SUPPLEMENTATION EFFECTS OF CHOLINE CHLORIDE TO LAYER HEN RATION ON PRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE

A flock of one hundred twenty-eight laying hens of brown Loman classic chickens, fifty-seven weeks old, was used in the current study. Hens were raised in the poultry fields of the Department of Animal Production at the College of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Mosul, in a semi-closed hall divided into pens. The hens were allocated into four groups with 3 replicates/ group, the hens were fed a balanced diet supplemented with choline chloride in proportions of 0.0, 0.12, 0.17 and 0.22 % of diet respectively, to evaluate the effect of choline as a nutritional supplement on the productive performance of laying hens in the late productive age stages. The rearing period lasted seven weeks, during which some productive traits and egg characteristics were measured, as well as some reproductive parameters and some blood biochemical characters. The results revealed that choline supplementation improves significantly the weekly average egg weight, egg production, and egg mass as well as feed conversion ratio, thickness of the shell. Weight of the shell, the diameter, and the height of the yolk. All studied blood parameters were insignificantly affected by choline chloride supplementation. In conclusion, the choline chloride supplementation improves productive performance, especially in the late stages of production for laying hens.