Effect of calves’ supplementation on performance, nutritional and behavioral characteristics of their dams

The effects of supplementation of beef calves on weight gain, intake and digestibility of pasture, milk production and composition of their dams, and behavior of the pair cow–calf were assessed. Fifty-five beef cows with an initial average body weight of 449?±?8 kg and their respective offspring, with an initial average body weight of 138?+?3 kg and aged between 90 and 150 days, were used. Animals were submitted to an experimental period of 112 days. The experimental treatments consisted of: control?=?mineral mixture only, plan 1?=?high protein and high carbohydrate multiple supplement, plan 2?= high protein and low carbohydrate multiple supplement, plan 3?=?low protein and high carbohydrate multiple supplement, and plan 4?=?low protein and low carbohydrate multiple supplement. About 25 and 12.5 % of the protein requirements were supplied by the high and low protein supplements, respectively, and 15 and 7.5 % of total digestible nutrient requirements by the high and low carbohydrate supplements, respectively. Grazing behavior, performance, milk production, milk composition, intake, and digestibility of the cows were not affected (P?>?0.05) by the supplementation of the calves. The supplemented calves had greater (P?<?0.05) performance (as measured by final body weight, average daily gain, and final body condition score), intake and idle time, and lower (P?<?0.05) grazing time, but supplementation did not affect (P?>?0.05) suckling time and suckling frequency. It can be concluded that supplementation affects the behavior and feed intake of calves. However, it does not affect the suckling time and suckling frequency of calves. Additionally, performance, milk production, nutritional characteristics, and behavior of their dams are not affected.     

Effect of nutritional interventions with quercetin,oat hulls, β-glucans,lysozyme and fish oil on performance and health status related parameters of broilers chickens

ABSTRACT

1. An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of technical feed ingredients between 14 and 28 d of age on performance and health status of broilers (d 14–35) fed diets with a high inclusion rate of rapeseed meal as a nutritional challenge. It was hypothesized that the feed ingredients would improve health status related parameters.

2. A total of 1008 one-day-old male Ross 308 chicks were distributed over 36 floor pens and allocated to one of six iso-caloric (AME_N 13 MJ/kg) growing diets (d 15–28): a control and five test diets supplemented with quercetin (400 mg/kg), oat hulls (50 g/kg), β-glucan (100 mg/kg), lysozyme (40 mg/kg) or fish oil ω-3 fatty acids (40 g/kg), with six replicate pens per treatment.

3. Dietary inclusion of oat hulls and lysozyme resulted in a reduction in broiler performance during the first week after providing the experimental diets.

4. No effect of interventions on the microbiota diversity in the jejunum and ileum was observed. Ileal microbiota composition of birds fed oat hulls differed from the other groups, as shown by a higher abundance of the genus Enterococcus, mainly at the expense of the genus Lactobacillus.

5. In the jejunum, villus height and crypt depth of lysozyme-fed birds at d 28 were decreased compared to the control group. Higher total surface area of villi occupied by goblet cells and total villi surface area in jejunum (d 21 and 28) were observed in chickens fed oat hulls compared to other groups.

6. Genes related to the growth-factor-activity pathway were more highly expressed in birds fed β-glucan compared to the control group, while the genes related to anion-transmembrane-transporter-activity pathway in the quercetin- and oat hull-fed birds were less expressed. The genes differently expressed between dietary interventions did not seem to be directly involved in immune related processes.

7. It was concluded that the tested nutritional interventions in the current experiment only marginally effected health status related parameters.     

Can breeder reproductive status,performance and egg quality be enhanced by supplementation and transition of n‐3 fatty acids?

The aim of this experiment was to investigate the effect of n‐3 fatty acid (FA) supplemented diets on breeder performance, productivity and egg quality. Breeders (n = 480) were fed the supplemented diet from 18 weeks onwards; the inclusion level of n‐3 FA was increased from 1.5% to 3.0% from 34 weeks of age onwards until 48 weeks of age. Ross‐308 broiler breeders (n = 480) were fed one of four different diets: a basal diet rich in n‐6 FA (control diet) or one of three diets rich in n‐3 FA. For the n‐3 FA diets, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5 n‐3) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6 n‐3) were fed to the broiler breeders at different ratios formulated to obtain EPA/DHA ratios of 1/1, 1/2 or 2/1. Differences in performance, reproduction and egg quality parameters due to n‐3 supplementation were noted more for the 1.5% followed by the 3.0% fed broilers than their 1.5% supplemented counterparts. Egg weight (p < 0.001) and egg mass (p = 0.003) were significantly lower and feed conversion (p = 0.008) significantly higher for the n‐3 FA (at 3.0% inclusion level) fed broilers compared to the control group. For the EPA‐ and DHA‐fed breeders, a higher proportional abdominal fat percentage (p = 0.025) and proportional albumen weight (%) (p = 0.041) were found respectively. Dietary treatments did not affect reproduction. It can be concluded that the results of the present experiment indicate no significant differences between treatments at 1.5% inclusion levels. However, increasing this level to 3.0% is not recommended due to the rather negative effects on the measured parameters. It should be further investigated whether these adverse effects were obtained due to (i) the higher supplementation level, (ii) combining a supplementation level of 1.5% with 3% or (iii) the duration of supplementation.     

Effects of creep feeding and supplemental glutamine or glutamine plus glutamate （Aminogut） on pre- and post-weaning growth performance and intestinal health of piglets

Background： Creep feeding is used to stimulate piglet post-weaning feed consumption.L-Glutamine（GLN） is an important source of fuel for intestinal epithelial cells.The objective of this study was to determine the impact of creep feeding and adding GLN or AminoGut（AG;containing glutamine ＋ glutamate） to pre-and post-weaning diets on pig performance and intestinal health.Litters（N = 120） were allotted to four treatments during 14–21 d of lactation： 1） No creep feed（NC,n = 45）;2） creep fed control diet（CFCD,n = 45）;3） creep fed 1% GLN（CFGLN,n = 15）;4） creep fed.88% AG（CFAG,n = 15）.After weaning,the NC and CFCD groups were sub-divided into three groups（n = 15 each）,receiving either a control nursery diet（NC-CD,CFCD-CD） or a diet supplemented with either GLN（NC-GLN,CFCD-GLN） or with AG（NC-AG,CFCD-AG）.Litters that were creep fed with diets containing GLN or AG also were supplemented with those amino acids in the nursery diets（CFGLN-GLN,CFAG-AG）.Glutamine was added at 1% in all three post-weaning diet phases and AG was added at.88% in phase 1 and 2 and at.66% in phase 3.Results： Feed conversion（feed/gain） showed means among treatment means close to significance（P = 0.056） and Tukey＇s test for pairwise mean comparisons showed that Pigs in the CFGLN-GLN group had the best feed conversion（feed/gain） in the first three-week period post-weaning,exceeding（P = 0.044） controls（CFCD-CD） by 34%.The NC-AG group had（P = 0.02） the greatest feed intake in the last three week of the study,exceeding controls（CFCD-CD） by 12%.CFGLN-GLN,CFCD-GLN and sow reared（SR） pigs had the greatest（P = 0.049） villi height exceeding the CFCD-AG group by 18%,20% and 19% respectively.The CFAG-AG group had the deepest（P = 0.001） crypts among all treatments.CFGLN-GLN,CFCD-GLN and SR groups had the greatest（P = 0.001） number of cells proliferating（PCNA） exceeding those in the NC-CD group by 43%,54% and 63% respectively.Sow reared pigs showed the greatest（P = 0.001） intestinal absorption capacity for xylose and mannitol.Conclusion： Supplementation of creep feed and nursery diets with GLN and/or AminoGut in the first three week improved feed conversion possibly due to improved intestinal health.     

Effect of dietary supplementation of β-1,3–1,6-glucan on reproductive performance and immunity of New Zealand White does and their pups

The study was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary β-1,3–1,6-glucan supplementation on the reproductive performance and immunity of New Zealand White breeding does and their pups. Thirty pregnant multiparous New Zealand White does were randomly assigned to three dietary treatments; 0 (control), 0.064% β-1,3–1,6-glucan or 0.128% β-1,3–1,6-glucan dietary supplementation from day 14 of gestation to day 28 of lactation. The 0.128% dietary β-1,3–1,6-glucan supplementation caused reduced (P < 0.05) feed intake from day 14 to day 28 of gestation. The swelling response 24 and 48 h after injection of phytohemoagglutinin-P showed that does fed with 0.064% dietary β-1,3–1,6-glucan had lower (P < 0.05) swelling response than the control group. Serum IgG and IgM concentrations of does were significantly higher during pregnancy than during lactation. Compared to the controls, does fed with 0.128% β-1,3–1,6-glucan had reduced serum IgM concentrations at day 21 of gestation and day 3 of lactation. They had significantly reduced serum IgG at day 28 of gestation but increased serum IgG at day 3 of lactation. Serum IgM and IgG concentrations in supplemented does were higher (P < 0.05) than controls at day 28 of lactation. Both CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T lymphocyte subsets were lowest at day 28 of gestation. There were no treatment effects on the three types of lymphocytes. Subsets of CD4⁺ in the weanling pups were higher (P < 0.05) for the 0.064% β-1,3–1,6-glucan supplementation group than the other two groups. In conclusion, dietary supplementation of β-1,3–1,6-glucan reduced feed intake during the first 14 days but had no adverse effects on the reproductive performance and body weight of does. Dietary supplementation with 0.064% β-1,3–1,6-glucan significantly inhibited delayed-type immune reaction of Th1 and significantly reduced serum IgG concentration of does at the late gestation stage but increased serum IgM and IgG concentrations at the late lactation stage.     

Effects of single or combined dietary supplementation of β-glucan and kefir on growth performance,blood characteristics and meat quality in broilers

1. This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary β-glucan and kefir (a fermented milk product) on growth performance, blood profiles, relative organ weight and meat quality in broilers.

2. A total of 375 day-of-hatch mixed sex ROSS 308 broilers (BW of 46 ± 0.1 g) were used in a 5-week experiment and randomly allotted to one of the following dietary treatments: (1) NC, basal diet; (2) PC, basal diet + 40 mg/kg of avilamycin; (3) B, NC + 0.1% β-glucan; (4) K, NC + 0.1% kefir; (5) BK, NC + 0.1% β-glucan + 0.1% kefir.

3. During weeks 0–3, broilers in B, K and BK treatments had higher body weight gain (BWG) than those in NC treatment. During weeks 4–5, BK treatment had a higher BWG than NC treatment. Overall, broilers given PC, K and BK diets had higher BWG than those given NC diet. The feed efficiency ratio (FCR) was improved by PC treatment.

4. Relative liver weight was increased by B treatment, whereas the relative weight of breast meat and gizzard was higher in BK group than that in NC group. Broilers given PC, B and BK diets had greater breast meat redness value and reduced drip loss at d 5 and d 7. The cooking loss was also reduced by B and BK treatments compared with NC treatment.

5. In conclusion, the results suggested that inclusion of 0.1% β-glucan and 0.1% kefir, either individually or combined, would improve growth performance and benefit meat quality in broiler chickens.     

Effect of different roughages sources on performance,milk composition,fatty acid profile,and milk cholesterol content of feedlot feed crossbred cows (Holstein × Zebu)

Tropical Animal Health and Production - The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of different forage sources in diets for feedlot dairy cows and their implications on production,...     

Effect of supplementation of the laying hen diet with olive leaves (Olea europea L.) on lipid oxidation and fatty acid profile of α-linolenic acid enriched eggs during storage

1. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of supplementation of the layer diet with olive leaves (Olea europea L.) on lipid oxidation and fatty acid profile of α-linolenic acid enriched eggs during refrigerated storage, and to compare this effect with α-tocopheryl acetate supplementation.

2. A total of 72 brown Lohmann laying hens, equally allocated to 3 groups, were fed on diets supplemented with 40?g/kg linseed oil, or linseed oil and olive leaves at 10?g/kg or linseed oil and α-tocopheryl acetate at 200?mg/kg. Collected eggs were analysed for fatty acid profile and lipid oxidation either fresh or following 60?d storage at 4°C.

3. Results showed that olive leaves or α-tocopheryl acetate supplementation reduced lipid hydroperoxide concentration in fresh eggs but had no effect on their fatty acid profile and malondialdehyde (MDA) content compared to controls.

4. Refrigerated storage for 60?d decreased the proportions of PUFAs but increased those of MUFAs in eggs from the control diet, whilst it had no effect on the fatty acid composition of eggs from the diets supplemented with olive leaves or α-tocopheryl acetate, which in turn showed decreased concentrations of lipid hydroperoxides and MDA.     

Effects of oregano essential oil with or without feed enzymes on growth performance,digestive enzyme,nutrient digestibility,lipid metabolism and immune response of broilers fed on wheat–soybean meal diets

1.?The study was conducted to determine the effects of dietary supplementation of enzyme and oregano essential oil at two levels, alone or together, on performance, digestive enzyme, nutrient digestibility, lipid metabolism and immune response of broilers fed on wheat–soybean meal based diets.

2.?The following dietary treatments were used from d 0 to 21. Diet 1 (control, CONT): a commercial diet containing no enzyme or oregano essential oil, diet 2 (ENZY): supplemented with enzyme, diet 3 (EO250): supplemented with essential oil at 250 mg/kg feed, diet 4 (EO500): supplemented with essential oil at 500 mg/kg feed, diet 5 (ENZY + EO250): supplemented with enzyme and essential oil at 250 mg/kg, and diet 6 (ENZY + EO500): supplemented with enzyme and essential oil at 500 mg/kg.

3.?Birds fed on diets containing ENZY, EO250 and ENZY + EO250 had significantly higher weight gain than those given CONT diet from d 0 to 7. No significant effects on feed intake, feed conversion ratio, mortality, organ weights except for jejunum weight and intestinal lengths was found with either enzyme or essential oil, alone or in combination, over the 21-d growth period. The supplementation of essential oil together with enzyme decreased jejunum weight compared with essential oil alone.

4.?Supplementation with enzyme significantly decreased viscosity and increased dry matter of digesta, but did not alter pH of digesta. There was no effect of essential oil alone at either concentration on viscosity, dry matter or pH of digesta. A significant decrease in viscosity of digesta appeared when essential oil was used with together enzyme.

5.?The supplementation of essential oil at both levels with or without enzyme significantly increased chymotrypsin activity in the digestive system, and improved crude protein digestibility.

6.?The higher concentration of essential oil with and without enzyme significantly increased serum total cholesterol concentrations. No significant effect on immune response was found with either enzyme or essential oil, alone or together.

7.?Enzymes and essential oil had different modes of actions. The supplementation of enzyme with essential oil in diets is likely more effective in view of performance, nutrient digestibility, enzyme activities and immune system.