EFFECTS OF CAGE LOCATION AND TIER LEVEL ON PERFORMANCE AND EGG QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS OF ISA BROWN HENS

Abstract

This study was carried out to determine the effects of cage location and tier-level on performance and egg quality characteristics of Isa Brown hens. One-hundred and eighty laying hens of similar body weights at 40 weeks of age were housed inside 3-tier cages denoted as Top (T), Middle (M) and Bottom (B) tiers in cagesplaced facing the  Open side (OS) and the Corridor side (CS) of a battery cage pen. The 70-day long experimentwas a  Randomized Complete Block Design with a 2 x 3 factorial arrangement of treatments. Data on feed consumption and egg production were recorded daily and egg quality was determined at 5-weeks interval. Cage location had no effect on feed consumption and feed efficiency throughout the experimental period. However, the effects of cage location and tier level and their interaction were significant (p<0.05) on hen-day productionthroughout the  experiment. Although cage location and tier level did not have any statistical influence on eggweight, other  quality indices such as shape index, yolk index, albumen index and Haugh unit responded significantly (p<0.05) to the treatments. It is therefore recommended that poultry farmers should pay due attention to cage location and tier level as part of key determinants of egg production and quality.