EFFECT OF REPLACING SOYBEAN MEAL WITH DRIED RUMEN DIGESTA ON DIGESTIBILITY AND GROWTH PERFORMANCE OF DJALLONKÉ SHEEP

Abstract

This study was conducted to assess the effect of replacing soybean meal in concentrate with dried rumen digesta (DRD) on digestibility and growth performance of Djallonké sheep. Sixteen (16) Djallonké rams with an initial average body weight of 12.4±2.4kg of 10-12 months old were randomly assigned to four treatment diets and replicated four times over a 63 day period in a completely randomized design (CRD). The treatments were T0 (0% DRD), T1 (4% DRD), T2 (8% DRD) and T3 (12% DRD). The animals were fed 30% of the concentrate diet and 70% of rice straw at 3% live body weight. The crude protein (CP) of the concentrate diet ranged between 22.6% and 26.8% in T2 (8% DRD) and T3 (12% DRD). The neutral detergent fibre (NDF) was highest (65.40%) in T1 and lowest (58.8%) in T0. The highest acid detergent fibre (ADF) was obtained in T3 with the least in T0. The in vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD) was higher (P<0.05) in T0 than the DRD based concentrate diets. The total viable count and lactic acid bacteria count showed no significant difference among the DRD based concentrate diets. Total dry matter intake (DMI), organic matter intake (OMI) and Metabolizable energy intake (MEI) were not significantly (P>0.05) affected by the inclusion of DRD. However crude protein intake (CP) was significantly (P=0.030) higher in T3 more than the other treatments. The inclusion of DRD in the rams’ diet did not affect digestibility negatively. The average daily weight gain (ADWG) of the rams were 56.6g, 51.8g, 48.8g and 47.9g for T0, T1, T2 and T3 respectively and they were not significantly (P>0.05) different when compared to the control diet. Final live weight, carcass weight, dressed weight and dressing percentages were not significantly different across the treatments. The primal cuts (the shoulder, thigh and neck) expressed as percentage of dressed weight of experimental rams were not significantly affected by the dietary treatments. The haematological and serum parameters of the studied animals showed no significant difference between the control diet and DRD based concentrate diets at all the inclusion levels. Feeding rams with concentrate diet containing dried rumen digesta (DRD) did not have any adverse effect on growth performance, health of animals and nutrient digestibility. Farmers can replace soybean meal with dried rumen digesta up to 12% to rams to reduce cost of production and to maximize their income. Keywords: Dried Rumen Digesta, Concentrate diet, Digestibility, Growth and Djallonké rams