VITAMIN C SUPPLEM NTATION AND ITS EFFECT ON THE PERFORMANCE OF JAPANESE QUAIL

Abstract

The present study was conducted at Department _:pf Poultry .... . ..•.. ::

Production, Kafr . El-Sheikh Faculty of Agriculture, Tanta·i:lJniversity f·." ' during period from August to September, 1996 to investigate.t. he effects

of vitamin C supplementation on the growth perfonnance, some intemal organs, plasma constituents and histological studies in some organs m Japanese quails. Six hundred one-day old Japanese quail were wing-banded for identification purposes ·and maintained in floor pens under recommended environmental period birds were fed a ration containing 24% cntde protein and 2900 ME/kg birds were subjected to four levels of vitamin C 10, 100, 200 and·300 mg/1 of drinking water at the period of 0-6 weeks.

Results obtained could be summarized as follows:

I. Addition of vitamin C in drinking water was not significant differences in mean body weight during first week of age, however, significant differences were observed among treated groups with vitamin C compared with the control group from the second week up to the six weeks The best results obtained in body weight were at a level of 200 mg/1 drinking water.