Effect of Probiotic Supplementation on the

Performance of Broilers

Abstract
Probiotic feeding leads to the development of stable type of micro flora which helps the
bird to resist infections noticeably in the intestinal tract and helps in several ways. With
this objective present study was under taken to evaluate the effect of probiotic on
performance of commercial broiler chicks. In study two groups one without probiotic (P 0 )
and another with Probiotic (P) supplementation were considered for the study. The
experiment consisted of two replicates for probiotic groups. The performance of broiler
was evaluated in terms of growth, feed efficiency and percent mortality at 6th week of age.
Data were analyzed on survivor and equal number of bird’s per subclass basis. Analysis of
variance revealed that the difference between replicates were not significant for the
different traits under study as such all subsequent analysis was performed on combined
sex basis. Inclusion of probiotic in diet also affected highly significantly both the sexes for
this age of body weight. Broiler group fed with, diet P (with Probiotic) were significantly
heavier than the group fed with, diet P 0 (without Probiotic). The inclusion of probiotics
showed increased feed efficiency, better quality of broiler meat. The probiotic exerted
highly significant effect on 2nd, 3rd and 5th weekly feed efficiency and also on overall feed
efficiency. Overall performance of the broilers feeded with the diet containing probiotics
was found better in terms of feed efficiency, growth and meat quality. It might be due to
suppressive effect of probiotic on unwanted organism and promotion of health status of the
broilers.

INTRODUCTION
Poultry occupies an important place in Indian economy contributing more than Rs. 11,000
crores to the national GDP. India ranks 4th and 18th with respect to production of egg and
broiler respectively in the world (Yadav, 2003). Certain micro flora in the gut of birds is
known to ameliorate the effects of such stress factors using probiotics especially during
period of stress. These microbes can enhance the development of favorable micro flora in
the gut of poultry. Intensive rearing conditions contribute to the delay in development of
normal intestinal flora. Probiotic feeding leads to the development of stable type of micro
flora which helps the bird to resist infections noticeably in the intestinal tract. This
phenomenon is referred to by many terms by various authors as bacterial antagonism,
bacterial interference, barrier effect, colonization resistance and competitive exclusion.
Under such circumstances antibiotics are often used to suppress or eliminate harmful
organism in the intestine to improve growth and feed efficiency (Fuller, 1989).

Probiotics have been introduced as an alternative to antibiotics. The use of antibiotics as

routine feed additives has been banned in some countries because of public concern over
possible antibiotic residual effects and the development of drug-resistant bacteria. The
commercial use of probiotics in poultry industry is relatively new. Probiotic represents a
single or mixed culture of live microorganisms which when applied to animals, affects the
host beneficially by improving the properties of indigenous microflora (Hong et al., 2005).
Probiotics come under the category of as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) ingredients
classified by Food and Drug Administration (FDA). They have no side and residual effects.
Probiotics regulates the microbial environment in the gut, reduce digestive upsets and
prevent pathogenic gut bacteria, thereby improve live weight gain, improve feed
conversionratio, reduce mortality, increase feed conversion ratio in layers and increase
egg production. Probiotics commercially available contains strains of
genera lactobacillus (mainly), Bifidobacterium, Streptococcus, Bacillus, Bacteroides,
Pediococcus, Leuconostoc, Propionibacterium, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Aspergillus
oryzae (Chaucheyras et al., 1995). In vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated
that lactic acid producing bacteria are able to inhibit the growth of poultry pathogen
like Salmonella and E. coli by lowering the pH of the gut (Kung, 2001; Lee et al.,
2003; Frizzo et al., 2010).

The development of favorable microflora in the gut of poultry can be enhanced by using
probiotic especially during period of stress (Krehbiel et al., 2003). Consumption of
contaminated feed, bad weather, poor-management, transportation, poor housing
conditions, changes in feed, presence of aflatoxins in feed, prolonged antibiotic therapy and
disease stress). Proposed production benefits of probiotics include enhanced s urvival of
chicks, reduction or prevention of gastrointestinal disorders, increased growth rate,
improved feed efficiency, enhanced immune response and ammonia gas emission in
broiler house etc. The application of probiotics like Lactobacillus, yeast etc. is receiving
much attention. The addition of these substances to the feed or their introduction to animal
body exploits the potential of utilization of feed and improves the efficiency of utilization
of feed (Nocek et al., 2002; Rose, 1987). Keeping all these facts in mind present study was
undertaken to know the effect of probiotic on the performance of broilers in terms of their
growth, feed efficiency and meat quality etc.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The experiment was conducted to study the effect of Probiotics (P) on the performance of
day old sexed four hundred and eighty commercial broiler chicks. A group of twenty
broilers (Male and female) distributed in 12 treatments replicated twice. The chicks were
reared in electric battery brooders under same environmental conditions. These chicks
were allotted at random to each treatment. The “PROBIOLAC” was used @ 200 g t -1 of feed.
The composition of experimental ration having 0, 5 and 10% Dried Poultry Excreta is given
in the Table 1.

Data pertaining to performance traits such as growth, feed efficiency, conformation tr aits
and percent mortality, body weights were recorded by weighing individual chicks at weekly
interval upto 6 weeks of age. Chicks were fed experimental ration ad-libitum. Difference in
initial and final body weight represented the weight gain by chicks over the corresponding
period. Weighed amounts of diet were provided to chicks. Feed consumed and weight gain
was recorded weekly. The percent mortality was also regularly recorded for each group.
The data collected under study were analyzed as 3x2x2 factorial completely randomized
design according to Snedecor and Cochran (1995).

Table 1: Composition of experimental ration

The traits like Body weight (g), feed efficiency and mortality (%) were recorded on weekly
basis for comparative evaluation and interaction effects of all treatments. The biweekly
records of the feed offered and residual amounts of weigh backs were maintai ned for each
replicate to calculate the feed consumption per bird. Similarly biweekly records of the
water offered and residual amounts of weigh backs were maintained for each replicate to
calculate the water consumption per bird. Within the same house, in a specific battery
brooder system, water was placed in each pen to know the actual water intake of the
experimental birds throughout the experiment. For body weight measurement birds were
weighed individually at biweekly intervals and the body weights were recorded to calculate
body weight gains. Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) was calculated by the standard formula
using total feed consumed (g) / bird divided by total body weight gain (g). To know the
status of mortality daily observations were made to record the occurrence of deaths in
different experimental treatments. The cost of broiler production was also estimated for
rising 6th weeks broilers under different treatments include the cost of day old chick, feed,
probiotic and cost of labor. Cost of other inputs was not included in this study.

Statistical analysis: Means were compared and considered significant at 5% significance

level.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Body weight of the broilers week wise showed that at first week of age the body weight of
broilers with Probiotic (P) supplemented diet results numerically higher body weight than
without probiotics (P 0 ) supplemented diet. The probiotic was also found to have non-
significant effect for first week body weight of males and females. In second week inclusion
of probiotic in diet did not show the significant effect on two weeks body weight in either
of the sexes while in third week inclusion of probiotic in diet also affected highly
significantly both the sexes for this age of body weight. It was also found that the group fed
with diet P (with Probiotic) was significantly heavier than the group fed with diet
P0 (without Probiotic). In fourth week probiotic supplementation there was highly
significant effect on body weight of both the sexes and this was also true for combined sex
analysis. Similar findings were observed in fifth week and significantly higher body weight
obtained in the chicks fed on probiotic supplemented diet than chicks fed on diet without
probiotics. However, in sixth week inclusion of probiotic revealed significant effects on
males body weight and highly significant on females body weight. Dhande et al.
(1993) observed that probiotic fed broilers had higher body weight and better feed
conversion efficiency at six weeks of age. Chicks of both sexes showed higher body weight
with diet having probiotic (Table 2, 3).

The improvement in weekly body weights due to supplementation of probiotic indicated

that the inclusion of probiotic beneficially affects the host by improving its intestina l
microbial balance as reported by Fuller (1989).

Table 2: Replicate wise weekly body weight means

Table 3: Means for weekly body weights of combined sex due to the Probiotics effects
 Means having similar super-scripts do not doffer significantly at 5% significance level

Table 4: Means for over all feed efficiency on pooled sex basis due to the Probiotics effects

Means having similar super-scripts do not differ significantly at 5% significance level

Similar findings were observed with effect of probiotics on growth performance. For
commercial broiler chicks the data on feed efficiency due to main and interaction effects on
weekly and overall feed efficiency are presented in Table 4. The probiotic exerted highly
significant effect on 2nd, 3rd and 5th weekly feed efficiency and also on overall feed
efficiency. At 6th week of age feed efficiency observed for P 0 and P were 2.26 and 2.26.
Similar results that supplementation of probiotic in feed promote the growth and feed
efficiency for better production of meat and egg were reported by Verma (1992). Present
results are also similar with the above reports and with the findings of Jayakumar et al.
(1996). Kalbande et al. (1992) and Mishra et al. (1994) also reported the increase in weight
and better quality of broiler meat with the use of probiotics in poultry rations. The report
on effect of probiotics on body weight of broilers is conflicting. While several workers have
claimed a significant improvement in body weight of broilers following probiotic
supplementation in broiler diet (Kumararaj et al., 1997; Gohain and Sapcota, 1998), there
are others who have concluded based on their studies that addition of probiotics did not
significantly affect the body weight of broilers (Samanta and Biswas, 1995). The beneficial
effect of probiotic supplementation to broiler diet in terms of increased body weight and
body weight gain is well documented in study of Singh et al. (1999) and Banday and Risam
(2001).
Similar findings were observed with effect of probiotics on growth performance which is
well documented by the reports of Brzoska et al. (1999), Jin et al. (2000), Yu et al.
(2008), Murry et al. (2004), Sieo et al. (2005) and Apata (2008).

The inclusion of probiotics showed increased feed efficiency, better quality of broiler meat
and extensive decrease in infectious diseases were also reported by Jayakumar et al.
(1996). The present findings are in agreement with the findings of Wiseman
(1990) and Mudalgi et al. (1993). This observation was in line with Dhande et al.
(1993), Prasad and Sen (1993), Baidya et al. (1994), Samanta and Biswas (1995), Jin et al.
(1996), Singh and Sharma (1996), Katoch et al. (1998), Silva et al. (2000), Zulkifli et al.
(2000), Senani et al. (2000), Kim et al. (2001), Gupta et al. (2003), Manna et al.
(2003) and Sharma et al. (2003). They observed that broilers diet supplemented with
probiotic showed improved feed intake than the control. This can be substantiat ed from
the fact that the experimental birds had consumed significantly more feed than control ones
due to increased digestive efficiency (Katoch et al., 1998; Banday and Risam, 2001). Sieo et
al. (2005), Karaoglu and Durdag (2005), Onderci et al. (2006), Gunal et al. (2006), Ahmad
(2006), Dea et al. (2006) and Onderci et al. (2008) revealed that the broilers fed with
probiotics significantly improved feed to gain ratio of the broilers. Present findings also
indicated significantly better weekly feed conversion efficiency on probiotic
supplementation in the diet of commercial broiler chicks.

CONCLUSION
The present study revealed that supplementation of probiotics in the feed of poultry chicks
enhances their body weight and improved growth rate up to sixth week of age.
The Saccharomyces cerevisiae was used as a probiotic in the diet and added at the normal
recommended rate in the various combinations of the diet and it was found that the diet
supplemented with probiotic preparation had superior overall feed utilization efficiency
than the control. Besides these effects there were evidences of lower microbial load in
intestines feed with probiotic supplemented feed.