The influence of loose-mix feeding on behavior, feed intake, and body weight of growing geese.

The aim of this trial was to study the influence of loose-mix feeding on behavior, feed intake, and BW of growing geese. In total, 252 one-day-old geese (Anser anser) were divided into 2 groups differing in the form of diet they received between 42 and 98 d of age (AMEn 11.55 MJ/kg, CP 16%): a complete pelleted diet containing 500 g of sorghum/kg (control group) or a mixture containing 500 g of protein-rich pellets and 500 g of sorghum whole seeds/kg (mixed group). Feed intake was measured daily from 42 to 48 d and every 3 d from 49 to 98 d. Individual BW was measured weekly from 42 to 98 d. Goose behavior was monitored by the scan sampling method throughout the experiment, which was divided into 5 periods according to the timing of access to feed: period 1 from 42 to 55 d (ad libitum feeding access), period 2 from 56 to 62 d (2 + 2 h feeding access), period 3 from 63 to 70 d (2 h feeding access), period 4 from 71 to 94 d (1 h feeding access), and period 5 from 95 to 97 d (3 h feeding access). Over the whole period, the feed intake (13,968 and 14,480 g) and the feed conversion ratio (8.53 and 8.15) were similar in both groups (P = 0.112 and P = 0.168; respectively). Body weight was similar in both groups from 42 to 91 d of age, but at 98 d of age, BW was 3.7% lower in the control than in the mixed group (P = 0.006). Goose behavior was influenced by period, because the percentage of birds feeding increased when the daily access time to the feed decreased (P < 0.001), but not by group (P > 0.05). The results suggest that a loose-mix feeding could be recommended in feeding of growing geese because it weakly influences their feed behavior but slightly increases their weight at the end of the growing period.

Effects of substituting yellow corn for sorghum in geese diets on magret and foie gras quality.

The aim of this trial was to study the effects of substitution of yellow corn with sorghum during the growing-finishing (G period), overfeeding (O period), or both periods on magret and foie gras quality in geese. In total, 260 ganders were divided into 4 groups (65 birds in each) differing in the cereal (yellow corn or sorghum) included in the diet given during the G and the O periods, using a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments. The groups differed in the nature of the cereal in the diet offered to birds between 44 and 104 d of age (G period: a diet containing 500 g of sorghum/kg (SS and SC groups) or a diet containing 500 g of yellow corn/kg (CS and CC groups). The groups differed also in the diet offered to birds between 105 and 120 d of age (O period): 967 g of yellow corn/kg (SC and CC groups) or 965 g of sorghum/kg (SS and CS groups). At the end of the O period, the birds were slaughtered after 10 h of fasting to measure foie gras and breast muscle weight, color, and chemical composition. The mortality in the SC group was higher (P < 0.05) than in the other 3 groups (14.29 vs. 3.58%, average of the 3 groups). After overfeeding, birds fed with sorghum had foie gras that were heavier 984 vs. 885 g, in CS+SS vs. CC+SC groups, respectively; P < 0.001) and less yellow (18.03 vs. 23.97 for b*, in CS+SS vs. CC+SC groups, respectively, P < 0.001) than birds fed with corn. The substitution of yellow corn with sorghum during the G and O periods (SS group) increased the weight of the foie gras, but altered its color to a paler yellow. In contrast, a substitution during the G period only (SC group) resulted in increased mortality during the O period.

Effect of outdoor grazing-area access time and enrichment on space and pasture use, behaviour, health and growth traits of weaned rabbits.

Providing rabbits with a grassy outdoor area allows them to express a broad variety of specific behaviours such as grazing where grazeable herbage persists. However, rabbits that graze are also exposed to external stressors. Controlled outdoor access time may help preserve the grassland resource, while a hiding place may offer the rabbits a secure space. We focused on rabbit growth, health and behaviour according to outdoor access time and the presence of a hideout on a 30-m2 pasture area. We divided 144 rabbits into four groups (group of rabbits with 8 hours per day (H8) of access to pastures provided with an hideout (Y) (H8Y): n = 36; group of rabbits with 8 hours per day (H8) of access to pastures unprovided with an hideout (N) (H8N): n = 36; group of rabbits with 3 hours per day (H3) of access to pastures provided with an hideout (Y) (H3Y): n = 36; group of rabbits with 3 hours per day (H3) of access to pastures unprovided with an hideout (N) (H3N): n = 36) that differed in access time (H8, four replicates, eight hours a day from 0900 h to 1700 h; and H3, four replicates, three hours a day from 0900 h to 1200 h) and the presence of a hideout (presence of an hideout on the pasture (Y), four replicates, with a roof-shaped wooden hideout; and absence of an hideout on the pasture (N), four replicates, without). Rabbit growth and morbidity were measured weekly for each rabbit from 34 to 76 days of age. Rabbit behaviour was assessed on days 43, 60 and 74 by direct visual scanning. Available grassy biomass was evaluated on days 36, 54 and 77. We also measured the time rabbits took to enter and exit the mobile house and the level of corticosterone accumulated in their hair during the fattening period. There were no between-group differences in live weight (on average, 2 534 g at 76 days of age) and mortality rate (18.7%). The rabbits expressed a broad variety of specific behaviours, with grazing being the most frequent (30.9% of all the observed behaviours). Foraging behaviours including pawscraping and sniffing were more frequently observed in H3 rabbits than H8 rabbits (1.1 vs 0.3% and 8.4 vs 6.2%, respectively; P < 0.05). There was neither an access-time nor hideout presence effect on rabbit hair corticosterone levels or time to exit and enter the pens. Patches of bare ground were more frequent in H8 pastures than in H3 pastures (26.8 vs 15.6%, respectively; P < 0.05). Over the whole growing period, the biomass intake rate was higher in H3 than H8 and higher in N than Y (1.9 vs 0.9 g/rabbit/h and 1.8 vs 0.9 g/rabbit/h, respectively; P < 0.05). In conclusion, restricted access time tended to slow the reduction of the grass resource but had no detrimental effects on rabbit growth or health. Rabbits facing restricted access time adapted their grazing behaviour. A hideout helps rabbits cope with external stressors.

Effects of presentation and type of cereals (corn or sorghum) on performance of geese.

The aim of this trial was to study the effects of cereal (corn or sorghum) and of the presentation of the diet (pelleted diet or a mixture with cereal) on the performance of geese. In total, 480 one-day-old geese were divided into 4 groups differing in the diet they received between 52 and 102 d of age: a pelleted diet containing 500 g of sorghum/kg (CS group; AMEn 11.29 MJ/kg, CP 16.70%); a mixture containing 500 g of protein-rich pellets and 500 g of sorghum whole seeds/kg (MS group; AMEn 11.61 MJ/kg, CP 14.30%); a pelleted diet containing 500 g of corn/kg (group CC; AMEn 11.33 MJ/kg, CP 16.40%); and a mixture containing 500 g of protein-rich pellets and 500 g of corn mash/kg (group MC; AMEn 11.48 MJ/kg, CP 14.50%). From 102 to 117 d, 33 birds/sex/group were force-fed with corn. Between 52 and 102 d of age, individual BW and collective feed intake (40 birds/pen) were measured weekly. Body traits were measured at 69, 96, and 117 d and the volume of the crop was measured at 102 d of age. The cereal had no significant effect on total feed intake (15,028 g, NS) or BW (5,811 g, NS) but the breast development at 102 d was less in birds fed sorghum compared with corn (-4.9%; P<0.05). Feed intake (+8.4% between 69 and 102 d; P<0.001), BW (+3.9%; P<0.001) and gut development (+9.3%; P<0.001) were higher when the diet was offered as a mixture compared with a complete pelleted diet. The birds fed the complete pelleted diets had a larger crop (+10.1%; P<0.05) than others. The cereal and the presentation of the diet had no effect on the body traits at the end of the force feeding. The results suggest that the use of sorghum whole seeds is interesting for feeding geese.

Insights into suckling rabbit feeding behaviour: acceptability of different creep feed presentations and attractiveness for sensory feed additives.

In young rabbit, digestive disorders are frequently observed around weaning. Stimulating the onset of feed intake in the suckling rabbit might be a way to promote gut health. The aim of this study was to determine the rabbit's acceptability for different feed presentations and its preferences for flavours at an early stage of life. Two trials were conducted to evaluate the effects of physical form and flavouring on creep feed attractiveness. All the diets tested were provided in the nest from 3 to 17 days, and the daily intake per litter was recorded as of 8 days of age. In the first trial, five feed presentations were tested separately (n = 60 litters). Three dry presentations were chosen: commercial pellet (P), crumb from commercial pellet (cP) and crumb from beet pulp pellet (cBP). Hydrated feeds were also provided with either raw fodder beetroot (B) or a semi-solid feed in agar gel form produced with fodder beetroot juice and pulp (gB). In the second trial, double-choice tests were performed on four feed gels (n = 72 litters), leading to six comparison treatments. These agar gels were made of pellet mash without or with a sensory additive: one non-odorised control gel and three gels with 0.20% banana flavour, 0.06% red berry flavour and 0.10% vanilla flavour, respectively. In the first trial, kits ate more gB in fresh matter than other feed presentations (P < 0.001), with a total intake of 7.0 ± 1.8 g/rabbit from 8 to 17 days. In DM, the total consumption of pellets P (1.6 ± 0.4 g of DM/rabbit) was the highest together with the gB form (1.4 ± 0.4 g of DM/rabbit), whereas cBP was barely consumed (0.3 ± 0.1 g of DM/rabbit). Gel feed supplemented with vanilla was slightly more consumed than other flavoured and non-odorised gels (relative consumption of 57% when compared to control gel; P = 0.001). The gel feed intake was independent of the milk intake but was correlated with the litter weight at 3 days (r = 0.40, P < 0.001). In both trials, rabbit growth before and after weaning was not affected by the type of creep feed provided. Our results confirmed that providing creep feed promotes the solid intake of rabbits at early stages. Gel feed form motivated rabbits to eat and vanilla flavour supplementation increased the feed palatability. Those creep feed characteristics should be explored further for seeking effective stimulation of the onset of the feed intake in suckling rabbit.

Influence of the incorporation mode of sugar beet pulp in the finishing diet on the digestive tract and performances of geese reared for foie gras production.

The aim of this work was to study the effects of incorporating sugar beet pulp (SBP) into the diet of geese in two feeding systems (complete pelleted feed or loose-mix feeding system) on crop development and performance. A total of 480 1-d-old male geese were divided into three groups whose diet differed from d 56 to 90: a complete pelleted diet containing 50% corn (control diet: AMEn 11.5 MJ/kg; CP 161 g/kg), and no SBP; a complete pelleted diet containing 50% corn and 10% SBP (SBPcp diet: AMEn: 11.5 MJ/kg; CP: 161 g/kg); and a mix in the same feeder (SBPlm diet) of 500 g/kg of protein-rich pellets containing 20% SBP (SBPprp: AMEn: 9.0 MJ/kg; CP: 250 g/kg) and 500 g/kg of whole corn (WC: AMEn: 14.0 MJ/kg; CP: 72 g/kg). Body traits, including crop volume, were measured at d 91. From d 91 to 106, 88 birds/group were overfed with a mixture containing mainly corn and water before slaughter to measure fatty liver performance. Feed intake from d 56 to 90 was higher (+10%; P = 0.004) in the SBPcp group than the other two, but at d 90, the body weight (BW) of the birds was higher (+7%; P = 0.002) in the SBPlm group than the other two. At d 91, the volume of the crop was greater in the SBPcp group (80.4 mL/kg of BW, P < 0.001) than in the control group (60.3 mL/kg of BW), the SBPlm group being intermediate (64.1 mL/kg of BW). Feed intake (13,321 g), weight gain (2,733 g), and feed-to-gain ratio (4.9) during the overfeeding period, as well as fatty liver weight (963 g) and commercial grading, were similar (P > 0.05) between the three groups. In conclusion, the use of sugar beet pulp in the diet of finishing geese helps the adaptation of the digestive tract to the overfeeding period, even in a loose-mix feeding system based on whole corn.

Direct and correlated responses to selection in two lines of rabbits selected for feed efficiency under ad libitum and restricted feeding: III. Digestion and excretion of nitrogen and minerals.

Two rabbit lines have been created to result in better feed efficiency: the ConsoResidual line was selected for a lower residual feed intake under ad libitum feeding, and the ADGrestrict line was selected for higher ADG under restricted feeding (-20% of ad libitum). The present study aimed to analyze the digestion and excretion of N and minerals from 29 to 63 d of age of these 2 lines compared with an unselected control line (G0) under 2 feeding levels (ad libitum or restricted). The ADGrestrict line had greater digestibility compared with G0 (+1.3% for OM and N; < 0.05), and the ConsoResidual line had intermediate values. There was no genetic line effect on the digestibility of N and P and on minerals concentrations (P, Zn, and Cu) in the feces and in the urine. The N balance was improved for the 2 selected lines (+5%; < 0.05), leading to a reduced N output through the feces (0.06 g/d compared with G0; < 0.001) and the urine (-0.07 g/d; < 0.05) and to an improved N retention ratio (+3% compared with G0). Over the whole fattening period (d 29-63), significant differences were observed among lines only when fed ad libitum, with 13% greater DM fecal output and 5% greater N fecal output for G0. The N excretion in urine was 2 g less in the 2 selected lines, leading to a reduction of total N release of 4.4 g (compared with G0). The P excretion in feces (12 g) or urine (0.1 g) did not differ among the 3 lines. Over the whole fattening period and for ad libitum-fed rabbits, the 5% improvement in feed efficiency ( < 0.01) for the 2 selected lines corresponded to 400 g less feed intake (-8%) and to 20 g less N intake. The fecal excretion of the ADGrestrict and ConsoResidual lines were reduced by 200 g DM ( < 0.01), corresponding to 417 g fresh matter and 5 g of N. The excretion in minerals (P, Zn, and Cu) was not affected by the line. The feeding level strongly reduced the fecal and urine outputs (-50 and -60%, respectively; < 0.001). Higher digestibility coefficients ( < 0.001) were found in restricted-fed rabbits for OM (+6%), N (+8%), and P (+11%). The N balance was substantially improved by the restriction, with 40% less total (feces + urine) N excretion ( < 0.001). The P balance was improved by the restriction (0.469 vs. 0.360). Over the fattening period, the P fecal output was 37% less (-6 g) with 24% less feed intake and the Zn and Cu outputs were reduced by 27 (-130 mg) and 29% (-30 mg), respectively.

Effect of incorporating sugar beet pulp in the finisher diet on performance of geese.

The aim of this work was to study the effects of incorporating sugar beet pulp (SBP) into the diet on the development of the crop and performance of geese. A total of 480 1-day-old ganders were divided into three groups differing in the composition and mode of distribution of the diet offered from day 56 to 89. The following two diets were used: a standard diet (nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolizable energy, AMEn 11.44 MJ/kg; 160 g/kg CP) or a diet containing 10% of SBP (SBP diet; AMEn 11.47 MJ/kg; 160 g/kg CP). The swelling capacity (SC) hydration was higher for SBP than for the standard diet (3.62 v. 2.72 ml of H2O/g of dry matter at 60 min; P<0.05). In the Control group, birds were fed with a controlled time of access to a standard diet. Other birds were fed the SBP diet with a controlled time of access (SBPt group) or a controlled quantity offered (SBPq). From day 90 to 104, 88 birds/group were overfed with a mixture containing mainly corn. Body traits including volume of the crop were measured at day 89. Fatty liver weight and commercial grading were measured at d 104. Feed intake from day 56 to 89 was higher in the Control group than in the SBPt group (8097 v. 7545 g; P<0.05), feed intake in the SBPq group being intermediate (7801 g); however, live weights (LW) of the birds were similar in the three groups measured at day 89 (5746 g; P>0.05). At day 89, the volume of the crop tended to be higher in the SBPt compared with the Control group (52.8 v. 48.8 ml/kg of LW; P=0.101). After overfeeding, feed intake (12 922 g), weight gain (2412 g), LW (8170 g), fatty liver weight (875 g) and commercial grading of the fatty liver were similar (P>0.1) for all the three groups. Therefore, SBP could help adapt the digestive tract of waterfowl to high feed intake through an increase in the crop volume, but its method of use - that is, level of incorporation and mode of distribution - should continue to be investigated.