The Impact of Bee Pollen as a Natural Growth Promoter on the Performance and Blood Characteristics of Growing Calves and Heifers | ||
| Egyptian Journal of Veterinary Sciences | ||
| Articles in Press, Corrected Proof, Available Online from 22 September 2025 PDF (568.59 K) | ||
| Document Type: Original Article | ||
| DOI: 10.21608/ejvs.2025.408970.3006 | ||
| Authors | ||
| Eman A Negm1; Mohamed Youssef Elaref* 2; Raghda A Taghian3 | ||
| 1Physiology Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt. | ||
| 2Animal Production Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt | ||
| 3Animal Production Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Assuit University, Assuit, Egypt. | ||
| Abstract | ||
| This study aimed to explore the impact of Bee Pollen (BP) on the performance and blood characteristics of growing calves and heifers. Twenty healthy cow calves and heifers (aged 8-10 months with an IBW of 136.1 and 129.3 kg for calves and heifers, respectively) were assigned randomly to two groups (5 calves and 5 heifers each). The control group received the basal diet, while the treatment group was given 30 g of fresh commercial multifloral BP with the basal diet three times a week. Animals were weighed monthly, and feed intake was monitored to compute feed conversion. Blood samples were collected monthly to estimate Hb, TP, albumin, globulin, T3 and T4. Animals that received BP had heavier (P < 0.05) FBW, BWG and ADG than those in the control group. Likewise, adding BP increased (P < 0.05) the DFI, and the FCR improved (P < 0.05). Hemoglobin, total protein, globulin, albumin, T3 and T4 of animals in the BP group were enhanced (P < 0.05) than those in the control group. In conclusion, incorporating BP into the diet of growing calves and heifers could be considered a way to promote growth, improve feed conversion, and lower feeding costs. | ||
| Keywords | ||
| Bee pollen; Blood metabolites; Feed consumption; Growing calves; Growth performance | ||
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