Observation

Question 2 was not very popular among candidates and many of them who attempted this question recorded poor marks.

1. Many candidates had difficulty mentioning the limiting ingredients in the given

      diet for poultry. They mentioned feed nutrients like fats and oil, minerals etc.

1. Very few candidates were able to state the measures that could be taken to prevent

       liver fluke from completing its life cycle.

The expected answers include:

The expected answers include:
(a)        (i)         Explanation of malnutrition in animal husbandry

• Malnutrition is a condition caused by feeding animals with a diet which is deficient in essential nutrients
• It is a condition resulting from feeding animals with a diet in excess of essential nutrients
• It could also occur when an animal cannot utilize nutrients in feed given, due to ill-health, stress or other factors
• It could occur when the right quantity of feed is not given to the animal
• Nutrients in the feed are not in the right proportions                                                                                                                                     

            (ii)        Limiting ingredients that are not included in the diet

• Fibre source e.g. Wheat offal, rice bran, maize offal, PKC
• Mineral-vitamin premix
• Common salt/table salt
• Toxin binder/detoxifier
• Vegetable oil/palm oil

(iii)       Importance of limiting ingredients
Fibre

• Adds bulk to the feed
• Improves bowel movement
• Improves digestibility
• Reduces incidence of diarrhoea in farm animals 

                        Mineral-vitamin premix

• Useful in egg formation
• Used in bone formation
• Improves immunity against diseases
• Aids proper absorption of nutrients

                        Common salt

• Improves palatability
• Promotes activities of enzymes
• Supplies sodium and chlorine to the animal
• Increases feed intake
• Improves water intake

Vegetable oil/palm oil

• Reduce dustiness of feed
• Improve palatability/acceptability
• Improve energy content of feed
• Improve carotene or vitamin A content of feed

                        Toxin binder/detoxifier
                        -   Binds toxin in feed
-   Growth promoter
-   Builds immunity
-   Traps fungal pathogens

(b)       Reasons for keeping farm records by a poultry farmer         

• Shows the financial position of the farm
• Enables the farmer to know all the activities carried out on the farm
• For taking management decisions/planning
• For estimating annual tax
• Necessary in obtaining loans
• Helps to detect fraudulent practices on the farm
• Enables the farmer to detect changes in prices
• Used for computing farmers’ net worth/ farm inventory
• Serves as a requirement to receive awards/laurels
• Aids appropriate budgeting
• For purpose of auditing
• To assess productivity

(c)        Ways of preventing liver fluke from completing its life cycle

• Periodic burning of pasture
• Use of clean, uncontaminated water
• Use of lime to prevent eggs from hatching/liming
• Elimination of water snails by introducing ducks
• Control of weeds in ponds and riversides
• Avoid grazing animals on marshy areas
• Ensure proper drainage of pasture land