Performance, Body Development, and Diarrhoea Incidence in Sannen Goat Kids Fed Milk Replacer Supplemented With Bakery Yeast

BACKGROUND: Feeding milk replacer with appropriate probiotics is one possibility to improve the artificial rearing of goat kids. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of feeding milk replacer and its supplementation with bakery yeast on performance, body development, and diarrhoea incidence in Sannen goat kids. METHODS: Twenty-four sucking kids, with an average BW of 5.45 ± 1.16 kg at the age of 21.8 ± 10.00 days, were distributed in a randomised design. Kids were allocated to 3 treatments (n = 8; 3 males and 5 females): (1) feeding goat milk as a control, (2) feeding a milk replacer formula (MR; 0.125 kg of DM/L), and (3) feeding the milk replacer supplemented with bakery yeast (MRY; 0.5 g/head/day). The amount of milk/milk replacer fed was similar at approximately 1 L/day. RESULTS: During the experiment, the diarrhoea incidence was greater in the MR treatment than in the control (p < 0.05). However, in the MRY group, diarrhoea incidence was higher than that in the control and MR groups during the first 2 weeks, but lower than both groups during weeks 3 and 4 (p < 0.05). The final body weight and average daily gain were significantly lower in the MR and MRY treatment groups than in the control group (p < 0.050). The morphological growth parameters were similar between the control and MR treatments but were lower in the MRY treatment than in the control and MR treatments (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Overall, under the conditions of the present experiment, feeding suckling Saanen kids with milk replacer increased the incidence of diarrhoea, and feeding milk replacer and its supplementing with bakery yeast decreased body weight gain.