Influence of weaning age and nursery diet complexity on growth performance and carcass characteristics and composition of high-health status pigs from weaning to 109 kilograms.

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of essential oil of Lavandula stoechas (Lavender) on growth performance, carcass characteristics, meat quality, and health status of quails. Materials and Methods: A group of 600 1-day-old Japanese quail chicks (Coturnix japonica), with an average weight of 6.8±0.2 g and a 1:1 sex ratio, were randomly assigned to four groups (150 chicks/group): three experimental groups which depend on the incorporation of lavender oil (LO) in the different phases of breeding and one control group. The experimental groups received a supplement of 1 g LO per kg of feed distributed sequentially throughout the entire 42-day breeding period. Results: No deaths were recorded throughout the breeding period. Highly significant differences were observed among the groups with regard to body weight measured on day 20 and day 42 (p<0.001 and p<0.01, respectively). The addition of LO was accompanied by reductions in liver weights; furthermore, LO had a significant effect on the pH, water content, and fat content of the meat (p<0.05). Administration of LO had a measurable effect on the endogenous intestinal population of Lactobacillus, and the bacterial load (including those of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus) was significantly reduced. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that supplementing quail feed with LO has a profound effect on their growth as well as antimicrobial effects.

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Influence of diet complexity and weaning age on carcass characteristics and growth performance from weaning to market

Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports ◽

10.4148/2378-5977.6402 ◽

1994 ◽

pp. 31-36

Author(s):

T Signer ◽

K Q Owen ◽

R M Musser ◽

J W Smith ◽

B T Richert ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Growth Performance ◽

Carcass Characteristics ◽

Weaning Age

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Supplementation of Live Yeast, Mannan Oligosaccharide, and Organic Selenium during the Adaptation Phase of Newly Arrived Beef Cattle: Effects on Health Status, Immune Functionality, and Growth Performance

Antibiotics ◽

10.3390/antibiotics10091114 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 1114

Author(s):

Silvia Grossi ◽

Matteo Dell’Anno ◽

Luciana Rossi ◽

Riccardo Compiani ◽

Carlo Angelo Sgoifo Rossi

Keyword(s):

Health Status ◽

Treatment Group ◽

Beef Cattle ◽

Growth Performance ◽

Carcass Characteristics ◽

Initial Weight ◽

Organic Selenium ◽

Inflammatory Status ◽

Growth Performances ◽

Live Yeast

The effect of a nutraceutical mixture, based on live yeast (LY), mannan oligosaccharides (MOS) and organic selenium (Se) on health status, as well as immune functionality and growth performance in the fattening of newly received beef cattle, was evaluated. A total of 1036 Charolaise heifers were allocated into two experimental groups: (i) control group, without any nutraceutical support (n = 487; initial weight = 325 ± 21 kg); and (ii) treatment group, supplementation during the first 30 days, with LY (5 g/head/day), organic Se (3 mg/head/day), and MOS (10 g/head/day) (n = 549; initial weight = 323 ± 23 kg). The incidence of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) and other health issues was monitored, as well as the mortality rate. Blood samples were taken at d0 and d30 to evaluate the immune functionality and the inflammatory status. Growth performances, feces chemical composition, and carcass characteristics were recorded. The BRD occurrence tended to be reduced (p = 0.06) in the Treatment group. The BHV-1 antibody production after vaccination was significantly improved (p = 0.031), as well as the bactericidal activity (p = 0.0012) in the Treatment group. No differences were found in the inflammatory status parameters. The final weight (p = 0.006) and the average daily gain at d30 (p < 0.0001) were significantly improved by the treatment. No differences were found in terms of carcass characteristics, while the fecal content of NDF (p < 0.0001), ADF (p = 0.0003), and starch (p < 0.0001) were significantly reduced by the treatment. The result of the present study suggests that the nutraceutical mixture used can support the animal’s immune systems, improving its ability to react against pathogens, as well as feed efficiency and growth performances during the whole fattening period.

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Feeding subtherapeutic antimicrobials to low-risk cattle does not confer consistent performance benefits

Canadian Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.4141/cjas-2015-008 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 95 (4) ◽

pp. 589-597 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

K. Stanford ◽

D. J. Gibb ◽

K. S. Schwartzkopf-Genswein ◽

F. Van Herk ◽

T. A. McAllister

Keyword(s):

Health Status ◽

Growth Performance ◽

Respiratory Disease ◽

Bovine Respiratory Disease ◽

Carcass Characteristics ◽

Low Risk ◽

Foot Rot ◽

Liver Abscesses ◽

Overall Performance ◽

Consistent Performance

Stanford, K., Gibb, D. J., Schwartzkopf-Genswein, K. S., Van Herk, F. and McAllister, T. A. 2015. Feeding subtherapeutic antimicrobials to low-risk cattle does not confer consistent performance benefits. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 95: 589–597. Two-hundred and forty steers were obtained from the same ranch in each of 2 yr. Growth performance, health status and carcass characteristics from steers fed subtherapeutic antimicrobials were compared with those of control steers without antimicrobial metaphylaxis. Experimental groups included Control, not fed antimicrobials; CTCS-700, fed 350 mg head−1 d−1 chlortetracycline (CTC) and 350 mg head−1 d−1 sulfamethazine; CTC-11, fed 11 mg kg−1 CTC; TYL, fed 11 mg kg−1 tylosin phosphate; and CTC-350, fed 350 mg head−1 d−1 CTC. Steers were housed in pens of 10 steers and fed antimicrobials during both backgrounding and finishing periods. The incidence of bovine respiratory disease, pinkeye and bloat did not differ among experimental groups, although the incidence of foot rot was lower in Control steers (P<0.05) than in steers receiving TYL. In both years of the study, overall performance (backgrounding+finishing) was not improved by subtherapeutic antimicrobials. Similarly, carcass characteristics and the incidence and severity of liver abscesses were not improved compared with Control steers by feeding subtherapeutic antimicrobials. The results of the present study demonstrate that low-risk steers may be managed in small pens with equivalent growth performance, carcass characteristics and health status to steers fed subtherapeutic antimicrobials.

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