Coccidial Counts Research Articles

Effects of feeding mixtures of herbs on coccidial shedding and weight gain in lambs

Introduction: An additional feeding based on herbs was tested in lambs for its efficacy against shedding of Eimeria spp. and weight gain. Material and methods: Three mixtures of herbs were used: powdry herbs P (garlic, turmic, himalayan cedar, ginger, long pepper), pelleted herbs V (garlic, slippery elm, peppermint, thyme, cleavers, cinnamon, common nettle, quassia root), liquid extract herbs A (garlic, mugwort, walnut, clove). Trial 1: The lambs in the sheep farm were fed a pelletized lamb feed concentrate from the first day of life until the time of weaning at the age of 8 weeks (19 kg bodyweight) in a creep feed. Lambs not fullfilling this weight criterion were weaned 4 weeks later (week 12). The herbs P was mixed into the concentrate for the trial group (4 kg/ton). Examinations for coccidial count and weight gain were conducted at 4 weeks of age, at weaning and 4 weeks after weaning. Trial 2: 24 already weaned and fattening lambs with an age of 17 weeks were allocated to 4 groups (herbs P, herbs V, herbs A, control). The lambs were on the pasture every day for 5 hours. In the stable hay and 300 g of barley grain was fed. The additional feeding of herbs took place with the concentrate. Herbs P were fed daily in the beginning for three weeks (8 g/day/animal). Herbs V (10 g/day/animal) and herbs A (20 ml/day/animal) were fed daily for a week in the beginning and 4 weeks later for another week. Weight gain and coccidial count were conducted weekly. Results: Trial 1: Especially the lambs weaned with an age of 12 weeks had significant better weight gain than the control lambs. In trial 2 no statistical differences were found in weight gain. No long-lasting differences in coccidial count were found in both trials. Conclusions: Feeding herbs over a longer period of time had positive effects on production parameters. More information about duration of additional feeding and time of application during special events (parturition, weaning, etc.) would be usefull.

Serum Vitamin B12Levels in Omani Goats

Blood and faecal samples were studied from 200 Omani goats of both sexes and various age groups, within five different regions in Oman. Survey questionnaires were undertaken on each goat. The serum vitamin B12 values ranged from 105 to >2000 pg/ml, with a mean value of 723.1 pg/ml and a 95% confidence interval of 61-1507 pg/ml. Kids in the age group 1-3 months showed significantly lower levels of serum vitamin B12 than the older animals. Varying levels of serum vitamin B12 were found in different regions of Oman and on farms within the same region. Goats maintained on commercial feed showed higher levels of serum vitamin B12 than those maintained on pasture or fed on household leftover food, as commonly practised in Oman. Coccidial counts were highest in animals with lower levels of serum vitamin B12. The results of this study indicate that there is a wide range of serum vitamin B12 levels in Omani goats and suggests that younger animals, with lower levels of serum vitamin B12, might be more susceptible to vitamin B12 deficiencies than older animals.