Zinc, Potassium and Certain Other Minerals as Additives to Practical Turkey Starter and Grower Rations

Abstract SLINGER et al. (1956) reported that the addition of zinc (50 p.p.m.) to practical type starting diets containing two and three percent calcium significantly increased the growth rate of male Broad Breasted Bronze poults to four weeks of age but appeared to depress the growth rate of the females. In the presence of an antibiotic, Aureomycin, supplementary zinc had no significant effect on weight. Recent data obtained with semi-purified type diets provide ample evidence that turkeys require a dietary source of zinc. O’Dell and Savage (1957) obtained a highly significant increase in growth rate with added zinc and potassium or potassium alone using essentially the same basal ration used by Dannenburg et al. (1955). The combination treatment of zinc and potassium increased growth more than potassium alone (highly significant). More recently, Supplee et al. (1958) have shown that zinc is required for normal bone and feather development as well as …