Effects of a Bacterial Compound on Litter to reduce Footpad Lesions in Broilers

A trial was performed in broilers to reduce Footpad lesions (FPL) that often affects flocks’ welfare. A total of 89,200 Ross308 chickens (39±3g) were housed in 2 sheds (C, control; T, treated) at the same environmental conditions. Females were housed in the first part of each shed, and males in the second and third part. A bacterial bedding conditioner (EazyBed Pro, Lallemand, France) was applied on litter in T. In C no treatments were carried out. Females were slaughtered at 36d (T: 1528±195g; C: 1562±188g) and males utilized the whole space until 43d (T: 2696±296; C: 2737±364). At 20d and before capture, 30 birds living in each part of the shed were randomly selected and, from both pads, the perimeter shape of each lesion was recorded on transparent sheets. Shape measurements were obtained in cm2, using the imitoMeasure application (Imito AG, Swiss). For bacteriological and mycological culture, litter was sampled at different depths, pooling 9 samples/part, at the same timepoints. At slaughtering, 12 legs for each group were randomly selected for histological examination, characterizing the severity of lesions. At 20d, FPL were not observed in birds. At 35d, lesions measured in T (0.57±0.08cm2) were significantly lower than in C (1.47±0.14cm2; p<0.0001). At 42d, lesions measured in T (0.65±0.18cm2) were significantly lower than in C (1.76±0.34; p=0.049). In litter collected in T, Gram negative bacteria (p=0.0015) and Staphylococcus spp. (p=0.0386) significantly decreased (CFU/g), in particular in the second part of the shed (p=0.0098, p=0.0131 respectively). No significant differences were recorded for fungal flora. In T, broilers showed a total histological score significantly lower than in C (p=0.0002), in particular in males (p<0.0001). The use of the compound positively affects width and severity of FPL, supported by bacteriological analysis that showed a reduction of the total charge of bacteria commonly involved in the condition.