of the Young Ringneck Pheasant

BRIGGS (1946), Jukes et al. (1947), and Scott (1953) found that turkeys fed a low level of niacin developed perosis or a hock disorder. Scott and Heuser (1952), and Briggs et al. (1953) observed a similar disorder in ducks and geese on a low niacin diet. Chickens fed a low level of niacin do not display symptoms nearly as extreme as those produced in turkeys or ducks, but Briggs et al. (1943) did observe that six out of nineteen chicks fed a purified diet low in niacin developed perosis. During the course of recent nutritional experiments with pheasant chicks, a high incidence of a leg disorder occurred in pheasants reared in batteries. Since little or nothing is known of the pheasant’s requirements for niacin, the following experiments were conducted. EXPERIMENTAL METHODS Ringneck pheasant chicks were obtained from the Conservation Department and started in electrically heated batteries with raised wire floors… .