Effect of probiotics in the pig nutrition on the pathogenic bacteria counts in the gut

Abstract

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of a probiotic culture in the digestive tract of sows. Two groups of healthy sows with 40 animals each were fed a standard feed three weeks after weaning. From the beginning of the fourth week (day 0), one group received the same diet enriched with the probiotic monoculture of Enterococcus faecium SF 68, the second (control) group was given the same diet without probiotics. The samples of faeces were collected (to the sterile containers) at days 0, 15, 30 (end of the probiotic consumption) and 40 (end of the wash-out period), respectively. In the probiotic group, significant decrease (P < 0.05) of numbers of E. coli and Clostridium spp. in faeces was found. The results indicate a positive effect of probiotics consumption on the digestive tract of sows and it can be used for a decrease of the incidence of the diarrhoeic diseases that are frequent in the pig husbandry.