European Journal of Scientific Research - EuroJournals

European Journal of Scientific Research
ISSN 1450-216X Vol.20 No.4 (2008), pp.788-795
© EuroJournals Publishing, Inc. 2008
http://www.eurojournals.com/ejsr.htm
Development of an Integrated Poultry/Fishery Husbandry for
Optimal Agricultural Production
F.R. Falayi
Agricultural Engineering Department, The Federal University of Technology
P.M.B. 704, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria
A.S. Ogunlowo
Agricultural Engineering Department, The Federal University of Technology
P.M.B. 704, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria
M.O. Alatise
Agricultural Engineering Department, The Federal University of Technology
P.M.B. 704, Akure, Ondo State, Nigeria
Abstract
The need to find alternative but productive means of managing animal waste in the
modern day agriculture waste cannot be over emphasised. One important means of
managing these wastes is through conversion to important use either as animal feeds or as
manures.
An integrated poultry/fishery housing unit was designed and constructed such that
poultry droppings were made to drop into the ponds directly and used as feed for clarias
gariepinus. The set-up was made of four concrete ponds on which three wooden battery
cages were mounted except the fourth pond which served as the control. The ponds were
stocked with twenty (20) juvenile clarias garipinus each. Fish in pond 1, two and three were
fed with droppings from one broiler, two broilers and three broilers respectively. While fish
in ponds 4 were fed with the fish concentrate. A total of 6 birds (4 weeks old) and 80
juvenile clarias gariepinus were used. This experiment lasted for 6 months. During this
period of study, the environmental parameters were monitored and the effect of poultry
waste on the development of the fish was analysed.
There was an increase in weight of the fish in all ponds through out the period of
the study. The weight gained by the fish in pond 1 increased at an increasing rate of 10.85
g/week up to the 15 th week after stocking. Thereafter, the weight gained started increasing
at a constant rate of 86.8g/week up to the 20 th week after stocking and thereafter a weight
increase at a deceasing rate of 136.56 g/week up to harvest period. In pond 2, the weight of
the fish increased at an increasing rate of 7.47 g/week up to 8 th week. Thereafter, the
weight gain increased at a constant rate of 24.88 g/week to 16 th week and increasing at a
decreasing rate of 42.75 g/week to harvest. The same trend was observed in pond 3 but the
weight gain increased at an increasing rate of 8.06 g/week up to the 4 th week and then
increasing at a constant rate of 10.89 g/week to the 16 th week. Thereafter, there was weight
increase at a decreasing rate of 32.36 g/week to harvest. Pond 4, which was the control,
showed a different trend in the development of the fish, in this case, there was a weight
gain at an increasing rate of 12.90 g up to the 18 th week after stocking. Thereafter there was
a weight gain at a decreasing rate of 147.22 g/week up to harvest period.