COUNTERACTING FUSARIUM PROLIFERATUM TOXICITY IN BROILER CHICKS BY SUPPLEMENTING DRINKING-WATER WITH POULTRY-AID-PLUS(R)

To test whether Poultry Aid Plus(R) (PAP, a commercial product for dri nking water application) could reduce the stress on broiler chicks cau sed by Fusarium proliferatum contamination of feed, water (with or wit hout PAP application, according to the manufacturer's instructions), a nd feed (experimentally infected with F. proliferatum fermented and dr ied corn culture material, CM) were provided to broiler chicks for 3 w k. Eight treatments consisting of a 2 (with or without PAP in water) x 4 (0, 1, 2, and 4% CM in feed) factorial design were tested in four r eplicate cages of six chicks each. The diet with 2% CM reduced weight gain by 23%; this reduction was preventable by PAP water application. The diet with 4% CM caused a cumulative mortality of 87.5%, which was reduced by PAP water application to 50%. The population half-life of t he chicks on the diet with 4% CM was 6.5 d; this half-life was prolong ed to at least 21 d by PAP water application. The PAP application also reduced the relative weight of the small intestine and promoted Lacto bacillus colonization of the large intestine regardless of the level o f CM in feed. Therefore, water application of PAP can be a prophylacti c measure for F. proliferatum toxicity in poultry production.