Nutritional evaluation of chicken gut and snail meat in diets of Osteobrama belangeri (Val.)

Abstract

An assessement of nutritive values of chicken gut (CM) and snail meat (SM) as
dietary protein source in pelleted feed for endemic, medium carp, Osteobrama
belangeri (Val.) was carried out. Each diet contained 25% protein from either
chicken gut or snail meat meal. A control diet with fish meal (FM) as the sole
protein source was also included. All the diets were supplemented with 5.0%
lipid, 2.0% vitamin, mineral mixture (agrimin) and were balanced by rice bran
upto 100%. The experimental diets were fed to duplicate groups of fish in 1.5m
x 1.0m x 1.0m cement tanks with running water system (5 1/min) for 90 days.
The growth of fish was consistently higher with CM diet and significantly different
(P<0.05). The average final weights attained were 18.33, 17.36 and 13.0g
for fish fed with CM, SM and FM respectively. Best food conversion ratio (FCR)
and protein efficiency ratio (PER) were obtained in fish fed with CM diet (2.61
and 1.18) followed by SM (2.57 and 1.13) and were better than FM (control diet)
wherein values of 3.16 and 1.01 respectively were recorded.