BODY-WEIGHT AND CARCASS DEVELOPMENT IN DIFFERENT LINES OF TURKEYS

Body weight and carcass component weights of turkeys from a growth-selected line (F), a randombred control population (RBC2), and a commercial sire line (C) were compared at hatch, 4, 8, 12, and 16 wk of age. At hatch there were no significant differences in BW between the F and RBC2 lines, but the C line poults weighed significantly less than the F line poults. Total Pectoralis muscle weight of the F line was larger than for Lines C and RBC2 at hatch, but there were no line differences in drum weight or length. The F line was still heavier than the other lines at 4, 8, and 12 wk, but the absolute and relative weights of the Pectoralis major (P. major) muscle were larger in the C line than the other lines at all ages. Selection for BW increased the weight of the P. major in the F line compared with the RBC2, but differences in the relative weight of the muscle were not consistent. The large line differences for the absolute and relative weight of the P. major were not observed for the Pectoralis minor. At all ages, the lengths of the tibia and femur were greater in the F line than the other lines. At 4 and 8 wk, bone length in the C line was greater than the RBC2, but at 12 and 16 wk there were no significant differences between these lines. The fast-growing F and C lines had more abdominal fat than the RBC2 at 16 wk of age.