Influence of Dietary Supplementation with Organic and Inorganic Selenium Sources on Growth Performance, Carcass Traits and Blood Metabolites in Geese Chicken

The aim of the present experiment was to investigate the effect of diets containing organic and inorganic selenium on growth performance, carcass traits and blood metabolites in geese chickens. A total of 96 one day old native geese were used in a completely randomized design with 3 treatments of 4 replicates with 8 each. The experimental diets were basal diet, basal diet plus 0.3 mg organic Se per kg of diet (Sel-plex) and basal diet plus 0.3 mg inorganic Se per kg of diet (selenite sodium). Growth performance biweekly was calculated by recording during 1-56 days. Phytohemagglutinin test used for the evaluation of cellular immunity at 8 weeks of geese. Bodyweight gain was increased over 2 to 6 weeks and decreased thereafter. Feed conversion rate (FCR) was improved by both selenium sources and the highest FCR value related to the control group in the 8th week. Carcass traits were not affected by various inorganic and organic sources of selenium (P <0.05). Diet supplementation with organic and inorganic Se increased phenolic content and the amount of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids and decreased lipid oxidation after 9 days of storage at 4°C in the refrigerator (P<0.05). Selenium supplementation decreased total blood cholesterol (P <0.05). The cellular immune response was improved in the organic selenium group compared to inorganic selenium and control group (P<0.05). In conclusion, the results of this study suggest that dietary selenium especially organic selenium has desirable potential for improving the performance, immune, and meat quality of goose chickens.