Ukrainian Journal of Veterinary Sciences

Effects of probiotic feed supplement on antibiotic resistance of E. coli cultures in puppies

Svyatoslav Sokolenko, Taras Farionik
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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity of Escherichia coli to antibiotics in the context of supplementing the diet of three-month-old French bulldog puppies with a probiotic as a biologically active additive. The study employed standard clinical, microbiological, and bacteriological methods, specifically, the disk-diffusion method to assess the sensitivity of Escherichia coli cultures to antibiotics and the general bacteriological contamination of faeces samples of puppies of one control group and two experimental groups of puppies that received a probiotic preparation as a feed supplement to the main diet. The study of the effects of the probiotic on the intestinal microflora of puppies found that the use of the probiotic significantly influenced the level of bacterial contamination of the stool samples of the experimental groups. The results of determining the sensitivity of Escherichia coli culture to 14 antibiotics were provided. The sensitivity of the culture to the selected antibiotic was determined by the size of the diameter of the growth retardation zones of microorganisms. The findings of the study revealed that the cultures were reliably susceptible to fosfomycin, kanamycin, and azithromycin. The addition of a probiotic symbiotic preparation based on Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus licheniformis to the diet of the dogs had a significant effect on sensitivity in 78.6% of combinations of conditions and antibacterial substances. Considering the current findings of analogous studies of the preparation on poultry and data on the improvement of biosynthetic processes in the digestive tract, indicators of poultry productivity, as well as an increase in the weight of individuals and the intensity of metabolic processes in the body, there are significant prospects for further research in this area and a more detailed study on the use of probiotic therapy in healthy puppies. The findings of the present study can be useful for veterinarians, scientists, and kennel workers of the Kennel Club of Ukraine, the Canine Service of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and other law enforcement agencies that directly maintain service dogs

Keywords

resistance; Escherichia coli; sensitivity of bacteria; probiotic therapy; probiotic

Suggested citation
Sokolenko, S., & Farionik, T. (2025). Effects of probiotic feed supplement on antibiotic resistance of E. coli cultures in puppies. Ukrainian Journal of Veterinary Sciences, 16(1), 30-39. https://doi.org/10.31548/veterinary1.2025.30
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