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A study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of neem, girawa leaves meal, and garlic for layer hens on performances and egg quality parameters.A total of 128 bovans brown layer hens with uniform body weight (BW) were randomly distributed to 4 treatments, each with 4 replications in a completely randomized design (CRD). The treatments consisted of a commercial diet without additives (T1), and the remaining groups received commercial diet with neem leaf meal (T2), girawa leaf meal (T3), and garlic powder (T4) at 2.5% level of inclusion. Performance parameters such as hen-day egg production, egg weight, feed intake, and internal and external egg qualities were evaluated for the laying hens. The results showed that the highest feed intake was reported in T2 (117.77 g/hen) and T4 (117.12 g/hen), while the lowest was reported in T3 (108.20 g/hen) compared to T1 (110.51 g/hen). Neem had the highest (P < 0.05) hen-day egg production (92.45%), followed by garlic (89.78%), and the least hen-day egg production was recorded in girawa (83.86%) compared to control (87.4%). The egg mass was highest for T2, while T1 and T3 had the lowest. No significant difference was observed in egg weight, shell thickness, shell weight, albumin height, albumin weight, yolk weight, yolk height, and yolk diameter. However, egg length and yolk color were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in T2. Therefore, it was concluded that neem leaf meal can be recommended in this study, and it has a good phytogenic feed additive for layer performance and egg qualities.

The research was undertaken in northeastern Ethiopia with the objective of identifying potential indigenous fodder trees and shrubs (IFTSs) species, their feed value, abundance and distribution and characterizing their current utilization scenarios from the local people's perspective. Participatory Rapid Appraisal tools were employed and it was possible to identify 51 IFTSs from 23 different families. The foliage availability, abundance, distribution and niches of the IFTSs were found to vary across the different locations indicating the relative importance of each species in different places. Moreover foliage availability of the IFTSs varies in the different months of a year. Besides, 15 most important species were identified based on the number of respondents and from these, using pair wise ranking method, farmers could identify the top ten species which are more preferred by goats. In view of the diversified families of the IFTSs species and their wide distribution, they could enhance the productivity of the livestock sector, if indeed supported by further scientific investigations.

A study was conducted to evaluate effects of cassava root chips (CRC) and Moringa oleifera leaf meal (MOLM) inclusion in layer rations on egg laying performance, egg quality parameters, fertility, and hatchability. One hundred twenty Dominant CZ layers, 22 wk of age, and 12 cocks were used and equally divided into 4 dietary treatments with 3 replications. Treatment rations contained CRC and MOLM [i.e., T1 (0% CRC and 0% MOLM), T2 (50% CRC and 0% MOLM), T3 (0% CRC and 5% MOLM), and T4 (50% CRC and 5% MOLM)]. The CRC and MOLM were used to substitute for 100% corn grain and 5% soybean meal, respectively. Hens were weighed at the start and end of the experiment and BW change was calculated. Data on DM intake, hen-day egg production, egg weight, and egg mass were recorded daily. Egg quality parameters were determined at an interval of 15 d on 4 eggs per replicate. Fertility and hatchability of eggs, as well as mortality of birds and embryonic mortality of fertile eggs during the incubation period were recorded. From the chemical analysis, the calculated ME content of CRC was 3,852 kcal/kg of DM and the CP content of MOLM was 28%. The DM intake of birds, hen-day egg production, egg mass, FE, and mortality rate were not influenced by treatments. Body weight change and egg weight were higher for T4 as compared with other treatments. Most external and internal egg quality parameters, especially yolk color, were improved when the diet contained MOLM. Fertility showed nonsignificant differences among treatments. However, hatchability percentage for T1 was lower than the other treatments. In conclusion, CRC at 50% of the diet, CRC replacing corn grain 100%, or MOLM at 5% of the diet replacing soybean meal can impart similar or better positive effects on egg production, egg quality parameters, eggs fertility, and hatchability of Dominant CZ layers. Thus, 50% CRC, 5% MOLM, or a combination of both can successfully be used in the diet of layers as energy and protein feed ingredients, respectively.