Table 3.

Effects of dietary YSE supplementation on the productive performance of laying hens with or without Clostridium perfringens and coccidia challenge.

Items	Nonchallenge		Challenge		P value
	CON	YSE	CON	YSE	YSE	Challenge	YSE × challenge
1–35 d
Egg weight, g	58.83 ± 0.53	59.57 ± 0.46			0.297
ADFI, g	105.23 ± 0.62	106.76 ± 0.57			0.076
FCR	1.83 ± 0.02	1.84 ± 0.02			0.657
Laying rate	0.98 ± 0.01	0.97 ± 0.01			0.468
Unqualified egg rate, %	1.09 ± 0.38	0.73 ± 0.32			0.476
36–45 d
Egg weight, g	63.09 ± 0.74a	62.33 ± 0.85a	57.48 ± 0.77c	59.87 ± 0.69b	0.295	<0.01	0.046
ADFI, g	114.64 ± 1.88	116.46 ± 0.68	101.18 ± 1.51	102.96 ± 2.64	0.327	<0.01	0.991
FCR	1.87 ± 0.03	1.90 ± 0.03	2.30 ± 0.13	2.13 ± 0.09	0.431	<0.01	0.239
Laying rate	0.98 ± 0.01	0.99 ± 0.01	0.79 ± 0.04	0.82 ± 0.04	0.420	<0.01	0.670
Unqualified egg rate, %	1.43 ± 0.98	0.60 ± 0.60	2.23 ± 1.23	1.07 ± 0.85	0.295	0.499	0.863

^a,bMean values within a row with unlike superscript letters are significantly different (P < 0.05; 1–35 d, n = 24; 36–45 d, n = 12).

Abbreviations: ADFI, average daily feed intake; Challenge, infusing Clostridium perfringens and coccidian; CON, the basal diet; FCR, feed conversion ratio; Nonchallenge, infusing sterile phosphate-buffered saline; YSE, Yucca schidigera extract-supplemented diet.