Effect of Royal Jelly on behavioural patterns, feather quality, egg quality and some haematological parameters in laying hens at the late stage of production

Abstract

The aim was to elucidate the impact of Royal Jelly (RJ) on behavioural patterns, feather cover, egg quality and some blood haematological indices in laying hens (58-64 weeks of age). A total of 108 Tetra Brown laying hens were used in the current trial. The birds were divided into three equal groups (36 birds each). The pure RJ was prepared for immediate injection subcutaneously, as follows: the first treated group (RJ :100 mg/kg); the second treated group (RJ :200 mg/kg); the control group. The eating and drinking activities in the RJ group were significantly (p = .009 and .015 respectively) higher than the control and RJ groups. Furthermore, the aggressive pecks, feather pecks and threating behaviour in the RJ group were significantly (p = .005, .001 and .039 respectively) lower than the control and RJ groups. Both RJ-treated groups had the best feather cover on the neck and abdomen regions (p = .010 and .001 respectively; Figure ). Both RJ-treated groups had a significantly higher eggshell ratio (p = .019) and shell thickness (p = .001) in comparison with the control group. The albumen height, Haugh units and yolk index in both RJ-treated groups were significantly greater than those recorded in the control group (p = .026, .001 and .022 respectively). The erythrocyte and total leucocyte counts in the RJ group were significantly higher than those reported in the control and RJ groups (p = .029 and .013 respectively); however, the heterophil/lymphocyte (H/L) ratio and heterophil % in both RJ-treated groups were significantly the lowest (p = .001 and .039). In conclusion, birds in the RJ group had superior feather cover, welfare and behavioural indices, probably due to the impact of active flavonoids components of RJ on laying hen performance. Furthermore, the RJ-treated groups had significantly improved egg quality parameters and some blood haematological indices.

Potential Defensive Effect of Royal Jelly Compared to Cyclophosphamide Induced Hemotoxicity

“…In the current experiment, a significant increase of the erythrocyte counts in the RJ-treated groups indicated that RJ may have a stimulatory action on the erythrocytes synthesis and proliferation in the bone marrow. Our findings were harmonious with that reported by El-Tarabany [42] . Royal jelly had a protective role against many drugs [43] .…”

Does in Ovo Injection of Two Chicken Strains with Royal Jelly Impact Hatchability, Post-Hatch Growth Performance and Haematological and Immunological Parameters in Hatched Chicks?

“…Additionally, RJ in ovo injection has been concluded to improve chick body weight [21], internal organ weight and luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) secretion without adverse effects on hatchability [22]. Furthermore, in ovo injection of RJ has been found to promote feed intake in broiler chicks with no effect on immunity against Newcastle disease virus (NDV) [23], egg quality parameters or erythrocyte counts [24].…”

Bee Products for Poultry and Rabbits: Current Challenges and Perspectives

“…According to Saeed et al [9], supplementing poultry diets with royal jelly provides an opportunity to maximize profits from safe and high-quality poultry products. Previous studies that have focused on supplementation of poultry diets with royal jelly (50-200 mg/kg) have shown a substantial increase in body weight, egg production, semen quality, and immune response, as well as producing healthier products [9,[83][84][85]. Under heat stress, administering royal jelly to growing rabbits can improve body weight gain and feed conversion ratio as well as alleviate the physiological stress caused by heat stress, according to [86].…”