CAGE HOUSING

22 LOHMANN › MANAGEMENT GUIDE 22 NUTRITION Crude Fibre Crude fibre, sometimes described as insolu- ble NSP*, may not have nutritional values for poultry, but it does have other benefits for a healthy and stable digestive physiol- ogy. Used in the second half of the rearing period, it can positively influence the devel- opment of the digestive tract, the crop size and the appetite of pullets. This is beneficial for young layers, especially at the start of production, when the appetite of the birds is sometimes not sufficient enough to meet their nutrient demands. The tool has been proven to be very ben- eficial under varying feeding situations in a lot of countries. This is the reason for the implementation of a minimum recommen- dation of crude fibre (5–6%) in the developer feed for LOHMANN Layers. Cereals and their by-products (e.g. bran) or oil seed by-products (e.g. meal of sunflow- ers or rapeseed), can be used as a source of crude fibre. DDGS** can be used as a source of crude fibre as well. Other raw materials, which are rich of crude fibre, may be used if available, but only as long as their inclusion does not reduce the energy level of the diet. With a classical corn-soy diet, the recom- mended crude fibre content can hardly be achieved. In such cases, other feed ingredi- ents must be used. For advice, please contact the technical service department at LOHMANN. There so called “fibre concentrates” available for spe- cial use Rearing A balanced and nutritious diet during the rearing stage is essential to enable the chick to develop into a mature pullet. Chicks and pullets should be fed a coarse diet (for par- ticle sizes see table on page 19) of a meal- type consistency. A high proportion of very fine components or a structure that is too coarse can lead to selective feed intake and an unbalanced nutrient supply. A diet with an extremely fine consistency reduces the feed intake of the birds and can result in a lacking supply of certain nutrients. If pelletis- ing of feed is inevitable for hygienic reasons the pellets should be crumbled to the rec- ommended consistency. Single particles should be never too hard or too sharp be- cause chicks will refuse to eat them. During the different growth phases of chicks and pullets, qualitatively different feed varieties * Non-StarchPolysaccharides ** DriedDistillersGrainswithSolubles