EARLY-LIFE FOOD RESTRICTION OF BROILER-CHICKENS .1. METHODS OF APPLICATION, AMINO-ACID SUPPLEMENTATION AND THE AGE AT WHICH RESTRICTIONS SHOULD COMMENCE

1. Three experiments were performed to examine practical methods of early-life food restrictions and to examine the influence of increased dietary lysine or methionine on bodyweight recovery during re-alimentation in broiler chickens. 2. Food intake of broiler chicks was restricted quantitatively or by dietary dilution at 3 ages and the birds slaughtered at 49 d of age. The success of each food restriction was measured in terms of bodyweight recovery and body fat content. 3. Discontinuous food restriction and restriction by dietary dilution produced similar effects to a previously established food restriction regime. Bodyweight recovery was complete and fat contents depressed. FCR was inconsistently affected. 4. Supplementation of the finisher diet with lysine and/or methionine produced no conclusive results when this diet was fed to broilers previously subjected to early-life food restriction.