Effect of Biopro on Weight Gain and Blood Cholesterol Concentrations in Feedlot Cattle

The effects of two types of Biopro™ (probiotic) preparations on weight gain and blood cholesterol levels of feedlot cattle were determined in 64 animals (0-2 teeth). Four breeds (Angus, Sussex, Simmental and Brahman crosses) of sixteen animals per breed were randomly allocated to 16 treatment combinations at four levels each of Biopro fattening (BF) and Biopro cholesterol reduction (BCR). The cattle were fed a common 12% CP finishing feedlot diet for the entire 90 days experimental period. Blood samples were collected and live-weights recorded at the start of the experiment and then fortnightly thereafter until end of experiment. There were no differences (>P0.05) between all the treatments, however, numerically, Angus showed lowest live-weight gains of 107.9±8.6 kg while Sussex had the largest live-weight gains of 129.7±8.6 kg. Simmental crosses had lowest blood cholesterol concentrations of 1.38±0.38 mmol/L while Brahman crosses had greatest blood cholesterol concentrations of 2.42±0.38 mmol/L. Cattle injected with 7.5 ml BF had the highest live-weight gains of 130.4±8.8 kg implying that doses of BF below 7.5 ml had minimal or no effect. Similarly, cattle that received 7.5 ml Biopro cholesterol had numerically highest blood cholesterol concentrations of 2.12 mmol/L. The BCR treated cattle had cholesterol concentrations numerically greater than those of the control animals. However, all animals were graded Prime when slaughtered at the Botswana Meat Commission (BMC) export abattoir.