The effects of dietary Bacillus protease on broiler performance were examined. Three hundred ‘Cobb 500’ day-old broilers were randomly assigned to five dietary groups with five replicates of 12 birds each. Treatments include: PROT0; without protease addition (0 g/kg; control), PROT10, PROT15, PROT20 and PROT25 diets supplemented with Bacillus protease at the level of 1, 1.5, 2 and 2.5 g/kg, respectively. Birds fed PROT25 had the highest (p < 0.05) villi height and villi height to crypt depth ratio, as well as crypt depth at the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum of intestine. At starter and finisher phases, BWG was the highest (p < 0.05), whereas FI and FCR had their lowest values in PROT25 group (p < 0.05). PROT25 broilers had the best (p < 0.05) energy efficiency ratio. Crude protein, dry matter, and crude fibre digestibility were improved (p < 0.05) with increased inclusion levels of Bacillus protease. Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria count increased (p < 0.05) as the inclusion levels of Bacillus protease increased in both ileum and caecum, while E. coli population decreased. Chickens fed with the PROT25 diets had the highest (p < 0.05) values for carcass, thigh, breast and drumstick weight. Cooking loss decreased (p < 0.05) as the inclusion levels of Bacillus protease increased, while water holding capacity increased (p < 0.05). Highest Bacillus protease (2.5 g/kg) inclusion improved digestibility, gut integrity, and health status with a better FCR, body weight gain, and retail cut yields.

This study was conducted to determine the effect on growth and reproductive performance of supplementing dried Centrosema pubescens leaf meal to Archachatina marginata snails. A total of 80 growing, medium-sized A. marginata snails were used. Twenty snails were randomly assigned to one of the four experimental diets as T₁, T₂, T₃, and T₄ containing 0%, 5%, 10%, and 15% dietary inclusion levels of dried C. pubescens leaves, respectively. Each diet constituted a treatment and each treatment was replicated four times with five snails per replicate. Results showed that snails under T₄ had the highest (P < .05) final body weight, average weight gain, and daily weight gain (346.89, 47.60, and 0.85 g, respectively) with the best feed conversion to meat rate of 2.12. The weekly feed intake and average body weight gain revealed the superiority of dietary T₄ in supporting the growth of snails more efficiently than other dietary treatments (T₁, T₂, and T₃) used in this study. The number of eggs laid, percentage fertility, and hatchability were highest (P < .05) for snails fed dietary T₄ with the least (P < .05) embryo mortality of 2.22%. Archachatina marginata snails fed 15% dietary inclusion of dried C. pubescens leaves (T₄) were the best in growth and reproductive performance.

This study aimed to determine the dietary effects of cowpea hull (CPH) meal on nutrient digestibility, growth, carcass, and biomarker traits of weaner rabbits. Sixteen 6-wk-old hybrids (Chinchilla × New Zealand white) rabbits with an average weight of 760 g were randomly allocated to four dietary treatments in four replications of one rabbit each. The dietary treatments consisted of basal diets supplemented with cowpea hull at 0, 10, 20, and 30% levels, represented as CPH0, CPH10, CPH20, and CPH30. Rabbits fed CPH0 and CPH10 had higher (P < 0.05). It was concluded that up to 10% cowpea hull inclusion did not impair the nutrient digestibility and growth performance of rabbits, but improved their health status and reduced the cost of production.

Background and Aim: Garcinia kola seed (GKS) is used to prevent and cure a number of gastric-related ailments. GKS contain a copious amount of polyphenols and can be utilized as a natural growth promoter in the nutrition of weaned rabbits. This study aimed to determine the dietary effects of GKS meal (GKSM) on the growth performance, hematology and serum biochemical parameters of weaned rabbits. Materials and Methods: GKS were dried and ground into powder. Thirty-two 8-week-old crossbred rabbits with an average weight of 614 g were randomly divided into four dietary groups. The diets were designated as follows: Control (corn-soybean based diet with 0% GKSM) and the GKSM-supplemented diets with 1.5% GKSM, 3% GKSM, and 4.5% GKSM. On the 56th day of the feeding trial, blood was collected from the marginal ear vein of all rabbits and transferred into two separate labeled tubes. The first set of blood was used to determine the hematological indices. The second set of blood was transferred into plain bottles and allowed to coagulate. The coagulated blood was subjected to standard methods of serum separation, and the sera were harvested and used to evaluate serum biochemical parameters. Results: Although the average final body weight was highest in rabbits fed with 1.5% GKSM; this value was similar to rabbits fed with 0% and 4.5% GKSM. The average daily weight gain was highest in rabbits fed with 1.5% GKSM, while the feed conversion ratio was improved in the 0% and 1.5% GKSM groups. The dietary treatments also had a significant effect on the red blood cell count (RBC) and hemoglobin (Hb) concentration, while other blood parameters did not differ significantly (p>0.05). Higher inclusion levels (3% and 4.5%) of GKSM led to a significant increase in RBC and Hb values (p<0.05). The total protein increased at all levels of GKSM inclusion (p<0.05). Bilirubin, sodium. and potassium levels significantly decreased at 4.5% GKSM inclusion (p<0.05). Urea levels were lowered at 1.5% and 4.5% GKSM inclusion while cholesterol levels were decreased at 3% and 4.5% dietary levels. Conclusion: From the results of the present study, the supplementation of up to 4.5% GKSM revealed no harmful effect on the hematological and serum biochemical parameters of weaned rabbits, while their growth performance improved at a 1.5% inclusion level of GKSM.

Keywords | Covid-19, Food security, Livestock industry, Public health, Pandemic