The effects of antibiotic-free supplementation on the ruminal pH variability and methane emissions of beef cattle under the challenge of subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA)

Subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) in feedlot cattle during the feed transition to grain-based diets is a significant constraint to animal health and productivity. This experiment assessed an antibiotic-free supplement (ProTect®) effects on ruminal pH variability and methane (CH₄) emissions of cattle during the challenge of SARA. Ten 18-month-old Angus steers (472 ± 4.8 kg) were randomly allocated into monensin (n = 5) and ProTect® groups (n = 5) and progressively introduced to grain diets incorporating monensin or ProTect® for 36 days of the experiment [starter (7 days; 45% grain), T1 (7 days; 56% grain), T2 (7 days; 67% grain), finisher (15 days; 78% grain)]. The pH variability on the finisher period was reduced by the ProTect® supplement (6.6% vs. 5.2%; P < 0.01), with CH₄ emissions being significantly higher relative to the monensin group [88.2 g/day (9.3 g CH₄/kg DMI) vs. 133.7 g/day (14.1 g CH₄/kg DMI); P < 0.01]. There was no difference between treatments in the time spent on the ruminal pH < 5.6 or < 5.8 (P > 0.05). The model evaluation for the ruminal pH variation indicated that the mean absolute error (MAE) proportion for both groups was good within the same range [4.05% (monensin) vs. 4.25% (ProTect®)] with identical root mean square prediction error (RMSPE) (0.34). It is concluded that the ProTect® supplement is an effective alternative to monensin for preventing SARA in feedlot cattle by managing ruminal pH variation during the transition to high-grain diets. Both monensin and ProTect® supplemented cattle exhibited lower CH₄ yield compared to cattle fed forages and low-concentrate diets.