Performance and nitrogen balance of laying hens fed increasing levels of digestible lysine and arginine

Abstract

The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the effect of two digestible lysine levels and four digestible arginine levels on laying hens from 24 to 48 weeks of age. Three hundred and twenty Lohmann LSL laying hens were allotted in a completely randomized design in a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement, with two levels of digestible lysine (700 and 900 mg/kg of diet) and four digestible arginine levels (700, 800, 900 and 1000 mg/kg of diet). Results indicated requirement of 884 and 830 mg of digestible arginine/kg of diet, considering an average feed intake of 95 g/hen/day and an average hen weight of 1.5 kg, aiming at lesser feed intake and better nutritional balance of nitrogen, respectively. High digestible lysine levels in the diet require higher digestible arginine supplementation for a better performance of hens. © 2012 Sociedade Brasileira de Zootecnia.