Effect of Sodium Selenite and Zinc-L-Selenomethionine on Performance and Selenium Concentrations in Eggs of Laying Hens (Report‪)‬

ABSTRACT : The objective of this study was to determine the effect of sodium selenite and zinc-L-selenomethionine on performance and egg Se concentration in laying hens. Two hundred and twenty-four CP Browns aged 71 weeks were divided according to a 2 x 3 factorial in a completely randomized design. One more group without additional Se supplementation was used as a negative control. Each treatment consisted of four replicates and each replicate contained eight laying hens. The dietary treatments were T1: basal diet; T2, T3 and T4: basal diets plus 0.3, 1.0 and 3.0 mg Se from sodium selenite/kg, respectively; T5, T6 and T7: basal diets plus 0.3, 1.0 and 3.0 mg Se from zinc-L-selenomethionine/kg, respectively. The findings revealed that feed conversion rate/kg eggs, egg production, egg weight, Haugh units and eggshell thickness were not affected by source and level of Se (p0.05). Increasing level of dietary Se significantly increased (p0.05 the Se content of eggs. Zinc-L-selenomethionine markedly increased p0.05 egg Se concentration as compared with sodium selenite. The results indicated that Se source did not influence performance of laying hens. However, zinc-Lselenomethionine increased p0.05 egg Se concentration more than sodium selenite. (Key Words : Sodium Selenite, Zinc-Lselenomethionine, Performance, Egg Se Concentration, Laying Hens) INTRODUCTION