The Supplementation of Ox Bile Powder in Broiler Chickens

The Supplementation of Ox Bile Powder in Broiler Chickens

Table of Content

The performance of broiler chickens in the poultry industry is influenced by various factors such as diet, genetics, overall health, and management practices. Producers are constantly exploring new strategies to increase broiler growth and productivity with the increasing demand for poultry meat. One strategy is supplementing feed with various digestive aids and enzymes. The innovative supplement gaining attention is ox bile powder derived from Bovine sources.

Ox bile powder is a natural supplement derived from bile from Bovine sources that plays an essential role in the absorption and digestion of fats in the gastrointestinal system. It contains bile acids, bile salts, phospholipids, cholesterol, and other components, all essential for breaking down dietary fats into smaller molecules that the intestines can absorb. 

Ox bile powder contains bile salts and acids that help emulsify fats, making them easy to digest and absorb. Supplementing with ox bile powder can provide similar benefits when added to the diets of animals such as broiler chickens.

The Role of Bile in Chicken Digestion

Birds, especially chickens, produce very little bile compared to other animals. This low bile production can significantly reduce the digestion of dietary fats in birds fed a high-fat diet. Supplementing poultry feed with bile acid powder improves fat digestion, growth performance, nutrient absorption, and overall health. 

Broiler chickens raised for meat production require high energy to support muscle development and rapid growth. These energy requirements are met through high-energy feeds rich in carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. However, a high-fat diet can overwhelm the chicken’s natural bile capacity, resulting in sub-optimal fat digestion. The ox bile powder is a digestive aid for optimising the absorption and digestion of fats in the high-energy diet.

Benefits of Supplementing Ox Bile Powder in Broiler Chicken Diets

Benefits of Supplementing Ox Bile Powder in Broiler Chicken Diets
Benefits of Supplementing Ox Bile Powder in Broiler Chicken Diets
  • Improved Fat Digestion and Absorption

The key benefit of ox bile powder supplementation is its ability to enhance fat digestion. Bile salts help to emulsify fats and break them down into smaller droplets that are easy for the lipase enzyme to digest. The process improves the surface area of fats, enabling better interaction with digestive enzymes and enhancing fat absorption in the small intestine. As a result, broiler chickens can extract more energy from their feed, leading to enhanced growth performance.

  • Enhanced Growth Performance

Ox bile supplementation may enhance the growth rate in broiler chickens by improving fat digestion. Fat digestion enables the birds to use energy from the feed, resulting in faster weight gain and improved feed conversion ratios. The poultry industry must maximise growth rates and reduce feed costs. Studies have indicated that bile salts in poultry can improve growth performance, enhance fat digestion for optimal weight gain, enhance carcass yield, and improve muscle development for optimum meat production quality. 

  • Support for Liver and Gallbladder Health

Ox Bile supplementation supports the liver and gallbladder health of broiler chickens. By providing additional bile salts, it reduces the burden on the liver. It is beneficial when chickens are stressed out or have compromised liver function due to infections, diseases, and environmental factors. The availability of additional bile as a supplement or in poultry feed helps maintain optimal liver function and bile secretion by supporting digestive health. 

  • Reduction of Digestive Disorders

Proper fat digestion is required to prevent digestive disorders like fatty liver syndrome (FLS), common in broiler chickens. In FLS, excess fat accumulates in the liver, resulting in liver dysfunction, reduced growth rate, and poor feed utilisation. Bile minimises the likelihood of FLS and other digestive disorders in broiler chickens. 

Also, the proper emulsification of fats by bile salts reduces the risk of undigested fat reaching the large intestine, which could otherwise lead to gastrointestinal disturbances like diarrhoea and decreased nutrient absorption. 

  • Improved Feed Conversion Efficiency (FCE)

Feed conversion efficiency (FCE) is an essential attribute in broiler production. It measures the amount of feed required for the chicken to gain a unit of body weight. Supplementing with Ox bile extract improves FCE by enhancing fat absorption and digestion, enabling the birds to use the feed efficiently. When the energy from fats is more readily available, the overall feed intake required for growth can be reduced, leading to better feed conversion and lower feed costs.

  • Increased Immune Function and Overall Health

 Bile acid may improve the immune response by promoting the activity of immune cells like macrophages and lymphocytes. It also helps broiler chickens resist diseases and infections by improving overall health and reducing reliance on antibiotics. 

Moreover, healthy digestion can improve gut health, which is directly linked to poultry’s overall health. Supplementing poultry with Ox bile extract helps create a balanced environment, supporting better immunity and disease resistance. 

Over Supplementation and Digestive Imbalance

Ox bile extract provides numerous benefits, while excessive supplementation may result in digestive imbalances. High levels can disrupt natural bile production in the liver, leading to adverse effects in the gastrointestinal tract. Also, over-supplementation may cause digestive upset, diarrhoea and other gastrointestinal disturbances in broiler chickens. 

Poultry producers must follow the recommended dosage guidelines to avoid supplementing ox bile powder. The supplementation must be tailored to the chickens’ dietary needs and feed composition. 

How to Use Ox Bile Powder in Broiler Diets?

Ox bile extract must be incorporated into broiler chicken diets based on the flock’s specific nutrition requirements and feed composition. Supplementation must be given to avoid digestive disturbances and monitored for adverse effects. It is also essential to ensure the diet is balanced and includes other required nutrients, such as vitamins, proteins, minerals, and carbohydrates, to support health and growth. Supplementing with ox bile powder alone may not address other nutritional deficiencies in the diet.

Conclusion

Ox bile supplementation in broiler chicken diets provides a promising approach to improving fat digestion, overall health, and growth performance. Ox bile helps digest fats in high-energy diets, leading to better growth rates, improved feed conversion, and reduced risk of digestive disorders. While there are some potential drawbacks, such as over-supplementation and cost considerations, the benefits of ox bile powder make it a valuable tool for poultry producers aiming to optimise the performance of their flocks.

As the poultry industry continues to evolve and the demand for sustainable and efficient farming practices increases, supplementation with digestive aids like ox bile powder could become an integral part of broiler nutrition strategies, supporting the birds’ health and the operation’s profitability.

References
  • https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09712119.2011.580999
  • https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1056617119301886
  • https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9178600/
  • https://he02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/vis/article/view/270703