Sejian Veerasamy, Devaraj Chinnasamy, Shashank Chikamagalore Gopalakrishna, Silpa Mullakkalparambil Velayudhan, Sahoo Artabandhu, Bhatta Raghavendra
Centre for Climate Resilient Animal Adaptation Studies, ICAR-National Institute of Animal Nutrition and Physiology, Adugodi, Bangalore 560030, India.
Centre for Translational Research, Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Veterinary Education and Research, Kurumbapet 605009, India.
Vet Sci. 2025 May 5;12(5):442. doi: 10.3390/vetsci12050442.
A study was conducted to assess the efficacy of prebiotic and herbal supplements to relieve transportation stress based on changes in physiological, hematological, and molecular responses in Kenguri sheep. Thirty healthy female sheep were randomly divided into three groups: a control group (CKS) with no supplementation, a prebiotic supplementation group (PKS), and an herbal supplementation group (HKS). The animals were transported 230 km over seven hours during summer conditions, with temperatures ranging from 32.5 °C to 34.9 °C. The groups that received the prebiotic (75.6 breaths/min; 64.8 beats/min) and herbal supplementation (31.0 breaths/min; 66.8 beats/min) had a significantly reduced respiration rate (RR) and pulse rate (PR) compared to those of the control group (38.7 breaths/min; 75.6 beats/min) ( < 0.01 and < 0.05, respectively), indicating improved physiological stability. The hemoglobin (HGB) and hematocrit (HCT) levels were also significantly lower in the PKS (24.2 g/dL; 24.8%) and HKS (24.7 g/dL; 24.5%) groups than in the CKS (28.1 g/dL; 24.9%) ( < 0.05), highlighting the mitigation of hematological stress. Further, the plasma glucose level was significantly higher ( < 0.01) in the HKS group (80.0 mg/dL) compared to the CKS group (63.5 mg/dL). However, rectal temperature (RT) and skin temperature (ST), red blood cells (RBCs), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), and white blood cells (WBCs) showed no significant differences among the groups. These findings demonstrate that prebiotic and herbal supplementation can effectively reduce transportation-induced stress in Kenguri sheep, offering a practical strategy to improve the welfare and resilience of livestock under challenging environmental conditions.
进行了一项研究,旨在根据肯古里羊的生理、血液学和分子反应变化,评估益生元和草药补充剂缓解运输应激的效果。30只健康的雌性绵羊被随机分为三组:不进行补充的对照组(CKS)、益生元补充组(PKS)和草药补充组(HKS)。在夏季条件下,动物们在7小时内被运输了230公里,温度范围为32.5℃至34.9℃。与对照组(呼吸频率38.7次/分钟;脉搏率75.6次/分钟)相比,接受益生元(呼吸频率75.6次/分钟;脉搏率64.8次/分钟)和草药补充(呼吸频率31.0次/分钟;脉搏率66.8次/分钟)的组呼吸频率(RR)和脉搏率(PR)显著降低(分别<0.01和<0.05),表明生理稳定性得到改善。益生元补充组(血红蛋白24.2 g/dL;血细胞比容24.8%)和草药补充组(血红蛋白24.7 g/dL;血细胞比容24.5%)的血红蛋白(HGB)和血细胞比容(HCT)水平也显著低于对照组(血红蛋白28.1 g/dL;血细胞比容24.9%)(<0.05),突出了血液学应激的减轻。此外,草药补充组(80.0 mg/dL)的血浆葡萄糖水平显著高于对照组(63.5 mg/dL)(<0.01)。然而,直肠温度(RT)和皮肤温度(ST)、红细胞(RBC)、平均红细胞体积(MCV)和白细胞(WBC)在各组之间没有显著差异。这些发现表明,益生元和草药补充可以有效减轻肯古里羊的运输应激,为在具有挑战性的环境条件下提高家畜的福利和恢复力提供了一种实用策略。