http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/3 Agriculture Wed, 08 Apr 2026 16:32:09 GMT 2026-04-08T16:32:09Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2385 EFFECT OF CREDIT UTILIZATION ON PROFITABILITY OF COMMERCIAL POULTRY PRODUCTION IN SOUTH-WESTERN, NIGERIA OYEDIJI, Beatrice Poultry enterprise is capital intensive; hence, most commercial poultry farmers rely on credit facilities to sustain their businesses. Previous studies established that access to credit enabled farmers’ participation in commercial poultry production. However, information on how the use of credit affects profitability of commercial poultry production is scanty. Therefore, the effect of credit utilisation on the profitability of poultry production in Southwestern Nigeria was investigated. A four-stage sampling procedure was used. Ogun, Oyo and Ondo states were randomly selected; and three Local Government Areas (LGAs) in each state based on prevalence of commercial poultry entrepreneurs. Cluster sampling technique was used to select two communities where poultry enterprises huddled in the selected LGAs. Ten percent of the entire poultry farmers were selected to give a total of 250 respondents. Data were collected using interview schedule on respondents’ socio-economic and enterprise characteristics (age, education, occupation, type of enterprise and management practice), access to credit facilities, attitude towards use of credit and utilisation of credits, constraints to utilisation of credit and profitability of commercial poultry farming. The Benefit cost ratio was used to estimate profitability. Indices of credit accessibility (low: 0.00-4.37; high: 4.38-22.00), credit utilisation (low: 0.00-10.42; high: 10.43-19.00), attitude towards use of credit for poultry enterprise (unfavourable: 36.00-63.70; favourable: 63.80-84.00) and profitability (low; ₦3,818,278.29 - ₦12,550,288.00; high; ₦12,550,289.00-₦86,427,167.00) were generated. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square, Pearson product moment correlation and ANOVA at α0.05. Most respondents were male (74.8%). Age and years of formal education were 42.56±9.84 and 17±9.26 years, respectively. More than half (52.8%) engaged in poultry production as their primary occupation, 54.4% combined egg and meat production and 63.6% used battery cage system. Credit was mostly accessed from cooperative societies (=1.19) and family/friends (=1.07). Sixty two percent of respondents had favourable attitude towards the use of credit in their enterprises while access to credit facilities (78.60%) and credit utilization (67.2%) were low among them. High interest rates and high risk associated with poultry enterprise ranked highest as constraints to use of credit in poultry enterprise. The net profit from poultry production was ₦1,766,230.95±809,396.46 and profitability was high among 67.8% of the respondents. Size of enterprise (r=0.15), years of farming experience (r=0.29), access to credit facilities (r=0.14), number of employees (r=0.31) and credit utilisation (r=0.085) correlated significantly to profitability of commercial poultry enterprise. Farmers differed significantly in their profitability depending on their level of credit utilisation, type of poultry enterprise and location. Profitability was significantly higher among high credit users (₦16,849,577.83±44,267,049.48) than low credit users (₦6,740,704.90±20,671,384.92). Combined Meat and egg producers had higher profitability (₦18,576,837.38±44,106,264.29) than meat only (₦15,639,874.67±47,308,877.27) and egg only producers (₦8,002,758.70±29,298,672.40). Profitability was higher in Ogun (₦18,792,463.78±23,062,122.53) than Oyo (₦15,564,957.58±46,957,103.9915) and Ondo (₦10,177,560.11±53,875,752.40) states. Credit utilisation enhanced the profitability of commercial poultry enterprise in Southwestern Nigeria. Profitability was highest in Ogun state and among poultry farmers who combined egg and meat production in their enterprise. Sat, 01 Apr 2023 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2385 2023-04-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2384 YIELD AND NUTRITIONAL EVALUATION OF FOUR GRASSES INTERPLANTED WITH LABLAB (Lablab purpureus L.) FOR WEST AFRICAN DWARF GOATS TAIWO, Titilola Olufisayo Natural grasslands which supply the bulk of ruminant feeds are characterised by low yield and lignified forage. Sown grasses interplanted with legumes yield fodder with better quality compared to forage harvested from the wild. However, there is limited information on the effect of interplanting high yielding grass varieties with legumes on Biomass Yield (BY) and nutritional quality. Therefore, effect of interplanting Chloris gayana (Chloris), Panicum maximum (Panicum), Brachiaria ruziziensis (Brachiaria) and Brachiaria mulato II (Mulato) with Lablab purpureus (Lablab) on BY and feeding value of their silages in West African Dwarf (WAD) goats were investigated. In a split-plot arrangement, Chloris, Panicum, Brachiaria and Mulato were planted sole and interplanted with Lablab in a randomised complete block design. At 4, 8, 12 and 16 weeks post planting, BY (t/ha), Leaf to Stem Ratio (LSR), Leaf Length (LL, cm), Dry Matter (DM, %) and Neutral Detergent Fibre (NDF, %) of these grasses were determined using standard procedures. Twelve-week old Chloris, Panicum, Brachiaria and Mulato were ensiled with Lablab at 3:1 for 21 days and the silage colour, aroma and pH were measured. The silages were fed to WAD goats (n=20, weighing 8.82±0.10 kg) for 105 days and Percentage Preference (PP), Dry Matter Intake (DMI, g/d) and Total Weight Gain (TWG, kg) were measured. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and ANOVA at α0.05. Interplanting of the grasses with Lablab significantly increased BY from 5.36±3.04 to 6.85±2.64 (Chloris), 16.64±8.93 to 17.76±9.37 (Panicum), 7.15±3.49 to 8.36±3.72 (Brachiaria) and 15.41±9.10 to 17.19±8.01 (Mulato), respectively. The LSR of Lablab interplanted with grasses 0.73±0.31 (Chloris), 1.23±0.70 (Panicum), 1.31±0.24 (Brachiaria) and 1.19±0.03 (Mulato) were significantly higher than their sole sown (0.64±0.33, 1.14±0.61, 1.24±0.27 and 1.09±0.39, respectively). Grasses interplanted with Lablab showed an increase in LL from 69.33±3.18 to 81.11±4.59 (Chloris), 116.22±34.05 to 124.86±35.90 (Panicum), 49.29±10.27 to 57.34±10.11 (Brachiaria) and 74.59±9.14 to 84.79±11.34 (Mulato), respectively. The DM of Lablab interplanted grasses 37.77±4.82 (Chloris), 35.78±3.92 (Panicum), 44.33±4.71 (Brachiaria) and 39.68±6.09 (Mulato) was significantly higher than their sole sown (35.59±4.52, 33.66±4.46, 40.34±4.04 and 36.02±4.28, respectively). Lower NDF of 62.29±1.41, 63.07±1.52, 61.48±1.61 and 61.01±1.26 were observed in Lablab interplanted with Chloris, Panicum, Brachiaria and Mulato, respectively compared to 63.62±3.22, 64.04±2.73, 62.98±3.26 and 62.90±2.53 in sole sown. The BY, LL, DM and NDF increased, while LSR reduced with age. All the grasses produced good silages with olive green colour, aromatic smell and pH ranging from 4.26 to 4.55. The PP of WAD goats ranked Mulato-Lablab (25.44%) > Brachiaria-Lablab (25.25%) > Panicum-Lablab (24.95%) > Chloris-Lablab (24.35%). The DMI was similar for all treatments but TWG of 3.20±10.01 (Mulato-Lablab) was significantly higher than others, however, 3.01±6.98 (Brachiaria-Lablab) and 2.92±5.02 (Panicum-Lablab) were similar. Interplanting Lablab purpureus with Chloris gayana, Panicum maximum, Brachiaria ruziziensis and Brachiaria mulato II enhanced biomass yield. Silage produced with combination of the interplanted Lablab purpureus and the grasses improved body weight gain of West African Dwarf goats. Fri, 01 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2384 2023-09-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2382 ORANGE-FLESHED SWEETPOTATO ROOTS AS ENERGY AND PROVITAMIN A SOURCES FOR LAYING HENS OLADEJI, Deborah Dara Orange-fleshed Sweetpotato Root (OSR) is a potent energy feedstuff for laying hens due to its high energy and carotenoid content. However, OSR’s high perishability and dustiness in finished feeds are limitations, which could be addressed by high-temperature-short-time extrusion. There is scarce information on the effect of extrusion on the nutritional quality of OSR, the pigmenting abilities of OSR carotenoids and their interconversion to vitamin A in poultry. Therefore, this study was designed to assess the effect of extrusion on metabolisable energy of OSR-based concentrates, pigmenting abilities and the interconversion of OSR carotenoids to vitamin A in laying hens. Concentrates: OSR and Corn Bran at 3:2 (OSR-CB), extruded at 65-70℃ (Elow) and 100- 110℃ (Ehigh) in a single screw extruder, were assayed for Water Solubility Index-WSI, Water Absorption Index-WAI, and Provitamin A (PVA) carotenoids using standard procedures. Twenty-nine-week-old ISA Brown hens (n=96, 1.9±0.1kg) were randomly allotted to 12 diets containing unextruded, Elow and Ehigh OSR-CB each at 0, 10, 20 or 30% as substitute for glucose monohydrate, for seven days (r=4). The nitrogen corrected Apparent Metabolisable Energy (AMEn, kcal/kg) of the concentrates were estimated using standard methods. Carotenoid-depleted hens at 42-week-old (n=96, 2.2±0.1kg) were randomly assigned to White Maize-Soybean Meal (WM+SBM, control), WM+SBM + apo- ester, OSR-CB+SBM or Yellow Maize -SBM (YM+SBM) based diet in four replicates for 84 days. Eggs were collected for yolk quality assessment, PVA carotenoids (μg/g) and retinol (μg/100g) at day 0, 28, 56 and 84 using standard procedures. Liver was biopsied at day 0, 28, 56, and 84, and assayed for retinol (μg/g). Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and ANOVA at ἀ0.05. Extrusion significantly decreased WSI by 4.05% (23.67±0.47) and 16.21% (20.67±0.47) in Elow and Ehigh OSR-CB, respectively, compared to unextruded OSR-CB (24.67±0.47). A significantly higher WAI of 5.39±0.21 was recorded in Ehigh OSR-CB, while unextruded and Elow OSR-CB were similar. The PVA carotenoids decreased significantly from 228.04±0.05 in unextruded OSR-CB to 152.32±0.16 in Elow and 148.37±0.53 in Ehigh OSR- CB. Extrusion significantly enhanced AMEn of Elow and Ehigh OSR-CB by 16.47% iv (4051.15±0.05) and 14.11% (3968.82± 0.06), respectively over unextruded OSR-CB (3478.13± 0.08). Colour intensity of egg yolk at day 28 ranked: 74.07±0.18 (WM+SBM + apo-ester) > 70.97±0.04 (YM+SBM) > 63.41±0.03 (OSR-CB+SBM) > 53.68±0.09 (WM+SBM), with similar trends at 56 and 84 days. The PVA carotenoids in egg yolk on day 84 was significantly higher in OSR-CB+SBM (2.80±0.04) and YM+SBM (1.13±0.02) than WM+SBM (0.52±0.03) and WM+SBM + apo-ester (0.33±0.02) fed hens. Egg yolk retinol increased by 709.56% (77.88±0.04) and 20.06% (11.55±0.03), in OSR-CP+SBM and YM+SBM fed hens, respectively compared to the control (9.62±0.08) at day 28, with similar trend at 56 and 84 days. Liver retinol at day 28 was significantly higher in OSR- CB+SBM (996.26±0.04) and YM+SBM (367.64±0.05) and similar in WM+SBM (136.30±0.02) and WM+SBM + apo-ester (126.80±0.06) fed hens with same trend observed at 56 and 84 days. Extruded Orange-fleshed sweetpotato root based concentrate at low temperature improved energy availability, egg yolk pigmentation and vitamin A in laying hens. Tue, 01 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2382 2023-08-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2380 EGG FERTILITY AND EMBRYO VIABILITY RESPONSES OF ARTIFICIALLY INSEMINATED LAYER BREEDER CHICKENS OLUJIMI, AYODEJI TIMOTHY Poor fertility and Embryo Mortality (EM) in breeder hens have been attributed to Natural Mating (NM) system adopted by farmers in breeder hens. Artificial Insemination (AI) could be a reliable alternative for use in chickens. However, AI protocols required for optimum fertility in layer breeders were scanty. Therefore, fertility and embryo viability responses of artificially inseminated layer breeder chickens were assessed. ISA Brown breeder hens (n=100, 1.9±0.3kg) and cocks (n=10, 2.5±0.4kg), 21-week old were used. Hens were randomly allotted to five treatments and were inseminated with 0.02 (T0.02), 0.04 (T0.04), 0.06 (T0.06) and 0.08mL (T0.08) of pooled semen/hen which contained 33×106, 66×106, 99×106, 132×106 motile spermatozoa, respectively. Hens in fifth group (TNM) were mated naturally. Both AI and NM were repeated for two consecutive days. Fertility was determined by standard method. Four groups of 25 hens each were inseminated with 0.02mL semen dose then repeated at three (D3), six (D6), nine (D9) and twelve days (D12) interval for twelve weeks. Fertility and EM were determined following standard procedures. Another batch of semen was divided into five portions: undiluted (US), diluted at 1:1, with either Modified Ringer Solution (MRS), 1% Dextrose Saline (DS), Sodium Citrate (SC) or Normal Saline (NS). In vitro assessment was done hourly at 27.6ºC till motility dropped below 50.0%. The treatments were inseminated into five groups of hens at D6 and D9 interval to assess fertility using standard procedures. The DS was divided into five portions: four portions were fortified with Carrot Juice (CJ) as extender at 25%(T25), 50%(T50), 75%(T75), 100%(T100), while DS served as control. The extenders were used to extend semen at 1:1 and evaluated hourly at 27.6ºC for Spermatozoa Motility (SM) and livability till motility was below 50%. In a 5×4 factorial arrangement, the treatments were inseminated into five groups of 20 hen at D6 interval. Fertility and EM were determined by standard procedures. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and ANOVAα0.05. The T0.02 (90.7%), T0.04 (95.0%), T0.06 (90.4%) and T0.08 (90.4%) significantly improved fertility than TNM (77.1%) in the first week. The efficient and maximum duration of fertile period were 7 and 21 days, respectively. Treatment D3 (91.8%), D6 (92.5%) and D9 (87.5%) improved fertility than D12 (67.6%), while D6 had the least EM (10.8%). The MRS (59.7%), DS (59.0%), and NS (60.0%) improved SM up to the third hours than SC (46.3%) and RS (46.7%). The MRS (82.5%), DS (85.3%) and NS (83.5%) improved fertility than SC (79.2%) and RS (75.5%) at D6 interval. The same trend was observed in D9 interval though fertility decreased across the treatments: MRS (68.5%), DS (68.4%), NS (60.1%), SC (57.2%) and RS (55.1%). Semen fortified with CJ sustained spermatozoa livability up to third hour than DS. Fertility significantly decreased as CJ in extender increased T25 (68.3%), T50 (61.3%), T75 (49.1%), T100 (35.3%) and DS (80.8%). Semen dose, spermatozoa age and days of insemination influenced fertility and embryo viability. Fertility in ISA brown was depressed with dextrose saline fortification using carrot juice. Mon, 01 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/2380 2023-05-01T00:00:00Z