Supplementation of lauric acid from Black Soldier Fly oil as anti-diarrhea in growing Garut sheep

Abstract Decreased immunity in garut sheep often leads to reduced productivity and present a complex challenge. Lauric acid, an antimicrobial agent, may enhance immunity in these sheep. The objective of this research was to investigate the efficacy of lauric acid derived from Black Soldier Fly (Hermetia illucens) oil in relation to feed consumption patterns, average daily gain (ADG), and its potential anti-diarrheal properties in growing Garut sheep. Randomized block design with four treatments as :P1 (Ration + 1% BSF oil,); P2 (Ration + 1% Coated Lauric Acid of BSF oil), P3 (Ration + 1% Uncoated Lauric Acid of BSF oil,) and P4 (Ration + 1% Palm oil), each with four replicates. The experimental data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA), with post-hoc comparisons conducted using Post-hoc Tukey’s Honestly Significant Difference (HSD). Results showed that coated lauric acid of Black Soldier Fly (BSF) oil, uncoated lauric acid from BSF oil and palm oil significantly reduced (P<0.05) the fecal Escherichia coli count compared to the BSF oil treatment, while feed intake, and ADG were not significantly affected (P>0.05) in all treatments. The findings demonstrated that the supplementation of 1% encapsulated lauric acid, uncoated lauric acid, or palm oil effectively reduced diarrhea cases with decreased total E. coli in the feces of growing garut sheep without negatively impacting feed intake, or ADG.