To cite this paper: Erwan E, Pratama R, Mirdhayati I, Prameswara JA, Husti I, and Emadi M (2024). Performance of Quail (Coturnix Japonica) Fed Diets with Fish Meal Substituted by Catfish Offal Flour (Pangaius hypopthalmus). J. World Poult. Res., 14(4): 399-403. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.36380/jwpr.2024.40 399 JWPR Journal of World’ s Poultry Research 2024, Scienceline Publication J. World Poult. Res. 14(4): 399-403, 2024 Research Paper DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.36380/jwpr.2024.40 PII: S2322455X2400040-14 Performance of Quail (Coturnix Japonica) Fed Diets with Fish Meal Substituted by Catfish Offal Flour (Pangaius hypopthalmus) Edi Erwan 1 * , Rendi Pratama 2 , Irdha Mirdhayati 1 , Jordi Aditiya Prameswara 3 , Ilyas Husti 4 , and Mozhdeh Emadi 5 1 Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Animal Science, State Islamic University of Sultan Syarif Kasim Riau (Universitas Islam Negeri Sultan Syarif Kasim Riau), Pekanbaru, Riau, Indonesia 2 Alumni of Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Animal Science, State Islamic University of Sultan Syarif Kasim Riau (Universitas Islam Negeri Sultan Syarif Kasim Riau), Pekanbaru, Riau, Indonesia 3 PT.CJ Feed and Care Indonesia, Serang Plant, Banten, Indonesia 4 Graduate School of State Islamic University of Sultan Syarif Kasim Riau (Universitas Islam Negeri Sultan Syarif Kasim Riau), Pekanbaru, Riau, Indonesia 5 Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Payam-e-Noor University, Tehran-Iran *Corresponding author’s E-mail: erwan_edi@yahoo.com Received: October 09, 2024, Revised: November 19, 2024, Accepted: December 01, 2024, Published: December 30, 2024 ABSTRACT Catfish offal flour (COF; Pangaius hypopthalmus) has the potential to replace fish meal (FM) due to its high crude protein content. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of substituting FM with COF in basal diets on food intake (FI), body weight gain (BWG), and feed conversion ratio (FCR) in quails. A total of 100 male quails were randomly assigned to five treatment groups, each with four replicates. The treatment groups were fed with basal diet + 0% COF and 100% FM (T0), basal diet + 25% COF and 75% FM (T1), basal diet + 50% COF and 50% FM (T2), basal diet + 75% COF and 25% FM (T3), and basal diet + 100% COF and 0% FM (T4). Feed intake, BWG, and FCR were measured from 0 to 35 days of age. The findings indicated that substituting FM with COF up to 100% did not significantly affect FI, BWG, and FCR. It can be concluded that COF has the potential to replace FM in basal diets while maintaining performance in quails. Keywords: Catfish offal flour, Body weight gain, Feed intake, Feed conversion ratio, Quail INTRODUCTION Quail farming is a popular practice in many communities and has long been a significant source of animal protein in Indonesia, particularly through the production of its meat and eggs. The population of quails in Indonesia increased from 13,932,649 to 14,819,755 in 2020 (Directorate General of Livestock and Animal Health, 2020). The management of quail maintenance is similar to that of other poultry, encompassing both breeding and feeding strategies. Among these practices, feed management is a crucial aspect of the maintenance of quails. Each developmental stage in quails requires feed with a specific protein content. During the starter period, the feed should contain a maximum of 24% crude protein (CP) and 2,800 Kcal/kg of metabolizable energy (ME). In the grower period, the feed should contain up to 20% of CP and 2,600 Kcal/kg of ME. Finally, for the layer period, the feed should contain a maximum of 22% CP and 2,700 Kcal/kg of ME (SNI 01-3907, 2006). Catfish offal is a protein source derived from fishery waste that can be utilized as animal feed. In 2018, the production of catfish in Riau, Indonesia was 36,554.82 tons (Directorate General of Livestock and Animal Health, 2020). Moreover, fish offal constitutes 10-15% (depending on the species) of the fish biomass (Bhaskar and Mahendrakar, 2008). Utilizable catfish offal includes intestines, swim bladders, liver, and gonads, which account for approximately 7.5% of the whole fish weight (Prabosasongko, 2003). According to Prabosasongko (2003), catfish offal silage contains 54.17% protein, 21.79% fat, 4.29% ash, 1.81% crude fiber, and 17.95% nitrogen-free extract. Previous studies have reported that catfish offal meal contains 53.38% CP, 18% crude fat, and 2.04% crude fiber, making it a potential substitute for fish meal in animal feed. Based on the aforementioned considerations, this study aimed to investigate the effects of utilizing catfish (Pangasius) offal waste as a substitute for fish meal in fulfilling protein requirements in livestock feed. In particular, the objective of this study was to examine the effects of substituting fish ISSN: 2322-455X License: CC BY 4.0