ABSTRACT
We assessed the effect of health sand dietary supplementation with methionine (Met) on White King pigeons. Paired pigeons (n = 180) were fed one of five diets; group T1 received no added Met, while T2, T3, T4 and T5 received 30, 60, 90 and 120 g of supplemental DL-Met/kg, respectively. Each treatment was replicated three times with 24 pairs in each replicate. The results showed that supplementary Met had a minor effect on the length of the fourth primary wing feather in 28-day-old squabs (p>0.05), but the length of 14-day-old squabs in T2 was significantly longer (p=0.010). Dietary Met had a minor effect on Wnt-7a and fibroblast growth factor receptors-2 (FGFR-2) mRNA levels in 28-day-old squabs (p>0.05). The IGF-1 concentration in plasma was highest in T4 and lowest in T2 (p=0.012), but there was no difference between T1, T2 and T5 (p>0.05). In the chest muscle, the expression of IGF-1 in T3 and T4 was higher than in T1 (p=0.172 and 0.015, respectively). In the leg muscle, IGF-1 mRNA level was higher in T4 and T3, and lower in T2 (p>0.05). The results indicate that the optimal Met supplement for increasing fourth primary wing feather length was 30 g/kg Met in health sand, and the feathers were the longest in 14-day-old squabs. Adding 90 g/kg Met to health sand can improve the concentration of IGF-1, which is important for growth performance of pigeon squabs.
Keywords:
Feather growth; IGF-1; methionine supplementation; squabs; White King pigeon
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