Table 3. The egg production of laying hens subjected to various molting methods during first two weeks after molting (three groups with complete molting)¹⁾

	Control	CZn	MZn	Pooled SEM	p-value
Egg production (%)
During 2 wk of post molting	21.5b	20.8b	28.3a	1.610	0.006
Egg weight (g/egg)
During 2 wk of post molting	22.5b	24.8ab	29.4a	1.793	0.039
Daily egg mass
During 2 wk of post molting	4.9b	5.1b	8.4a	0.578	0.001
Feed intake (g/bird/d)	116.5	115.6	116.4	1.212	0.851
Day to start of laying (d)	9.5a	7.9b	7.8b	0.452	0.021
Day to return to 50% egg production (d)	11.6	12.4	10.8	0.445	0.055
Day to return to pre-molting levels (d)	14.8	15.0	14.8	0.991	0.979

Data are least square of mean of eight replicates with two cages (five birds per cage).
Mean values with different superscripts within the same row differ significantly (p < 0.05).
Control, fasting group; CZn, group fed commercial layer diet with 8,000 ppm zinc; MZn, group fed induced molting diet with 8,000 ppm zinc.