Effect of green tea dust as a dietary additive and anthelminthic on performance, digestibility, and fecal egg counts in Priangan ewe lambs infected with Strongyles worms

Despite green tea dust (GTD) is a by-product of green tea fabrication, it has the potential as natural additive and anthelmintic in ruminant diets due to its high protein and bioactive contents. This study aimed to compare the effect of 3 different doses [0% (control), 0.75% (GTD-0.75), and 1.5% (GTD-1.5)] of GTD supplementation on dry matter intake (DMI, g/kg DM), average daily gain (ADG, g/kg DM), nutrient digestibility (%), and fecal egg counts (FEC, eggs/g feces) of local ewe lambs infected with <i>Strongyles</i> worms during 84 days feeding trial using a completely randomized design and six replicates (<i>n</i> = 6). The results showed that all lamb groups decreased body weight; however, GTD-1.5 supplemented lambs tended (<i>P</i> = 0.061) to have better ADG at the end of the trial compared to the other groups. In addition, GTD-1.5 supplemented lambs had lower (<i>P</i> < 0.05) FEC at day 42 and day 56 than those the control lambs. About 1.5% GTD supplementation in a diet has the potential as dietary additive and anthelmintic to maintain the productivity, health, and welfare in rearing lambs.