Effect of Barley Variety on Feed Intake, Digestibility, Body Weight Gain and Carcass Characteristics in Fattening Lambs

Animals

Mulugeta Tilahun Keno¹  Taye Tolemariam¹  Solomon Demeke¹  Geert P. J. Janssens²  Jane Wamatu³  Ashraf Alkhtib⁴ 

[1] College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Jimma University, P.O. Box 378 Jimma, Ethiopia;Department of Nutrition, Genetics, and Ethology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, Heidestraat 19, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium;International Centre for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas, P.O. Box 5689 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia;School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences, Brackenhurst Campus, Nottingham Trent University, Southwell NG25 0QF, Nottinghamshire, UK;

关键词: crop residue;    variety;    fattening performance;    food;    feed;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ani11061773

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Twenty lambs (18 ± 0.22 kg initial weight) were blocked by weight and individually assigned into pens to evaluate the effects of barley straw variety on digestibility, growth performance and carcass characteristics. The following four treatments were tested: (1) a local barley straw (as control), (2) HB1963 (high grain and straw yields), (3) Traveller (high straw yielder), and (4) IBON174/03 (high grain yielder). A concentrate (50:50 wheat bran and noug seed cake) was offered constantly (300 DM g), whereas the straw was offered ad libitum. The digestibility trial lasted 22 days (15 days to adapt to dietary treatments and 7 days for sampling). The growth performance trial lasted 90 days. At the end, all of the lambs were slaughtered, and their carcasses were evaluated. The IBON174/03 variety had a higher (p < 0.05) intake of organic matter and crude protein, a higher dry matter and organic matter digestibility than the control, and a faster growth than the control. The feed-to-gain ratio was similar among treatments. The slaughter and empty body weights of lambs in the IBON174/03 group were higher than the control variety (p < 0.05). The present study showed that the feeding value of barley straw can differ substantially between varieties and therefore must be considered in the choice of a barley variety.

【 授权许可】

Unknown