Effects of physical form of diet on nutrient digestibility, rumen fermentation, rumination, growth performance and protozoa population of finishing lambs

Abstract

This study was conducted to compare effects of 3 physical forms of feed including mash (diet 1), pellet (diet 2) and complete feed block (CFB; diet 3) on digestion, fermentation and performance of lambs. Twenty-one lambs with an initial average body weight of 26 ± 2.5 kg and 6 ± 1.5 months of age were assigned through a completely randomized design to 3 treatments and 7 replicates. The experimental treatments had the same formulation. The results of present experiment showed that CFB significantly increased feed intake and nutrient digestibility (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference among the diets for rumen fluid pH, blood glucose, concentration of volatile fatty acids (P > 0.05), except acetic acid (P < 0.05). The rumen ammonia nitrogen (NH3—N), mixed rumen protozoa population (RPP), Entodiniums spp., Epidiniums spp., blood urea nitrogen (BUN) concentration, rumination time adjusted for dry matter (DM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF) intake, and total body weight gain of lambs in CFB diet were the highest among all diets (P < 0.05). Feed conversion ratio at days 31 to 45 and whole experimental period were better in CFB than in other diets (P < 0.05). Overall, according to the findings of the present study, among 3 physical forms of the diets, CFB had the best efficiency due to improvement of nutrient digestibility, rumen fermentation and performance of lambs. Therefore, the CFB diet offers the best result in lambs compared with mash and pellet diets.

Dynamics of biochemical parameters in lambs during the first four months of life

“…In sheep, it is important to remember that although urea is not considered a very accurate metabolite for renal evaluation, it is a quick and sensitive indicator of the protein nutritional status, since it is directly related to the input of degradable proteins and to the energy:protein ratio of the diet (González and Scheffer, 2002;Peixoto and Osório, 2007;Braun et al, 2010). In fact, serum urea concentration is proportional to the ammonia levels produced in the rumen (Karimizadeh et al, 2017). Most of the protein ingested is degraded by ruminal microorganisms, releasing ammonia, which is used for microbial protein synthesis (Geron et al, 2018).…”

“…However, when large amounts of protein are fermented in combination with low availability of energy from carbohydrate degradation, a high rumen ammonia concentration is generated. The capacity of ammonia utilization by ruminal microorganisms is exceeded, so the excess is absorbed into the enterohepatic circulation, and in the liver is converted into urea, which, added to urea from amino acid metabolism, constitutes the major portion of plasma urea (Fernandes et al, 2012;Karimizadeh et al, 2017;Geron et al, 2018). However, it can be observed that the energy requirement for the lambs in this study was practically met (Table 3), with only a small deficit in its balance at 91-120 days, while the protein deficit was much higher (not being the protein requirement fully met).…”

Processing Technology of Feed Wafer to Increase Feed Production and Efficiency

“…Perbedaan bentuk pakan mash, pellet, dan blok dengan kandungan nutrien yang sama dapat mempengaruhi konsumsi pakan dan kecernaan nutrien, pola fermentasi pakan di dalam rumen, bobot badan, dan rasio konversi pakan (Karimizadeh et al 2017), mempengaruhi retensi mineral kaslium dan fosfor (Verma et al 1996), kecernaan bahan kering dan bahan organik, protein kasar, NDF, dan ADF menunjukkan adanya perbedaan yang signifikan antara pakan komplit berbentuk blok, mash, dan pellet (Samanta et al 2003). Adapun pemberian suplemen wafer pakan mengandung daun lamtoro (Leucaena leucocephala) dapat meningkatkan konsumsi bahan kering, bobot badan, efisiensi pakan, dan income over feed cost (IOFC) dibandingkan dengan domba yang diberi suplemen dalam bentuk mash dan pellet (Argadyasto 2015).…”

“…Pembuatan pakan berbentuk blok dilakukan melalui proses penggilingan, pencampuran, dam pencetakan. Komposisi pakan berbentuk blok terdiri dari hijauan, konsentrat, dan nutrien tambahan lainnya dalam proporsi yang diinginkan untuk memenuhi kebutuhan nutrisi ternak (Karimizadeh et al 2017). Pakan dalam bentuk blok mempunyai rataan ukuran 10 x 20 x 20 cm (Verma et al 1996) dan ada juga yang membuat dalam ukuran 21 x 21 cm dengan ketebalan yang bervariasi antara 9 hingga 14 cm (Santhiralingam & Sinniah 2018).…”

Growth Performance and Carcass Traits of Goats Fed With Oil Palm Byproducts Based Feed Pellet

“…However, the current study has shown that inclusion of oil palm by-products up to 49.6% did not affect the animal FI, suggesting that the palatability might have been improved by processing the feed materials into pellet form. According to Leng (1990); Joo et al (2012); Abubakr et al (2013) and Karimizadeh et al (2017), the FI can be improved through various processing techniques and supplementation. For example, Joo et al (2012) suggested that feeding a combination of Napier and OPF to goats offer better results in certain aspects compared to the feeding of Napier grass or OPF alone, besides reducing feed cost and environmental waste.…”