Abstract   

    This study was conducted to examine effect of moulting on haematological values and plasma cholesterol levels of 86 weeks old Nick Chick laying hens. Washington and California moulting methods were used. Young laying hens, 40 weeks old served as control group. There were 408 hens in each group. There was no significant (P<0.05) difference in haematological mean values of WBC's, RBCs, haemoglobin, packed cell volume (PCV), Mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC), Mean corpuscular colume (MCV) and pla$ma cholesterol. There was significant difference in platelets count, being low in California method. This study provided evidence that moulting played as important role in restoring normal physiological processes in old spent hens.    

Key words: Haematological values, plasma cholesterol, moulting, Nick Chick hens.