Feeding a sub-therapeutic antibiotic or coccidostat may be effective but this practice is not an option in antibiotic-free or all-natural rearing programs. Producers need an all-natural solution, writes Dr Don McIntyre of Diamond V.

What happens to reduce appetite and growth rate when the bird is exposed to a live coccidiosis vaccine?

Researchers suggest that invasion of the intestinal mucosal layer by the live Eimeria oocysts produces innate immunity but also increases the localised inflammatory response. Feeding a sub-therapeutic antibiotic may reduce the inflammation and restore appetite and bodyweight gain following cocci-vaccination.

Previous research demonstrated that Diamond V Original XPC^TM fed to turkeys prevents the reduction in appetite and growth rate following live coccidia vaccination.

Research also has shown that broilers challenged with coccidiosis while being fed Original XPC have reduced severity of intestinal lesions, increased bodyweight and improved feed conversion compared to control challenged birds. Other research has shown that feeding Original XPC has reduced intestinal inflammation and restored appetite in birds vaccinated with live coccidia.

The most recent research shows that feeding Original XPC to broilers given live coccidiosis vaccine:

• improves feed intake compared to control diets with and without the coccidiostat salinomycin
• increases bodyweight of broilers at 16, 28 and 42 days of age compared to control diets with and without salinomycin and
• improves feed conversion compared to control diets with and without salinomycin, notably during the colonisation of coccidia following vaccination.

For more on this PoultryAdvisor article, including references, click here.

For details of Diamond V’s research on Original XPC in poultry, see www.diamondv.com/languages/en/poultry-nutrition/.

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