Growth Performance, Hemato-biochemical Profile and Carcass Characteristics of Broiler Chickens Fed a Diet Supplemented with a Natural Blend of Herbs

To assess the efficacy of a herbal blend on growth performance, hemato-biochemical changes and carcass characteristics of broilers, two hundred fifty Vencobb 400Y day old chicks were distributed equally into five groups of 50 chicks each, which were further divided into five replicate of ten chicks each. The chicks were placed on one of five dietary treatments i.e. basal diet without any supplement (NCON) or with antibiotic (PCON) and NARGROPHYT at 1.0% (NGP-1.0), 1.5% (NGP-1.5) and 2.0% (NGP2.0). The effect of these supplements on feed intake, weight gain, gain: feed ratio, hemato-biochemical profile, carcass characteristics and on economic return was assessed in a six week study. The herbal group broilers showed significantly higher weight gain and G: F ratio than NCON group broilers. The weight gain and G: F ratio were highest in NGP-2.0 group and similar to PCON group broilers. H: L ratio was lower in herbal supplemented birds than NCON and serum cholesterol level was also lower in the groups supplemented with NARGROPHYT in comparison to PCON group birds. No significant (P>0.05) effect of NARGROPHYT were observed on carcass characteristics of broilers. The net profit per bird was significantly (P<0.05) higher in NGP-2.0 group than NCON, however highest profit was found in PCON group birds. The outcome of this study indicated that 2% NARGROPHYT powder had no deleterious effect on bird's health and it improves the weight gain, feed efficiency and economic return in broiler production.