Haematological and biochemical profile of broiler chickens fed diets containing ginger and black pepper additives

This study was carried out to examine the haemato-biochemical characteristics of broiler chickens fed diets containing ginger (Zingiber officinale L) and black pepper (Piper guineense Schum & Thonn) additives. A total of 240 day old unsexed Anak-2000 broiler chicks were allotted to four treatments (T1, T2. T3 and T4) in a completely randomized design. (T1) was the control with no additive, (T2) had 0.5% of ginger powder, (T3) had 0.5% black pepper powder, while (T4) had a mixture of 0.25% ginger and 0.25% black pepper. From the results obtained, the values of packed cell volume (34.53%) and red blood cell (3.60 x 106/mm3) was significantly (p<0.05) highest in the ginger treatment group. Aspartate aminotransferase and Alanine aminotransferase had significantly (p<0.05) lower values (270.23u/l and 65.00u/l respectively) in the ginger treatment compared to the control which had the highest (518.45u/l and 79.67u/l respectively). The treated groups also had significantly (p<0.05) decreased values of total cholesterol, low-density cholesterol and very-low-density lipoprotein compared to the control. As observed from this study, the addition of ginger and black pepper generally improved the blood parameters assessed in contrast to the control diet. Therefore, it can be concluded that, they hold health-promoting potentials in broiler production. Keywords: Ginger; Black pepper; Haematology; Serum biochemistry; Lipid profile; Broiler chickens