Effects of Aspergillus oryzae extract and a Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation product on intake, body weight gain and digestibility in buffalo calves

An Aspergillus oryzae fermentation extract and a Saccharomyces cerevisiae culture product were added to a pelleted calf starter, respectively, at 6.0 and 26 g/kg of dry matter (DM) to determine effects on faecal score, DM intake, body weight (BW) gain and in vivo digestibility. Treatments were control groups with the control starter alone (CSt) or with free access to ryegrass hay (CStH) and combinations with the fungal supplemented starter (ExpSt and ExpStH). Forty buffalo calves (12 male, 28 female; 10 calves per treatment) were started on the experiment at 10 days of age and for 12 weeks. Faecal scoring was conducted twice weekly, and DM intake was measured weekly. Every 2 weeks, BW gain was recorded and grab faecal samples were collected to examine for the presence of intestinal parasites and Salmonella. At the end of the experimental period, on a subset of 20 calves (i.e., five per treatment), nutrient in vivo digestibility was measured by using acid-insoluble ash as internal indigestibility marker. Starter DM intake was unaffected by fungal supplementation, but inclusion of fungal additives in the starter resulted in increased apparent total tract digestibility, regardless of the presence of hay in the diet. Calves fed ExpStH diet versus the CStH and ExpSt diets had improved faecal consistency, higher average daily gain and higher total tract digestibility of fibre. Supplementation of starter with A. oryzae fermentation extract and S. cerevisiae culture may improve calf digestive efficiency if forage is in the diet.