INFLUENCE OF VERNONIA AMYGDALINA (BITTER LEAF) EXTRACT AS SUBSTITUTE FOR COCCIDIOSTAT ON BROILER CHICKENS

Abstract

One hundred and eighty a-day old Arbor acre broiler chicken were used to investigate the effectiveness of extracts of bitter leaf (Vernonia amygdalina) in the treatment of coccidiosis in broiler chicken. The broilers were brooded following the standard procedure before being infected with coccidiosis. The birds were then allotted into three treatment levels with each treatment having sixty chickens with three replicates of twenty birds each. The treatment is made up of control (T1) (without any medication administration), T2 with Embazin forte (synthetic coccidiostat) and T3 with aqueous bitter leaf extract. During the four weeks trials, same commercial feed and cool clean water were served liberally to the birds. Recommended medications were complied with except for coccidiostat. Data were collected on the phytochemical qualitative and quantitative content of bitter leaf as well as the growth performance of the broiler chickens. The result of the investigation reveals a large quantity of tannin, alkaloids, saponin and flavonoids (0.432, 0.435, 0.553 and 0.463mg/dl) respectively in the bitter leaf extract. The phenol, phytates and oxalates were qualitatively mild with quantities ranging from 0.288-0.355mg/dl. The cyanide, steroids and terpenoids were negligible qualitatively with quantitative range of 0.136-0.212mg/dl. There was no significant difference (p< 0.05) in daily weight gain, final weight, and feed conversion ratio of the chickens across the treatment means. No mortality was recorded. The experiment concluded that bitter leaf extract can successfully be used in place of synthetic anti-coccidiosis in broiler chicken without any deleterious effect.