Effect of Dietary Protein Levels on Growth Performance, Carcass traits and Economic returns of local Quail

The study aimed to find out the effects of different levels of dietary protein (control:26%, T1: 29%, T2: 33%) on the growth Performance, carcass quality and economic returns of local quail. In the experiment 216 quail chicks were used divided into three groups of three replicas each with 24 birds, the birds were bred for 42 days, the results showed a significant effect of protein levels on growth performance, birds in (T1) obtained the best body weight, weight gain and carcass weight compared to control and T2. The effect of different protein levels on the physical properties and chemical composition of local quail meat showed that the best crude protein (80%) and cooking loss (11%) were recorded in (T2) and the thawing loss in (T1) is (4.9%). The sensory tests of both treatments significantly superior to the control for odor, tenderness and general appearance, also the control group had the lowest feed cost (419.8 Iraqi dinars), while T1 and T2 had significantly higher feed costs (531.3 and 533.7 Iraqi dinars, respectively). The results of this investigation revealed that best growth performances were in T1.