Effect of Different Combinations of Methanolic Extract of Moringa oleifera and Thymus vulgaris on Production Performance, Gut Morphology, Hematology and Nutrient Digestibility in Broilers

The present study was designed to find the effect of methanolic extract of Moringa oleifera and Thymus vulgaris on the performance, hematology, digestibility and gut health in broiler chickens. A day-old 270 broiler chicks (Ross-308) were randomly assigned to 6 treatment groups with 3 replicates and 15 birds per replicate. CON (Control) group; M100 (M. oleifera 200mg/L); T100 (T. vulgaris 300mg/L); M50T50 (M. oleifera 100mg/L and T. vulgaris 150mg/L); M75T25 (M. oleifera 150mg/L and T. vulgaris 75mg/L); and M25T75 group (M. oleifera 50mg/L and T. vulgaris 225mg/L). Methanolic extract of both M. oleifera and T. vulgaris were supplemented in drinking water. The duration of the experiment was 42 days. The results showed significantly higher feed intake, body weight gain, feed conversion ratio, broiler performance efficiency factor, and broiler farm economy index in the M50T50 diet group. Digestibility of ash, dry matter, ether extract, crude fiber, and nitrogen-free extract were not affected except for crude protein which was significantly higher in the M50T50 diet group. Similarly, hematological parameters were not affected, while villus height, width, and crypt depth were significantly improved in the M50T50 diet group. These findings demonstrate that the supplementation of methanolic extract of M. oleifera and T. vulgaris in drinking water either alone or in combination improves the production performance, nutrient digestibility and gut health in broilers.