Dietary herbal anti-stressors and their effect on body surface temperature and performance of broiler chickens reared under conventional tropical housing conditions.

Authors

Vaibhav Venkatrao Parage, Ram Chandrakant Kulkarni, Vilas Bhagwanrao Dongre, Sambhaji Gulabrao Chavhan, Mohammad Raziuddin, Ganesh Mahadeo Gadegaonkar

Published in

Tropical animal health and production. Volume 58. Issue 6. Jul 15, 2026. Epub Jul 15, 2026.

Abstract

This study evaluated the effects of dietary Amla (Emblica officinalis) and Bhuiamla (Phyllanthus niruri) as herbal anti-stressors on growth performance, body surface temperature, immune response, antioxidant status, and carcass traits in broilers reared under naturally warm conventional housing conditions for 42 days. A total of 420 day-old Ven Cobb-430 Y broiler chicks were randomly allocated to seven dietary treatments with 6 replicates of 10 birds each: T0 (control, basal diet), T1 (basal + Amla 1 kg/ton), T2 (basal + Amla 2 kg/ton), T3 (basal + Bhuiamla 1 kg/ton), T4 (basal + Bhuiamla 2 kg/ton), T5 (basal + Amla 0.5 kg + Bhuiamla 0.5 kg/ton), and T6 (basal + Amla 1 kg + Bhuiamla 1 kg/ton). Birds were maintained under natural temperature fluctuations. During the finisher phase (22-42 d), the maximum temperature reached 39.0 °C with a mean THI of 74.04 ± 1.63, indicating moderate to severe heat stress. The overall mean ambient temperature was 28.14 °C, maximum 36.17 °C, relative humidity 24.90%, and THI 72.35. Supplementation significantly improved cumulative body weight gain and feed conversion ratio compared to control, with the greatest response observed in T6. Body surface temperature, particularly in the head region, was lower in supplemented groups. Immune response was enhanced, as shown by higher foot web index and HI titer against Newcastle disease. Antioxidant status improved, with increased glutathione peroxidase activity, reduced lipid peroxidation, and a lower heterophil: lymphocyte ratio. Ready to cook yield, eviscerated yield, and relative organ weights were also improved in supplemented birds, with no adverse effects on mortality. The combination of Amla and Bhuiamla at 1 kg + 1 kg/ton of feed (T6) was the most effective treatment for improving growth performance, immunity, and carcass traits under moderate to severe heat stress. These results suggest that Amla and Bhuiamla can serve as natural anti-stressors for broilers reared in warm climates. Further studies under controlled thermal stress are warranted to confirm efficacy and establish dose-response relationships.

PMID:
42455366
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 15 Jul 2026.

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