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ABSTRACT
This experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of different levels of ghee residue inclusion in finisher diets on the blood serum metabolites and haematological indices of broiler chickens at the finisher stage. Two hundred and sixteen broiler chickens were randomly assigned to six treatment groups in a randomized complete block design , with three replicates per treatment. The treatments included diets with 0% (T1), 3% (T2), 6% (T3), 9% (T4), and 12% (T5) ghee residue, while T6 was a commercial finisher diet. Blood serum metabolite analysis showed that the measured parameters increased significantly (p < 0.05) with increasing levels of ghee residue inclusion in the diet. Birds fed the 12% ghee residue diet (T5) recorded the highest values for triglycerides (40.10 mg/dl), HDL (73.50 mg/dl), LDL (57.43 mg/dl), total cholesterol (138.47 mg/dl), and serum protein (3.90 g/dl), compared to the control group T1 (30.43 mg/dl, 59.03 mg/dl, 40.23 mg/dl, 105.50 mg/dl, and 2.77 g/dl, respectively). Birds fed the commercial finisher diet (T6) exhibited intermediate levels. In contrast, serum glucose concentration decreased significantly (p<0.05) with higher ghee residue inclusion, declining from 240.33 mg/dl in T1 to 221.10 mg/dl in T5. Haematological parameters were also significantly (p<0.05) affected by dietary treatments. The highest red blood cell count (3.96 × 10⁶/µl), haemoglobin concentration (12.96 g/dl), packed cell volume (40.10%), and MCV (129.67 fl) were observed in T5, compared to lower values in T1.WBC differentials, including neutrophils and lymphocytes, also differed significantly among treatments. In contrast, eosinophil and monocyte counts were not significantly affected (p > 0.05), and basophils were not detected in any of the treatments. The results indicate that inclusion of ghee residue in broiler finisher diets at levels up to 12% significantly improved the blood profile without causing any adverse effects and suggesting its potential as a viable alternative feed ingredient in broiler production.
Keywords : Blood profile, Broiler, Finisher diet, Ghee residue
