Liver lipid content in broilers as affected by time without feed or feed and water.
The purpose of this study was to determine if length of time of feed withdrawal of broilers prior to slaughter could affect the lipid content of their livers. Seven-week-old male broilers were allocated to three treatments: 1) no feed and water, 2) no feed, and 3) feed and water ad libitum. Those in the first treatment were held in plastic coops and those in the latter two treatments were kept in floor pens. Eight birds were randomly sampled initially and eight birds from each treatment at 4, 8, 12, 16, and 24 hr after the start of the study. The birds were weighed, killed, and the livers removed and analyzed for lipid content. The regression slopes of the two treatments without feed for body weight, liver weight, liver weight per unit body weight, and liver fat per unit body weight were significantly different from the control treatment. The slopes for liver fat were not significantly different among treatments. No obvious differences in the gross appearance of the livers were detected. The occasional problems with fatty livers in commercial broilers apparently cannot be accounted for by the length of time of feed withdrawal before slaughter.
D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D002645:Chickens / Q000378:metabolism*; D005215:Fasting; D005508:Food Deprivation; D050356:Lipid Metabolism; D008099:Liver / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size; D013997:Time Factors; D014868:Water Deprivation