FEEDING AND NUTRITION

The amount of feed given, the kind and level of nutrients present in the feed and
the way this is given to game fowls are very important aspects of game fowl production.
All these have to be well understood and feeding programs well implemented if birds are
expected to perform exceptionally well in terms of egg laying, fertility and hatchability in
breeders, optimum development in growers and training and pit performance in
battlestags and battlecocks. These reasons make feed the biggest single cost in game fowl
production.
The amount of feed given, the kind and level of nutrients present in the feed and
the way this is given to game fowls are very important aspects of game fowl production.
All these have to be well understood and feeding programs well implemented if birds are
expected to perform exceptionally well in terms of egg laying, fertility and hatchability in
breeders, optimum development in growers and training and pit performance in
battlestags and battlecocks. These reasons make feed the biggest single cost in game fowl
production.
It is not enough that game fowls are given what appears to be the best brand of
commercial game fowl feed available or concentrate mixture one can get, just because
everybody else uses it. The bird and its nutrient requirements from hatching up to the pit
or the breeding pen should be well understood. These differ in levels, which need to be
carefully considered if feeding is to be effective but cost-efficient.
Commercial feeds available in the local market contain a range of nutrients
needed in levels required by any age group of chickens. If one does not have any prior
formal or practical knowledge in chicken nutrition and feeding, he should not attempt to
mix this feed with any other feedstuff, like grains. This will alter the ratio of energy to
protein and other nutrients, and if the alteration is beyond what could be tolerated by the
game fowl, its performance will be affected.
The Nutrient Game Fowls Require
The food given to game fowls contains water and dry matter. The dry matter
component is divided into those that are organic and those that are inorganic. The organic
portion is composed of energy, protein and vitamins, while the inorganic portion is made
up of minerals.
Water
Water is vital to life. At least half of what compose the adult game chicken is
water. In fact, it will die more rapidly if deprived of water than if deprived of food.
Water serves as solvent in digestion and as agent for the transport of nutrients in
the body and the excretion of waste products of metabolism. It is involved in various
chemical reactions within the body, in which it absorbs the tremendous heat production
brought about by these reactions, allowing for very little change in body temperature.
Since chickens do not have sweat glands, water has a major function in maintaining its
body temperature through evaporation from its lung.
The game fowl takes its water requirement from three sources: the water it drinks,
the food it eats and the chemical reactions within its body. Since the bulk of its water
requirement is taken from the water it drinks, this should be free from harmful
microorganisms and metals so as not to jeopardize its health.
Energy

Energy is a nutrient required by game fowls both for body maintenance and other
important bodily functions. Basically, a bird eats to satisfy its energy need. Therefore, all
other nutrients have to be in correct ratio with it if they are to be supplied in their correct
levels.
For maintenance, energy is used for bodily functions that are necessary for life,
like essential muscular activity (digestion, respiration), chemical work (allowing nutrients
to pass through concentration gradients), and production of hormones and enzymes that
are constantly used up by the bird. The energy supplied by the feed in excess of what the
bird needs for maintenance is used for other functions and activities like growth, egg
laying and physical work, of which fighting is one. If the birds diet contains energy more
than what it requires for body maintenance and work, the excess energy is stored as body
fat, the bulk of which is found in the birds abdomen, the so-called abdominal fat pad.
When starved, the bird gets its supply of energy from its stores: first, the
glycogen, which is in the cells; and second, the fat depot. When these are used up, the
bird starts to use its muscle protein, which is fatal.
Nutritionists use metabolizable energy (ME) in quantifying the energy
requirement of the bird. ME is that portion of the energy of the feed that is left after
losses in the feces and urine. In other words, it represents the energy in the feed that the
bird can utilize for bodily functions.
Carbohydrate. Carbohydrate is the major ingredient in all game fowl rations to
supply their energy need. This is found in grains and plant starches.
When the bird takes in feed, the dietary carbohydrates are digested into simple
sugars and then absorbed in the small intestine. Of the different simple sugars, glucose is
more readily absorbed. Those that are not converted to glucose in the small intestine are
converted into it in the liver. The bird converts glucose to glycogen and stores it in its
muscle and liver tissues, and is converted back to glucose on demand.
Lipid. Lipid is important as source of energy. It serves as solvent for the
absorption of fat-soluble vitamins and as source of essential fatty acids. It reduces
dustiness in mash feed, aids in feed pelleting and improves feed palatability.
Lipids are stored in the game fowl in the form of body fat. Body fat, in turn, is
more effective than glycogen as a stored energy source.
In a birds diet, lipids are usually supplied in the form of animal fat (tallow) and
vegetable oils (soybean, corn oil), which are rich sources of the essential fatty acids
linoleic and linolenic acid.
Protein. Protein is a very important nutrient in feeding game fowls because aside
from water, it is found in highest concentration in all organs and muscles. The chick has a
high protein because it is growing its muscles and organs literally increase in size, thus
the need for more dietary protein that will be converted to muscle protein. In the adult
fowl, the need for protein is lower. Basically, this is for repair of worn-out tissues, cell
maintenance and reproduction.
Apart from being components of bird muscle, feathers, skin, toes, beak and scales,
proteins also have metabolic functions. The metabolically important proteins are the
blood serum proteins, hormones, enzymes and antibodies, each having specific functions
in the birds body.
Proteins are composed of amino acids, which are either essential or non-essential.
Essential amino acids are those that could not be synthesized by the bird and, therefore,

have to be present in its diet. Of the essential amino acids, methionine, lysine and
threonine are the most limiting, meaning that these are most likely to be deficient in
synthetic form. The rest, while considered essential, are usually satisfied as long as the
feed is nutritionally balanced.
Amino Acids Considered Essential in Game Fowl Nutrition
Arginine

Leucine

Histidine

Lysine

Isoleucine

Threonine

Valin
e

Tryptopha
n

Methionin
e

Glyci
ne*

Valine

*No dietary essential in adult game fowls, but may be considered in formulating
chick rations for optimum growth.
The protein in the game fowls diet may be animal-based (meat meal, meat and
bone meal, fish meal) or plant-based (soybean oil meal). The value of these proteins to
the bird varies according to how closely their amino acids resemble the amino acid
composition of the bird muscle. Thus, not all proteins are quality proteins. Their quality
or biological value depends upon their amino acid spectrum.
If protein is deficient in the diet, growing birds will have poor growth rate and
feed conversion efficiency - that is, they will need more feed per unit increase in body
weight. In a mild deficiency, brood hens will have low rate of egg production and the
eggs they lay will have low fertility rate. If the deficiency is severe, egg laying will stop
and the bird will undergo complete molt, accompanied by severe weight loss.
If protein is in excess of what the bird requires, the excess protein is deaminated
and converted to energy. In the process, there is an increase in uric acid level in the blood.
To excrete the extra uric acid, the bird will drink more water, and this results in wet
droppings (diarrhea). There may be a slight reduction in growth of young game birds,
because an imbalance will be created with the conversion of excess protein to energy,
since this uses up energy in the body.
Vitamins
Vitamins are organic compounds needed by game fowls in small amounts for
normal growth and maintenance of life. They are important because each plays an
important role, and that deficiency in any of them seriously affects the birds health.
The chicken produces its own Vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Therefore, its need for
this vitamin is not as much as its need for the other vitamins, which are essential and need
to be in its diet.
Vitamins are either fat-soluble or water-soluble. As their classifications imply, fatsoluble vitamins are soluble in fats and fat solvents but not in water, while water-soluble
vitamins are soluble only in water. Fat-soluble vitamins include vitamins A, D, E and K,
while water-soluble vitamins include the B-complex vitamins and Vitamin C.
Minerals
Apart from carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur, which are major
elements that make up the organic chemical compounds of the birds body, it requires
inorganic elements, or minerals, for proper nutrition.

Minerals are solid, crystalline, chemical elements that cannot be decomposed or

synthesized by ordinary chemical reactions. Those that are considered dietary essential
are classified as macro and micro minerals. Macro minerals include calcium, phosphorus,
sodium, potassium and chloride. Of these, calcium and phosphorus are needed in large
amounts, while the rest needed in smaller amounts. Trace minerals include magnesium,
manganese, zinc, iron, copper, molybdenum, selenium, iodine, cobalt and chromium,
which are needed in minute amounts.
Nutrition Important Vitamins, Their Role and Deficiency Symptons
Vitamin

Fatsoluble
A

Chemical
Name

Retinol

Important
Function/s

Has an important
role in the visual
process

Deficiency
Symptoms

Impaired vision

D2- Ergocalciferol Important in the

incorporation of
calcium and
D3- Cholecalciferol phosphorus into
the bone matrix

Rickets in the
young;
osteomalacia
in the adult

Tocopherol

Has antioxidant
properties; protects
Vitamin A from
oxidative destruction;
improves fertility
and testicular
function

Encephalomalacia;
lack of vitality;
poor muscling;
decreased fertility

Phylloquinone

Anti-hemorrhagicmaintains the
function of the
blood coagulation;
system

Encephalomalacia;
lack of vitality;
poor muscling;
decreased fertility