Abstract
The objective was to compare the effect of S. cerevisiae and mannan-oligosaccharides on Average Daily Gain (ADG), live weight and health of dairy calves in Chile. Calves were weighed at birth and randomly assigned to 3 groups: (i) Yeast (YS): 5 g/calf/day of a live yeast (n = 25); (ii) Mannan (MN): 3 g/calf/day of mannan-oligosaccharides (n = 25); (iii) Control (CON): no additives (n = 25). Products were offered from the second day of life in the milk replacer during the morning. A blood sample was collected between 2 to 8 days of age to monitor passive immune transfer. Calves were fed a milk replacer (21% crude protein, 17% fat, 14.3% dilution), concentrate (21% crude protein, 2.5% fat) and water free choice until weaning. Diarrhea and pneumonia events were recorded. ADG were analyzed by ANOVA, live weight at 0, 30 and 60 days old by ANOVA for repeated measures and disease incidence by chi-squared fisher exact test. ADG were statistically different between YS (0.63 kg/d) and CON (0.56 kg/d) (p≤0.05). No differences were found between MN and CON (p>0.05). The incidence of digestive disorders was 22.7, 23.5 and 14.2% for CON, MN and YS, respectively. This difference was statistically significant (p≤0.05) between YS vs. MN and YS vs. CON, respectively. It is concluded the supplementation with lived yeast improved ADG until weaning and decreased digestive disorders in dairy calves under Chilean conditions.
Highlights
Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a yeast that have been used as an additive in adult and young cattle demonstrating a positive effect on Dry Matter Intake (DMI), rumen pH and nutrient digestibility (Cole et al, 1992; Dann et al, 2000)
The use of yeast culture based on S. cerevisiae and products based on glucan and mannan have not been studied under Chilean conditions; the objective of this field trial was to compare the effect of S. cerevisiae and β-glucan-mannan based product on daily weight gain, live weight and health of young calves in a Chilean dairy farm
The statistical model for daily gain corrected by the level of serum total protein and the age of the calf’s dam, the effect of live yeast on daily gain may have been a pure effect on calf growth and/or through an improvement in the health status, because the YS group had a lower incidence of digestive disorders than the control and MN groups, respectively
Summary
Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a yeast that have been used as an additive in adult and young cattle demonstrating a positive effect on Dry Matter Intake (DMI), rumen pH and nutrient digestibility (Cole et al, 1992; Dann et al, 2000). Other studies have demonstrated improvements in calf growth when yeasts were incorporated into the diet (Lesmeister et al, 2004; Galvão et al, 2005). The cell wall of S. cerevisiae contains oligosaccharides in the form of glucan and mannan which have been shown to modulate the immune system and to impact host-pathogen interactions in the digestive tract (Magalhães et al, 2008). This may benefit young calves, as they are usually challenged by several pathogens such as bacteria, viruses and protozoa. The use of yeast culture based on S. cerevisiae and products based on glucan and mannan have not been studied under Chilean conditions; the objective of this field trial was to compare the effect of S. cerevisiae and β-glucan-mannan based product on daily weight gain, live weight and health of young calves in a Chilean dairy farm
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