In a 120 day feeding trial, 8 cattle heifers (87±5 kg and 6 to 7 months) were randomly divided into two equal groups of
four animals each (control and supplemented). During the trial, heifers in both the groups were offered National
Research Council (NRC) recommended diet with or without yeast supplementation. The diet was formulated by adapting
the small dairy breeds heifers’ nutrients requirements for growth rate of 0.6 kg/day considering body weight of 100 kg.
The heifers in the supplemented group fed with Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Yea-Sac1026 (Alltech Inc., Nicholasville, KY),
5 g/animal/day. The effects of Saccharomyces cerevisiae on growth performance, blood parameters, nutrient digestibility,
fecal coliform and Lactobacillus were studied. Average dry matter intake (DMI) was not different among both groups;
whereas average daily weight gain was higher (p˂0.05) in supplemented compared with control group.The digestibility
of dry matter, organic matter, crude protein, neuter detergent fibre and acid detergent fibre was higher (p˂0.05) in yeastsupplemented
group compared with control group. Yeast-supplementation increased (p