DOI: 10.36347/sajb.2013.v01i06.018

Pages: 329-336

Several authors have shown that farmers in Africa feed their poultry with partial or total dietary supplement, especially, diet based on local and cheaper ingredients in order to maximize profit, this however may have opposite effects because some of these supplements are toxic to the birds leading to low productivity or high mortality among the birds. This study was therefore conducted to determine the effect of raw Jatropha curcas supplemented diet on broilers’ health and growth using some biochemical parameters. A total of forty one-day old Arbor acres broilers were used for this study, they were acclimatize for four weeks during which medication and other managerial practice were administered to the birds as directed by the supplier before they were randomly allocated into four different experimental groups receiving different experimental diets containing 0, 4, 8 and 12% raw Jatropha curcas respectively. After four weeks of treatment with different experimental diets, blood samples were collected from the birds for biochemical analysis. The results showed that feeding broilers with raw Jatropha curcas supplemented feed resulted in elevation in liver biomarkers (AST, ALT, ALP ,Bilirubin) and kidney biomarkers (Urea, Creatinine). Also there was increase in serum cholesterol with a marked decrease in both serum protein and packed cell volume. From the result, it was obvious that raw Jatropha curcas supplemented diet is hepatotoxic, nephrotoxic and can affect blood circulation in the birds even in small quantity and should be detoxified before it can be used as a supplement or substitute in broiler’s feed.