Dietary sodium bicarbonate, monensin, or coccidial inoculation and productive performance of market turkeys on built-up litter

Nicholas Large Withe male turkey poults, 1536 at placement and 1280 at 3 wk , were used in a pen trial on built-up litter during summer 1994 in Marylan d to evaluate dietary sodium bicarbonate (SBC; 0 or 0.25%), monensin (MON; 0 or 99 ppm), or coccidial inoculation (COC; or 0 or 2 Eimeria species), si ngly and in various combinations. Per treatment, ther were eight replicate pens (5' x 15') of 24 poults each at placement and 20 poults each retained at 3 wk. All feeds had bacitracin MD at 55 ppm. Significant COC x SBC x MON interactions were found at 3 wk, and some two-v ariable supplemented birds. At 3 wk, inoculated turkeys without SBC or MON had 5.95% mortality compared to 4.17% with SBC, 3.57% with MON, and 0.59% w ith SBC an MON (highest and lowest significantly different). Poults inoculated with coccidia at 2 wk of age via drinking water had signi ficantly poorer performance in all parameters measured at 3, 6, and 18 wk o f than uninoculated birds, validating the coccidial stressor or model. Diet ary MON significantly enhanced most or all performance parameters at each a ge. Dietary SBC significantly improved 3-wk and 6-wk body weights and feed conversions, and 18-wk mortality (P < .054; 8.64 vs. 6.07%), compared to di ets with no SBC.