The effect of feed additives from natural resources and the method of feeding them on the hematological parameters of calves

Feed additives from forest resources and natural minerals have a beneficial effect on the activation of immunity and normalization of metabolism of young animals, which contributes to the health and good growth of calves. The development of an optimal method for feeding such feed additives allows achieving a better effect when using them. Blood counts allow judging the general state of animal health. The research was carried out on black-and-white breed heifers two months of age at the Mikhaylovskoe experimental production farm - a branch of the FITs KNTs SO RAN of the Krasnoyarsk Region in 2023. The experiment lasted 90 days. According to the principle of analogues, calves were divided into two experimental and one control groups, 14 heads each. All calves received the basic diet. The experimental groups received feed additives in addition to the main diet. The feed additives contained in the 1st group in dry form pine needles flour - 20g per head per day, pine nut shell flour - 20 g per head per day, arabinogalactan - 2.5 g per head per day, expanded vermiculite - 20 g per head per day; in the 2nd group they contained expanded vermiculite enriched with a water extract of pine needles, pine nut shells and arabinogalactan 20 g per head per day. As a result of the conducted studies, it was found that the calves of the 2nd experimental group had the highest live weight, absolute and average daily weight gains at the end of the experiment - 163.71, 74.28 kg and 825.3 g, respectively. The blood of calves of the 1st and 2nd experimental groups contained more leukocytes by 11.16 and 14.13%, lymphocytes by 27.59 and 24.78%, neutrophils by 16.09 and 10.34%, respectively, than that of calves of the control group. The calves of the 2nd experimental group had a higher hemoglobin content by 7.08%, erythrocytes by 18.65%, total protein by 10.24%, albumins by 8.84% (P>0.99), calcium by 3.67% (P>0.95), glucose by 5.33% than those of the control group. There were no significant differences between the blood values of calves of the experimental groups.