The respiratory system is essential to the birds’ performance. It is important not only for oxygen transport, but also for removal of metabolic waste and by-products. A healthy respiratory system can eliminate 80% of the germs inhaled within 1-3 hours. Due to its highly efficient nature and exposure to the external environment, it is easily susceptible to a range of diseases and problems which can insidiously affect the genetic potential of performance livestock.

In winters and times of respiratory distress and discomfort, animals spend less time eating and drinking. Essential oil-based products with their unique blend have long been used in livestock farming not only to help alleviate the severity and duration of respiratory problems, but also to help keep animals cool during thermal challenges.

Just mixing of some oils at any concentration does not make an ideal product it requires deep know-how to find a fine balance between active ingredients and supporting elements. When a group of animals require treatment, drinking water application is a responsible and useful option on the condition that the drinking water, the system, and the products are of good quality. Products should be selected which are carefully formulated to meet an optimal balance between solubility, stability, and bioavailability. The active ingredients should be well soluble and highly available to the animal. The supporting elements in formulations help to create a homogenous mixture.

With this knowledge in hand, very few products have therefore been optimally formulated to be fully soluble in water and is also very well dispersed in on-farm conditions. The product must be immediately solubilized in water upon addition or injection and is fully homogenous in solution. If added to a bulk tank, minimal stirring needs to be required and does not require much external energy inputs such as a mechanical mixer. The selected product should not require the use of warm or hot water to be fully solubilized, as this is oftentimes not practical on the farm. Being completely soluble and consistently dispersed in water, it should have less risk of encouraging biofilm growth and the risk of drinking nipple blockages is also very much reduced.

With its highly soluble and homogenous dispersion properties, product should be selected based on following criterion to helps farmers to:

1 Reduce labour: Selected product can be directly dosed to the drinking system and doesn’t require warm water and/or a pre-solution step. This valuable time can then be used by the farmer for other important management practices.

2 Equal distribution in the drinking water: Homogeneity and uniformity of the flock is an important factor for producers. Therefore, it is equally important that supplementation is also homogenous and uniformly dispersed in the drinking water, reducing the risks of stragglers and non-uniform growth.

3 High quality, well soluble and stable in solution to prevent biofilm: The Selected product should not only be well soluble but should also stay stable in solution. This not only helps to prevent biofilm formation, and the animals consume a continuous, consistent dose thus reducing risks of taste-aversion and decrease in water consumption.

A lab-scale comparison was conducted to determine the solubility and dispersion aspects of two leading brands from Europe in room temperature water of 20°C. Product-A and Product-B were dropped into tap water at the advised dosages according to the labels. It was observed that product-A had perfect dispersion and did not form clumps or sediments when compared to other competitor products. Even gentle stirring did not manage to completely break the clumps of competitor products and in a drinking line. This could surely lead to nipple blockage and uneven dosing causing an eventual headache for the farmer.

In conclusion, it is important for a drinking-water based nutritional solution to not only be functional, but also have well soluble properties with good homogenous dispersal at farm conditions.