Metabolic response of broiler chickens to different doses of Enterococcus faecium ICIS 96 in the diet

The competitiveness and profitability of the poultry industry in market conditions are hampered by growing problems with the safety and quality of poultry meat. The use of targeted microbial preparations can assist in resolving these problems. Numerous studies of the properties of bacteria of the genus Enterococcus have shown their effectiveness in the practice of poultry farming. The objectives of this study were to identify the effect of various doses of Enterococcus faecium ICIS 96 added to the diet of broiler chickens on their metabolism and to evaluate the productive qualities of the chickens when different doses are used. The experiment was carried out on 72 Cobb-500 cross broiler chickens, divided into 3 groups. Chickens in the first group received a suspension of E. faecium ICIS 96 containing 1 × 10⁸ cells in 1 mL of sterile saline, at a dose of 0.1 mL per 1 kg of live weight. The second group of chickens received a double dose of enterococcus, that is 0.2 mL of the suspension per 1 kg of live weight per day. The results demonstrated that 0.1 mL of a 1 × 10⁸ per mL enterococcus culture suspension in the poultry diet per 1 kg of live weight per day intensified metabolism and increased the live weight of chickens after 40 d of treatment.