EFFECTS OF SOLE AND MIXED GRASSES/LEGUMES SILAGE ON NUTRIENTS DIGESTIBILITY AND NITROGEN BALANCE ON YANKASA RAMS
EFFECTS OF SOLE AND MIXED GRASSES/LEGUMES SILAGE ON NUTRIENTS DIGESTIBILITY AND NITROGEN BALANCE ON YANKASA RAMS
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Date
2022
Authors
ABUBAKAR, S.A AHMED, M.Y IBRAHIM, U. M, HALIRU, M. I LAWAN, S. K SANI, S. S.
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Abstract
The study was aim to evaluate apparent nutrient digestibility and nitrogen balance on growing Yankasa rams at National Animal Production Research Institute (NAPRI), Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Shika,. Rams averagely weighing 21.5kg were fed a basal diet of sole maize (SM), sole elephant grass (SE), maize lablab (ML), maize mucuna(MM), elephant grass lablab (EL) and elephant grass mucuna (EM) and silages with concentrate supplement (1%) of their body weight for a period of 90 days and 21 days digestibility studies in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD). Rams fed ML recorded significantly higher (P<0.05) DMD (67.95%), CPD (66.12%) and OMD (56.12%) and sole maize recorded the lowest DMD and CPD. However, significantly (P<0.05) higher ADFD and EED was obtained in EL (80.78%) and EM (80.22%) respectively. Rams fed SM silage recorded lowest NDFD and ADFD. Result on nitrogen balance obtained reveal that significantly (P<0.05) higher nitrogen intake was recorded in rams fed with EL but rams offer EM feed recorded higher N retained (23.35g/day) and nitrogen retained as percentage intake (68.85%) in their body compared to other treatments and were significantly different.
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National Animal Production Research Institute, Shika, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria