Lili Xian^1,2, Hongzhuang Wang^1,2, Yuanyuan Wu³, Da Peng^1,2, Lei Zang^1,2, Yong Zhu, Jing Feng^1,2*

The Xizang chicken is an important indigenous poultry breed in high-altitude regions; however, its growth is often constrained by environmental stress under intensive cage-rearing conditions. This study evaluated the effects of dietary probiotics, Chinese herbal additives, and their combination on body weight, serum antioxidant and biochemical indices, and gut microbiota composition in Xizang chickens. In this 42-day experiment, 420 one-day-old chicks were randomly assigned to seven treatment groups, including control, probiotic, herbal, and combination treatments. Our findings demonstrated that all the dietary treatments had a significant beneficial effect on body weight, as evidenced by the increase in body weight at 28 and 42 days; the low-dose combination group (MIX1) showed the most significant growth-promoting effect in the early growth period (7-21 days). In addition, the antioxidant analysis revealed that the high dosage of the herbal group (ZY2) significantly increased glutathione (GSH) levels, whereas the low dosage of the probiotic group (YSJ1) significantly elevated the levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC). Moreover, microbiota profiling demonstrated a significantly different gut microbiota composition, such as an increase in Limosilactobacillus in the combination group and a decrease in the abundance of Enterococcus in the herbal treatment. These results suggest that probiotics and Chinese herbal additives, especially in combination and at low doses, have beneficial effects on body weight in Xizang chickens, possibly via improved antioxidant status and specific modulation of gut microbiota.

To Cite This Article: Xian L, Wang H, Wu Y, Peng D, Zang L, Zhu Y, Feng J, 2026. Effects of probiotics and Chinese herbal additives on body weight, antioxidant status, and fecal microbiota in Xizang chickens. Pak Vet J, 46(5): 1364-1371. http://dx.doi.org/10.29261/pakvetj/2026.123