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Effects of Testosterone on Pullets
883
RESEARCH NOTES
EFFECTS OF TESTOSTERONE ON PULLETS C. L. ANDERSON
Agricultural Experiment Station, Oregon State College, Corwallis (Received for publication July 3, 1953)
PROCEDURE
Day-old chicks were started on the experiment on November 11, 1952, and carried though 10 weeks of age. Two kinds of chicks were used. Seventy-five pullets each of DelawareXNew Hampshire and
straight New Hampshire were divided into five groups of 15 birds each. Three groups of each kind were fed rations containing 5, 15 and 45 mg. of methyl testosterone per pound of feed, respectively. A fourth group of each kind was fed the control ration until 6 weeks of age and then methyl testosterone was added to their ration at a level of 5 mg. per pound of feed. This ration was continued through the end of the experiment. A fifth group of each kind was used as a control. In addition another group of 15 DelawareXNew Hampshire pullets was carried through for implantation with testosterone pellets at six weeks of age. The pellets were unavailable at that time so the group served as a duplicate control. Fifteen cockerels were also carried through the ten week period for comparison purposes. The ration used is shown below: Corn Alfalfa meal Soybean meal Meat meal Salt Manganese sulfate Fish meal Liver meal Riboflavin Irr. Animal sterol Niacin Choline chloride
71 1 8 8 O.S 0.2 8 3 500 12 1 32
Lbs.
mg. grams gram grams
99.7
The chicks were reared on wire in electrically heated batteries. A high-energy type of ration was used and the birds were fed ad libitum. Daily feed consumption records were kept. Running water was supplied in a V trough. The birds were individually weighed at two week intervals starting with the fourth week. The results are shown in Table 1.
Downloaded from http://ps.oxfordjournals.org/ at New York University on April 12, 2015
Male chickens grow faster and are more efficient in their feed conversion than females. Due to their faster growth the male birds reach broiler weights about 7 to 10 days sooner than the females. These two factors are important to broiler growers since feed represents approximately 70% of their production costs. Implantation or injection of male sex hormones in the female sex of various farm animals has given varied results. Dinusson et al. (1950) found that the treatment of heifers with testosterone propionate appeared to stimulate growth but the effect was of short duraton. Woehling et al. (1951) found no significant deviation from the control in rate of gain or in feed efficiency of pigs. Bogart et al. (1951) reported both increased gains and feed efficiency for treated heifer calves (injected with an aqueous suspension of pure testosterone) over the control animals. Almquist (1952) implanted 50 mg. testosterone propionate pellets in turkey hens and found that they grew faster than the control hens and had a feed conversion comparable to that of the toms. With the above in mind, this experiment was set up to determine whether the addition of testosterone to a ration fed female chickens during their early growing period, from hatching through 10 weeks of age, would stimulate growth.
BOOK REVIEW TABLE 1
Pen No. 1 2 3 4
Kind of bird New Hampshires
5 6
9 9 9 9
9 9 9 9
9 9 cfc?1 DelawareXNew Hampshires
11 12 13
9 9 9 9
9 9 9 9
9 9 &
Age in weeks 10
Lbs. feed per lb. gain
824 885 895 872
1,121 1,119 1,115 1,128
2.84 2.86 2.84 2.78
594 649
907 924
1,200 1,333
2.88 2.53
340 305 296 316
605 574 553 598
888 842 840 945
1,240 1,179 1,143 1,260
2.76 2.78 2.87 2.76
351 411 335
646 762 625
954 1,168 954
1,275 1,627 1,264
2.61 2.57 2.73
4
6
mg./lb. feed mg./lb. feed mg./lb. feed mg./lb. feed at 6 to 10 weeks Control Comparison
298 311 299 295
514 556 532 555
320 339
5 mg./lb. feed 15 mg./lb. feed 45 mg./lb. feed 5 mg./lb. feed at 6 to 10 weeks Control Comparison Control
5 15 45 5
SUMMARY
In all cases, the groups consuming rations containing methyl testosterone weighed no more than the control groups at all periods. The feeding of methyl testosterone did not have any effect on feed conversion. All pullet chicks fed methyl testosterone developed bright red male-like combs and wattles. REFERENCES Almquist, H. J., 1952. Effects of male sex hormone on gains and feed conversions of hen turkeys. Poultry Sci. 31: 747-48.
8
Andrews, F. N . 1949. Effect of stilbestrol and testosterone on the growth and fattening of lambs. J. Animal Sci. 8:578-82. Bogart, R. W., A. C. Warnick, J. J. Dahmen and M. J. Burris, 1951. The effect of the male sex hormone on rate of gain and feed efficiency of beef cattle. J. Animal Sci. 10:1073. Dinusson, W. E., F. N . Andrews and W. M. Beeson, 1950. Effects of stilbestrol, testosterone, thyroiP alteration and spaying on the growth and fattening of beef hiefers. J. Animal Sci. 9:321-30. Woehling, H . L., G. D. Wilson, R. H. Grummer, R. W. Bray and L. E. Casida, 1951. Effects of stilbestrol and testosterone pellets implanted into growing-fattening pigs. J. Animal Sci. 10: 88992.
Book Review WINTER, A. R., AND E. M. FUNK. Poultry Science
and Practice, 3rd edition, J. P. Lippincott Company, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, 662 pp. This popular textbook has been revised from the 2nd edition published in 1946 and reprinted in 1949. By the use of smaller type, a slightly larger page and rearrangement in spacing 67 pages have been eliminated from the previous printing. The chapter headings and general arrangement are the same, but the authors have added many new illustrations and tables to bring the contents up to date.
The subject matter has been designed to meet the requirements of a general college poultry course as well as for reference use by vocational agricultural students and poultrymen. There are fourteen chapters devoted to chickens; two to turkeys; one to ducks, geese and miscellaneous poultry; and one to game bird production. The authors have made every effort to illustrate and describe the principles and practices involved in successful poultry culture. T. H. C.
Downloaded from http://ps.oxfordjournals.org/ at New York University on April 12, 2015
7 8 9 10
Treatment (methyl-test.)
Sex
RESEARCH NOTES
EFFECTS OF TESTOSTERONE ON PULLETS C. L. ANDERSON
Agricultural Experiment Station, Oregon State College, Corwallis (Received for publication July 3, 1953)
PROCEDURE
Day-old chicks were started on the experiment on November 11, 1952, and carried though 10 weeks of age. Two kinds of chicks were used. Seventy-five pullets each of DelawareXNew Hampshire and
straight New Hampshire were divided into five groups of 15 birds each. Three groups of each kind were fed rations containing 5, 15 and 45 mg. of methyl testosterone per pound of feed, respectively. A fourth group of each kind was fed the control ration until 6 weeks of age and then methyl testosterone was added to their ration at a level of 5 mg. per pound of feed. This ration was continued through the end of the experiment. A fifth group of each kind was used as a control. In addition another group of 15 DelawareXNew Hampshire pullets was carried through for implantation with testosterone pellets at six weeks of age. The pellets were unavailable at that time so the group served as a duplicate control. Fifteen cockerels were also carried through the ten week period for comparison purposes. The ration used is shown below: Corn Alfalfa meal Soybean meal Meat meal Salt Manganese sulfate Fish meal Liver meal Riboflavin Irr. Animal sterol Niacin Choline chloride
71 1 8 8 O.S 0.2 8 3 500 12 1 32
Lbs.
mg. grams gram grams
99.7
The chicks were reared on wire in electrically heated batteries. A high-energy type of ration was used and the birds were fed ad libitum. Daily feed consumption records were kept. Running water was supplied in a V trough. The birds were individually weighed at two week intervals starting with the fourth week. The results are shown in Table 1.
Downloaded from http://ps.oxfordjournals.org/ at New York University on April 12, 2015
Male chickens grow faster and are more efficient in their feed conversion than females. Due to their faster growth the male birds reach broiler weights about 7 to 10 days sooner than the females. These two factors are important to broiler growers since feed represents approximately 70% of their production costs. Implantation or injection of male sex hormones in the female sex of various farm animals has given varied results. Dinusson et al. (1950) found that the treatment of heifers with testosterone propionate appeared to stimulate growth but the effect was of short duraton. Woehling et al. (1951) found no significant deviation from the control in rate of gain or in feed efficiency of pigs. Bogart et al. (1951) reported both increased gains and feed efficiency for treated heifer calves (injected with an aqueous suspension of pure testosterone) over the control animals. Almquist (1952) implanted 50 mg. testosterone propionate pellets in turkey hens and found that they grew faster than the control hens and had a feed conversion comparable to that of the toms. With the above in mind, this experiment was set up to determine whether the addition of testosterone to a ration fed female chickens during their early growing period, from hatching through 10 weeks of age, would stimulate growth.
BOOK REVIEW TABLE 1
Pen No. 1 2 3 4
Kind of bird New Hampshires
5 6
9 9 9 9
9 9 9 9
9 9 cfc?1 DelawareXNew Hampshires
11 12 13
9 9 9 9
9 9 9 9
9 9 &
Age in weeks 10
Lbs. feed per lb. gain
824 885 895 872
1,121 1,119 1,115 1,128
2.84 2.86 2.84 2.78
594 649
907 924
1,200 1,333
2.88 2.53
340 305 296 316
605 574 553 598
888 842 840 945
1,240 1,179 1,143 1,260
2.76 2.78 2.87 2.76
351 411 335
646 762 625
954 1,168 954
1,275 1,627 1,264
2.61 2.57 2.73
4
6
mg./lb. feed mg./lb. feed mg./lb. feed mg./lb. feed at 6 to 10 weeks Control Comparison
298 311 299 295
514 556 532 555
320 339
5 mg./lb. feed 15 mg./lb. feed 45 mg./lb. feed 5 mg./lb. feed at 6 to 10 weeks Control Comparison Control
5 15 45 5
SUMMARY
In all cases, the groups consuming rations containing methyl testosterone weighed no more than the control groups at all periods. The feeding of methyl testosterone did not have any effect on feed conversion. All pullet chicks fed methyl testosterone developed bright red male-like combs and wattles. REFERENCES Almquist, H. J., 1952. Effects of male sex hormone on gains and feed conversions of hen turkeys. Poultry Sci. 31: 747-48.
8
Andrews, F. N . 1949. Effect of stilbestrol and testosterone on the growth and fattening of lambs. J. Animal Sci. 8:578-82. Bogart, R. W., A. C. Warnick, J. J. Dahmen and M. J. Burris, 1951. The effect of the male sex hormone on rate of gain and feed efficiency of beef cattle. J. Animal Sci. 10:1073. Dinusson, W. E., F. N . Andrews and W. M. Beeson, 1950. Effects of stilbestrol, testosterone, thyroiP alteration and spaying on the growth and fattening of beef hiefers. J. Animal Sci. 9:321-30. Woehling, H . L., G. D. Wilson, R. H. Grummer, R. W. Bray and L. E. Casida, 1951. Effects of stilbestrol and testosterone pellets implanted into growing-fattening pigs. J. Animal Sci. 10: 88992.
Book Review WINTER, A. R., AND E. M. FUNK. Poultry Science
and Practice, 3rd edition, J. P. Lippincott Company, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, 662 pp. This popular textbook has been revised from the 2nd edition published in 1946 and reprinted in 1949. By the use of smaller type, a slightly larger page and rearrangement in spacing 67 pages have been eliminated from the previous printing. The chapter headings and general arrangement are the same, but the authors have added many new illustrations and tables to bring the contents up to date.
The subject matter has been designed to meet the requirements of a general college poultry course as well as for reference use by vocational agricultural students and poultrymen. There are fourteen chapters devoted to chickens; two to turkeys; one to ducks, geese and miscellaneous poultry; and one to game bird production. The authors have made every effort to illustrate and describe the principles and practices involved in successful poultry culture. T. H. C.
Downloaded from http://ps.oxfordjournals.org/ at New York University on April 12, 2015
7 8 9 10
Treatment (methyl-test.)
Sex