The effect of chemical conditioners in the poultry litter on the performance of broilers reared in three consecutive flocks was studied. One-thousand-three-hundred and twenty birds, 440 birds per each flock, were allotted to five treatments (Treat. 1 - untreated litter; Treat. 2 - litter treated with aluminum sulfate; Treat. 3 - litter treated with gypsum; Treat. 4 - litter treated with single superphosphate; and Treat. 5 - litter treated with hydrated lime) in a completely randomized block design and four replicates. Body weight, feed consumption, feed:gain ratio and viability were obtained. The conditioners did not affect (P>.05) body weight, feed consumption and feed:gain ratio. The aluminum sulfate and single superphosphate addition significantly reduced (P<.05) bird viabilities. Conditioners are not necessary for reused poultry litter until the third flock.
broiler; chemical conditioner; performance; reused poultry litter
