The potency of Lactobacillus acidophillus and L. lactis probiotics and Guazuma ulmifolia Lam. extract as feed additives with different application times to improve nutrient intake and feed efficiency in Coturnix coturnix japonica females

Research on the combination of Lactobacillus acidophillus and L. lactis probiotics and Guazuma ulmifolia Lam. to find an alternative to antibiotic growth promoters has never been conducted, thus the present study aimed to evaluate their effect on nutrient intake and feed efficiency in females of Coturnix coturnix japonica. The experiment was conducted for 35 days, including the adaptation period. Supplementation was administered for 7 and 14 days, and the parameters were analysed accordingly. The experiment was set up as a completely randomized factorial design (2 × 3), where the first factor was the period of administration (a0 – one week and a1 – two weeks), and the second factor was feed additive (b0 – without feed additive, b1 – probiotics, b2 – G. ulmifolia Lam. extract). The results showed that there was a significant difference (P < 0.05) between the treatments in terms of nutrient intake (dry matter, organic matter, ash, crude protein, ether extract, crude fibre, nitrogen free extract, metabolisable energy) and feed efficiency (P < 0.05). Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that the application of L. acidophillus and L. lactis probiotics and G. ulmifolia Lam. extract has the potential to improve nutrient intake and feed efficiency in females of C. coturnix japonica, thereby improving safety and health-promoting properties of livestock products for humans and reducing animal production costs.