Growth, blood indices and carcass characteristics of japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica) fed cassava grit as replacement for maize with or without β glucanase

One hundred and eighty (180) unsexed twenty-one day-old growing Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica) were fed for 28 days with diets in which maize was replaced with cassava grit at 0, 25 and 50% with or without ß-glucanase supplementation. The birds were randomly grouped into six treatments in three replicates often birds per replicate. Diet 1 was the control without cassava grit while diets 2 and 3 had 25 and 50% of their maize contents replaced with cassava grit respectively. Diets 4, 5 and 6 were the same as diets 1, 2 and 3 respectively but for the inclusion of B-glucanase at 100mg/kg. Feed and water were supplied ad libitum throughout the period of study. Feed intake (590.98g), weight gain (93.77g) and FCR (6.35) were significantly (p< 0.05) affected by the dietary treatments. Among the haematological parameters monitored RBC (4.46x106/UI) and WBC (26.52x703/UI) were significantly (p< 0.05) affected by dietary treatments. Thiocynate (2.57 mg/ml), AST (290.6 U.I/L) and ALT (33.6 UI/L) were also significantly (p<0.05) influenced by the experimental diets. Replacement of 25 or 50% maize with cassava grit in diets of the Japanese quail diets did not have negative effect on haematology and serum biochemistry of the birds. There were however significant differences (p<0.05) in the weight of the animals after bleeding and dressing, in drumstick and breast weight of birds fed cassava grit. Weights of the GIT, caeca, empty gizzard, and liver were statistically (p< 0.05) affected by the treatments while caeca length and the lungs weight were statistically similar across the treatments. Replacement of maize with cassava grit at 25 and 50% in Japanese quail diets had no negative effect on haematology, serum biochemistry and carcass characteristics of the birds.