Ammonia emission and performance of laying hens as affected by different dosages of Yucca schidigera in the diet

A laboratory-scale study was conducted to determine the effect of feeding laying hens a standard commercial diet supplemented with different dosages of Yucca schidigera powder on NH3 emission rate and production performance. a total of 72 W36 laying hens at 25 wk of age were used during the 12-wk study. the birds were equally divided into 4 groups and randomly allocated among 4 diets containing, respectively, 0, 50, 100, and 200 ppm (by weight) yucca powder. the hens were reared in an environment of 24 +/- 1 degrees C and a concomitant Rh of 45 to 65%. Measurement of NH3 emission rate was done with a Gaseous emission Vessels System. the Y. schidigera powder in the laying-hen diet at a dosage of 50, 100, or 200 ppm did not affect the production performance of laying hens when compared with the 0-ppm dosage. the 100-ppm dosage significantly (P < 0.05) reduced NH3 emission by 44 and 28%, respectively, for the first and second day of manure storage when compared with the other dosages. On the third day, NH3 reduction was 14% but was not significantly different from the other treatments. adding 50 or 200 ppm of yucca in the diet did not reduce NH3 emission. hence, adding 100 ppm of yucca in the laying-hen diet coupled with frequent manure removal (once every 1 to 2 d) would be conducive to reducing NH3 generation and emission in laying-hen barns.