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Other additives. You will usually see ionophores. Not so much for the coccidiosis, but for the improvements in feed conversion. Lasalocid, monensin, rumensin they increase feed conversion when they are added to the diet. Occasionally, you will still see some antibiotics fed. But what about feeding antibiotics to 10,000 animals in a feedlot, is that good or bad? It is probably not a smart choice considering bacterial resistance to antibiotics today.

Some metabolic disorders that animals will incur because of the diet. One is acidosis or not adjusting animals to a high grain diet, which can lead to liver abscesses. Acidosis is caused by, primarily, what VFA? It is a minor one. Propionate which leads to another acid, lactic acid which is very acidic. In layman’s term, what lactic acid does, it eats away the rumen wall. Actually, it causes fractures of the papillae. Bacteria can then move into the portal bloodstream, they eventually end up in the liver and in the liver they cause liver abscesses. Acidosis, low rumen pHs, can lead to liver abscesses which leads to poor feed conversions. Lastly, depends upon the feedstuff, but some feedstuffs can cause bloat, but we have feed additives to take care of this.

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