Evaluation of Intervention Strategies for Idiopathic Diarrhea in Commercial Turkey Brooding Houses

Abstract

In 3 separate commercial turkey brooder houses, we compared the effects of selected probiotic bacteria or antibiotics on performance of poults within a complex that was routinely experiencing mild idiopathic diarrhea and stunting. In all experiments, treatments of probiotic cultures or antibiotics were administered in the water. Poults were tagged and placed into individual pens (20 per pen, 4 replicate pens per treatment) within the brooding house, and performance was evaluated by body weight or body weight gain. In the first experiment, poults receiving 1 of 2 probiotic cultures weighed significantly more than nontreated or antibiotic-treated poults. In the second experiment, there were no significant differences among any of the groups. A third experiment was performed during a clinically significant Salmonella seftenburg infection. In this experiment, poults receiving antibiotics followed by a probiotic culture had significantly higher weight gain than nontreated or probiotic-treated poults.