No abstract

No abstract

Summary ― To compare digestion in the forestomach of llamas and sheep, the animals were fed four different diets: hay alone (H), low in nitrogen; the same hay with soyabean meal (HS), with barley (HB) and with both soyabean meal and barley (HSB). The

The efficiency with which llamas and sheep digest various roughages was compared in France in 1993. Six llamas (three of which were rumen-cannulated) and six rumen-cannulated sheep were simultaneously given three different diets: (i) a grass hay low in N content (HLN), (ii) the same hay with barley, representing 25 % of the total dry matter (HLN + B) and (iii) a cocksfoot grass hay, rich in nitrogen (HRN). Daily forage dry matter intake was slightly, but not significantly, lower in llamas (55-9 g/kg W 075 v. 60-3 g/kg W 075 in sheep). Intake behaviour was similar for the two species except that the number of rumination periods was lower with llamas (P < 005). With all diets, the digestibility of both organic matter and cell walls (estimated from neutral detergent fibre) was higher in llamas ( + 5-6 and +6-5 units respectively, P < 0001). The higher digestibility in llamas may be related to the slightly lower level of intake and to the lower dry matter turnover rate in the forestomachs compared to sheep (3-9%/h v. 5-3%/h, P < 001). However, in sacco degradation of both hays were higher in llamas' forestomachs after 24 h of incubation ( + 6-5%, P < 0-01) and 48 h ( + 4-3%, P < 005) than in sheep. The high microbial efficiency of the llamas can be ascribed to the physical and chemical characteristics of their forestomach contents, which had a higher liquid turnover rate (+ 1-4% /h, P < 005), a lower volatile fatty acid concentration (P < 001), a higher and more constant pH (P < 001) than in sheep and a greater buffering capacity when pH was close to neutral. These results suggest the greater ability of llamas to control the physicochemical conditions of their forestomach contents to digest cell walls efficiently and to minimize the negative effects of concentrate supplementation.i M T R n n i i r T i n M work has been done on the mechanisms responsible IN 1 KUUUL11UN f o r t h e g r e a t e r digestive ability of camelids and even Various comparative trials have been performed with less is known about these mechanisms in llamas. Few camelids and ruminants to elucidate the different experiments have compared forage intake between nutritional strategies of herbivores. Camelids (camels the two species and results vary from one experiment and llamas) seem to be adapted to low quality diets to another (Warmington et al. 1989; Cordesse et al. (Van Soest 1982). In the south of France, a research 1992; Dulphy et al. 1994a, b). The fresh weight of the programme was developed to compare the grazing digestive content of the first two compartments is behaviour and animal production performances of lower in llamas (Vallenas& Stevens 1971; Dardillater sheep, goats and llamas in Garrigue, a scrubland area al. 1994). In terms of dry matter (DM), however, and (Dumont et al. 1995).in relation to DM intake, it is higher in llamas Trials comparing digestion in llamas and sheep (Dardillat e? a/. 1994). The turnover rates of the solid showed that organic matter digestibility and fibre phase in forestomachs have not been compared in the...

RÉSUMÉ

No abstract

No abstract

Abstract— Six trials were conducted to study the conditions of preparation and treatment of moist forage samples for the in situ measurement of their ruminal dry matter and nitrogen degradations. The and the same stored and then used several months later. Drying, even at 60 °C, lowered effective nitrogen degradability against moist forage; drying at 80 °C lowered it by 10 points (P < 0.01) (1 point = 1 % on a scale from 0 to 100). Freeze-drying had a weak negative effect (-3.1 points; P < 0.05). The nitrogen degradability of hays increased with decreasing particle size (+7.7 points, P < 0.01, from 12 to 0.8 mm mesh size). Beating with a 'stomacher' is useful for reducing microbial contamination of bag residues (increasing nitrogen degradability by +4.3