Biotin intake and transfer to the egg and chick in broiler breeder hens housed on litter or in cages.

Biotin concentrations in the plasma of hens and chicks and in egg yolk were measured at different ages in broiler breeder hens housed on litter or in cages and fed restricted amounts of diets containing different concentrations of biotin. In the caged groups, biotin concentrations in these fluids increased with increasing maternal biotin intake over the range of intakes studied. Biotin concentrations in hen plasma and yolk were linearly related and increased with age. Biotin concentration in chick plasma was highly correlated (r = 0.93) with yolk concentration. The poorest biotin status was predicted for chicks from young hens. There was no evidence that ingestion of excreta contributed substantially to the biotin status of hens housed on deep litter.