Abstract
The present work was conducted to investigate the effects of supplementing Aloe vera extract on rumen fermentation efficiency, nutrient utilization, lactation performance, and antioxidant status of goats. Twenty-four crossbreed lactating goats (Alpine × Beetal) were divided into three experimental groups (AV0, AV2, and AV4). AV0 had no supplementation, groups AV2 and AV4 received ready to feed aqueous extract of Aloe vera at 20 and 40g/kg dry matter intake, respectively, along with basal diet and experiment lasted for 100days. Average DMI did not vary (P > 0.05) among treatment groups; however, the metabolic bodyweight of AV4 was significantly lower (P < 0.05) than the AV0 and AV2 groups (AV0 = AV2 > AV4). Intake and digestibility of DM, OM, CP, NDF, ADF, and EE were unaffected (P > 0.05) by Aloe vera supplementation. The milk production, yield of milk fat, protein, lactose, and solid not fat (SNF) of goats in the AV4 group were significantly higher (P < 0.05) than other groups (AV4 > AV2 = AV0). The activity of superoxide dismutase and catalase enzymes and levels of plasma ferric reducing total antioxidant power were high (P < 0.01) in the Aloe vera supplemented group (AV4 = AV2 > AV0). There was no significant difference (P = 0.979) in the pH, acetic acid (P = 0.449), and butyric acid (P = 0.864) concentration of the rumen liquor among the treatment groups. The propionic acid concentration was similar between AV2 and AV4 and significantly higher (P = 0.024) than the AV0 group (AV4 = AV2 > AV0). Moreover, C2:C3 values were significantly lower (P = 0.037) in the AV4 group compared to the control (AV0). Thus, Aloe vera supplementation enhanced milk yield, propionic acid production, and antioxidant status without affecting nutrient utilization; however, results were better in the AV4 group. The inclusion of Aloe vera at 40g/kg of DMI would improve the rumen fermentation efficiency, lactation performance, and overall health status of the dairy goats.
Highlights
The instigation of the one-health notion has gained paramount importance for food safety, food security, and sustainable food production systems (Garcia et al, 2020)
There was a remarkable decrease (P < 0.05) in the dry matter intake (DMI) of the AV4 group in the first fortnight in comparison to Control (AV0) and AV2 groups. This decrease in DMI got nullified in the subsequent weeks
DMI of 4% aloe vera supplemented group decreased in the first fortnight, though subsequent fortnights did not show a significant difference in the DMI
Summary
The instigation of the one-health notion has gained paramount importance for food safety, food security, and sustainable food production systems (Garcia et al, 2020). A paradigm shift has driven animal nutritionists to look for safe and natural feed additives to conventional antimicrobials for sustainable animal production with one health concept in consideration (Huang et al, 2018). Several newer emerging feed additives, which can be used as an alternative to antibiotics, have been suggested within the livestock industry. One such category gaining interest is natural phytogenic feed additive (PFA) (Banakar et al, 2019), which leaves no residue in the animal products (Zhou et al, 2020), or its presence in minor quantity increases its nutraceutical value (Santos et al, 2017) and further strengthening animal antioxidant status making resilient to stress (Suman et al, 2015)
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