Effect of Probiotic and Emulsifier Supplementation in Milk on Health and Performance of Suckling Dairy Calves

Abstract

In the current study two experimental feeding trials were conducted to study the effects of two types of feed additives on performance, antioxidant status and incidence of diarrhea in neonatal Holstein calves. i. First Experiment The first trial was designed to study the effect of a multispecies probiotic containing Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus licheniformis and Enterococcus faecium on growth performance, general health, antioxidant status and incidence of diarrhea in neonatal Holstein calves. • Materials and Methods - A total of twenty-four mixed sex newborn Holstein calves (12 males and 12 females) were randomly distributed into three experimental groups. - The first group served as control group (CON) and was fed three times daily on whole milk only without any additives. - The second group (PRO5) was fed on whole milk supplemented with 20 grams of the probiotic for five successive days only. - The third group (PRO10) was fed on whole milk supplemented with the probiotic for ten successive days. - The experiment lasted for 20 days. - Body weight, body conformation, and fecal score were recorded on d 0, 10, and 20.