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The Effects of Feeding Clinoptilolite on Hematology, Performance, and Health of Newborn Lambs

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Abstract

The effects of feeding clinoptilolite on hematology, performance, and health of newborn Balouchi lambs were evaluated in this experiment. In a completely randomized design, 30 newborn lambs were allocated to three groups and fed by basal diet (C0; without clinoptilolite) and C1 and C2 (the basal diet plus 1.5% and 3% clinoptilolite, respectively, for 6 weeks (3 weeks before and 3 weeks after weaning)). Blood samples were taken from all lambs, at the time when the animals were allocated to the experimental diet and at the end of each week of experiment, and analyzed for hematology, plasma fibrinogen, and total protein. Performance and health of all lambs were measured. Fecal consistency score and diarrhea severity were evaluated. There was no difference between lambs in case of hematological parameters. Lambs fecal consistency score and severity of diarrhea were lowest (P < 0.05) for lambs on C1 and C2 and highest for lambs on C0. Dry matter intake and feed conservation ratio were similar between the groups of lambs fed by different diets, but daily gain of lambs differed significantly (P < 0.05) and was higher in C2. It was concluded that addition of 3% clinoptilolite to starter diet of newborn lamb can reduce incidence and severity of diarrhea, although its effect on hematology and performance was negligible.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Prof. M. Mohri for his comments and Farzan Powder Co. for material support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Animal Science, Abourayhan Pardis, University of Tehran, P.O. Box 11365-4117, Tehran, Iran

    M. A. Norouzian, A. A. Khadem & A. Afzalzadeh

  2. Department of Animal Sciences, College of Agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran

    R. Valizadeh

  3. Department of Anatomical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran

    A. Nabipour

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  1. M. A. Norouzian
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  2. R. Valizadeh
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Correspondence to M. A. Norouzian.

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Norouzian, M.A., Valizadeh, R., Khadem, A.A. et al. The Effects of Feeding Clinoptilolite on Hematology, Performance, and Health of Newborn Lambs. Biol Trace Elem Res 137, 168–176 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-009-8574-8

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