Growth performance and carcass characteristics of West African dwarf (WAD) goats fed selected forages in Akwa Ibom State

Abstract

The potential of selected forages was evaluated using West African Dwarf (WAD) goats. Six forages namely, Andropogon tectorum, Panicum maximum, Aspilia Africana, Gmelina arborea, Alchornea cordifolia and Bambusa vulgaris designated as T1 to T6, respectively were the only feed source used for the study. Thirty West African Dwarf goats aged 8 to 9 months, with an average bodyweight of 9.17 to 10.10 kg were used for the study. The goats were assigned to six treatment groups based on the forages used in a completely randomized design. The results obtained showed significant (p<0.05) differences for average total weight gain and feed dry matter intake. Animals on Aspilia africana (T3) recorded the highest (1120.18 g/day) feed dry matter intake whereas Panicum maximum (T1) had the lowest 890.30 g/day. Andropogon tectorum (T1) and Gmelina arborea (T4) recorded 410.0 g each for average total weight gain. Initial haematology and serum indices had no significant (p>0.05) differences in the parameters tested. However, the PCV values were reduced in the final haematological profile. Similarly, carcass characteristics had no (p>0.05) significant differences among the treatment means. Animal on Andropogon tectorum (T1) gave the best (50.29%) dressing percentage with the least (40.47%) in Panicum maximum (T2). It can be concluded that performance of West African Dwarf goats can be better if the forages are offered in combination at equal amounts.

Effect of Different Housing System on the Morphological Traits, Physiological Responses and Behavioral Observations of Sirohi Kids

“…Drinking frequency was substantially (p<0.05) greater in the conventional housing system compared to the loose housing system in the current findings (Table 3), which may be attributed to the strong association between feed intake and water intake. The results are also in line with Mohammad et al, 2014;Abdel-Hamid, 2017 andEyoh et al, 2019, as they reported that the majority of goats seen drinking at intensive management systems was subjected to behavioral redirection. However non-significant effect of different housing system on drinking behavior was reported by Keane et al (2017) in heifers and Norouzian et al (2017) in sheep.…”

“…Variations in body length, height at wither, and heart circumference between two housing systems viz, conventional and loose housing systems may be caused by variations in body growth in each system, which is a sign of the animals' degree of comfort and production. The same results were reported by Thiruvenkadam et al, 2009;Birteeb et al, 2015;Eyoh et al, 2019 in goats reared under different management systems. Contrary to this, Tiezzi et al (2019) found non-significant effect on morphological traits of goats raised under conventional housing systems.…”

“…The feeding habits, quick maturity, efficiency of reproduction, small size, and adaptability to a variety of agro-climatic conditions, from hot and humid to dry and arid, is significant characteristics that make goat husbandry a wise endeavor (Panda et al, 2016;Sangamneshwaran, 2016). Because of its low cost, goat farming is an excellent option for industrial workers, marginal farmers, and landless laborers (Eyoh et al, 2019;Khant et al, 2021).…”