THE EFFECTS OF VARIOUS HERBAL EXTRACT COMBINATIONS ON EIMERIA TENELLA INFECTED BROILERS WERE INVESTIGATED IN BATTERY EXPERIMENTS

Summary Prevention and control of coccidiosis remain a top priority for the poultry industry. Due to the increasing prevalence of resistance to chemical anticoccidial drugs and associated residue concerns in meat, eggs, and the environment, natural products have become an important alternative and complementary strategy for managing coccidiosis in poultry. However, research on the effects of varying proportions of herbal prescriptions on coccidiosis remains limited. In this study, different formulations were composed of Dichroa febrifuga Lour. (DFL), Artemisia annua L . (AAL), Acalypha australis L . (ACA), Pteris multifida Poir. (PMP) and Agrimonia pilosa Ledeb . (APL). Following Eimeria tenella infection, the effects of different formula compositions and extraction methods on coccidiosis resistance in broilers were evaluated. The results showed that, compared with the infection control group, most herbal formulations improved the fecal score, lesion score, and oocyst index in E. tenella -infected broilers. However, the anticoccidial efficacy index (ACI) of all formulations was moderate or limited. Based on the weight ratio, the optimal formulation was determined as DFL:ACA:PMP:APL = 4:1:2:2.