Effect of ruminal dosing of mechanical stimulating brush on rumination time, ruminal passage rate and rumen fermentation status in Holstein steers fed a concentrate diet

This experiment was conducted to determine the effect of ruminal dosing of a mechanical stimulating brush on rumination time, ruminal passage rate and rumen fermentation status in steers fed a concentrate diet at maintenance level. Animals were dosed three Rumen Faibu (RF) per head through the rumen fistulae (RF treatment) and not dosed (control) in a change‐over design. The organic cell wall content of the concentrate diet was 12.7% of dry matter. Daily time spent on rumination was very short in both treatments with 24 min in RF treatment and 15 min in control. The turnover rate of ruminal fluid in RF treatment was higher than that in control. There were no differences in ruminal pH and total volatile fatty acid concentration between RF treatment and control. Acetic and butyric acid concentrations were not different between the treatments. Propionic acid concentration tended to be higher in the animals on RF treatment than in control animals. The RF dosing in Holstein steers fed a low fiber diet did not affect the rumination time, but increased rumen digesta passage rate and ruminal propionic acid production.     

Evaluation of nutritive value and palatability by goats and sheep of selected browse foliages from semiarid area of Kenya

The feeding value of five browse foliages (Acacia brevispica, Acacia mellifera, Berchemia discolor, Zizyphus mucronata and Maerua angolensis) grown in semiarid area of Kenya were evaluated. Their chemical composition including polyphenolics and in vitro gas production characteristics were determined. The biological activity of the polyphenolics was assessed as the increases in gas production profiles and in vitro true dry matter (DM) and organic matter (OM) digestibility after in vitro incubation with or without addition of polyethylene glycol (PEG) as a tannin binding reagent. The intake and palatability ranking of the browse foliages by goats and sheep were also investigated. The browse foliages had variable crude protein content (149.5–248.6 g/kg DM) and variable content of neutral detergent fiber (205.1–424.0 g/kg DM). The content of total extractable tannins was generally low (2.4–34.8 g/kg DM). At 24 h of incubation, Z. mucronata produced the highest gas volume, while after 48 h of incubation, B. discolor produced the highest gas volume. M. angolensis had the least gas production potential within the browse foliages. Addition of PEG increased gas production except in A. mellifera and M. angolensis. However, PEG addition did not have any significant effect on in vitro true DM and OM digestibility except in B. discolor, which decreased. The rank order of preference (highest to least) for goats was A. brevispica, Z. mucronata, B. discolor, A. mellifera and M. angolensis while the rank order of preference for sheep was A. brevispica, B. discolor, A. mellifera, Z. mucronata and M. angolensis. The goats had higher intakes of all the browse foliages than sheep. The result of this study highlights the higher feeding value of the browse species as supplemental feed with low quality basal diet with both of animal species except M. angolensis.     

Effects of grass forage species and long‐term period of low quality forage diet feeding on growth performance,nutrient utilization and microbial nitrogen yield in growing wether lambs

Six growing lambs were used to evaluate the feeding value of two forage‐based diets in a long‐term feeding period by measuring body weight (BW) gain, digestibility, nitrogen (N) retention and microbial N (MBN) yield. The animals were fed imported low‐quality timothy hay (TH) with concentrate diet (THD) or imported low‐quality Italian ryegrass straw (IR) with concentrate diet (IRD) for 9 months. The forages were offered at 2% BW, and concentrate was fed at 40% of forage intake. The BW gain averaged 82.6 and 66.2 g/day for THD and IRD, respectively, without showing significant difference. Average forage intake (% BW) was significantly greater for IR than for TH, although it was not affected by feeding periods. The digestibility did not differ between diets or periods. The numerically greater (P = 0.06) ratio of retained N to absorbed N for IRD than that for THD was prominent. Neither diet nor period had significant effect on MBN supply and efficiency of MBN synthesis. The results suggest that the IR‐based diet can be also used for long‐term periods of feeding to growing ruminant animals as a grass hay‐based diet without any detrimental effects on nutrient utilization and growth performance.     

Nutritive value of selected grasses in North Sumatra, Indonesia

The nutritive values of seven native grass species collected in North Sumatra, Indonesia, during dry and rainy seasons were evaluated. The chemical composition, in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD), in vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD), in vitro crude protein digestibility (IVCPD), macro mineral concentrations of calcium, phosphorus and magnesium, in vitro gas production profile and metabolizable energy (ME) content of the grasses varied greatly among species and seasons. The crude protein content ranged from 6.6 (Andropogon gayanus) to 16.2% dry matter (Cynodon plectostachyus) in the rainy season, with a significant (P < 0.05) reduction in the dry season. Data on the fiber fraction showed that the grasses contained more neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) in the dry season and it significantly (P < 0.05) decreased in the rainy season, except for Panicum maximum and Pennisetum purpureum for NDF content and C. plectostachyus, P. maximum and Brachiaria decumbens for ADF content. Data on the mineral concentration showed that C. plectostachyus in the dry and rainy seasons had a higher calcium content than those of other species. The overall means of the seven grasses for IVDMD, IVOMD and IVCPD were significantly higher (P < 0.05) in the rainy season than in the dry season. The in vitro gas production and ME concentration were numerically higher in the rainy season than in the dry season. In conclusion, the nutritive value of the observed grasses in North Sumatra was relatively higher during the rainy season compared with the dry season. Among the species of grass, P. purpureum and C. plectostachyus had a higher nutritive value in both the dry and rainy seasons.     

Changes in vitamin A added to a fermented total mixed ration prepared with reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea L.)

A fermented total mixed ration (TMR) was prepared by adding a vitamin premix containing vitamin A and enzyme to reed canarygrass roughage. The vitamin A levels were then determined after 30 days of fermentation at 20 or 30°C. The vitamin A contents had decreased in roughage fermented at both storage temperatures, and decreased further when an enzyme supplement was included. Because the majority of the added vitamin A was destroyed during fermentation and storage, the addition of vitamin A at the beginning of preparation of fermented TMR is not recommended.     

Mitigating the anti-nutritional effect of polyphenols on in vitro digestibility and fermentation characteristics of browse species in north western Ethiopia

Tropical Animal Health and Production - Browse species are important sources of forage for livestock in Ethiopia, especially during the dry season, when the quality and quantity of green herbage is...     

Preparation and characterization of fermented seaweed sauce manufactured from low-quality nori (dried and fresh fronds of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pyropia yezoensis</Emphasis>)

The present study tested processes to manufacture fermented sauce from low-quality nori (dried and fresh fronds of Pyropia yezoensis). The nori sauce was prepared using three tanks with fresh or dried nori cultured in different conditions. In the present study enzymes were not added for the promotion of the degradation of nori, while in a previous study they were. The supernatants of culture mashes obtained from the three tanks were combined, and this low-quality nori sauce (LNS) was characterized and compared with sauces manufactured from high-quality nori, soy, and fish. The LNS showed low concentrations of total nitrogen compounds (0.20 g/100 ml) and free amino acids, and its taste showed a high sourness score as evaluated by a taste-sensing system. On the other hand, the LNS was rich in polysaccharides, which were observed to be readily degraded to lower molecular weight size sugars by heat treatment. The LNS showed little risk for heavy metal or allergen contamination. The obtained sauce product is expected to be commercially utilized as a component of low allergen-risk sauce products after blending with other seasonings without wheat or soy elements.     

Effect of flow parameters of rumen digesta on effective degradability and microbial yield in sheep

The aim of this experiment was to examine the effect of rumen digesta flow parameters on effective degradability (EDG) and microbial nitrogen (MBN) yield in sheep fed diets of identical provision of both metabolizable energy and rumen degradable nitrogen (RDN). Ruminal degradation parameters of early‐harvested perennial ryegrass hay (EH), late‐harvested perennial ryegrasses hay (LH) and winter sown barley straw (BS) were determined by a nylon bag technique. Subsequently, three experimental diets (EHD, LHD and BSD) were formulated using the tested forages, sucrose and urea as supplements. An in vivo feeding study was conducted using four rumen cannulated sheep in a partial Latin square design. Digestibility, rate constants of rumen particle breakdown and passage, ruminal fermentation parameters and MBN supply to the small intestine were determined. Animals thoroughly consumed the forages fed at a restricted level. Digestion coefficients were greater for EHD than for LHD and were lowest for BSD (P < 0.05). The rate constant of large particle breakdown was 4.3, 5.9 and 6.7 %/h, respectively, and small particle passage was 5.3, 4.7 and 6.3 %/h for EHD, LHD and BSD, respectively. The estimates differed (P < 0.05) between the diets. The overall passage rate constant of total rumen particles was estimated to be higher for BSD than that for EHD or LHD (P < 0.05). Ruminal fermentation parameters were unaffected by dietary treatments (P > 0.05). Intake levels of rumen degradable organic matter (RDOM) and RDN were estimated to be greater for LHD than that for EHD or BSD (P < 0.05). Although dietary arrangements were made to give identical microbial efficiency, the estimated value was higher for EHD than that for LHD or BSD (P < 0.05); and the MBN yield for BSD was estimated to be lower than that for EHD or LHD (P < 0.05). Rumen kinetic parameters of degradation and particle flow of forage affected EDG values and MBN yield from forage‐related RDN intake, although those had little effect on the efficiency of MBN yield from forage‐related RDOM intake.     

Use of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Porphyra</Emphasis> spheroplasts as feed additive for red sea bream

ABSTRACT:   Two test diets with and without 5% Porphyra spheroplasts (PS) were formulated using white fishmeal as the main protein source. Red sea bream Pagrus major (mean body weight 15.4 ± 0.1 g) were maintained in a flow-through system (100 L) of thermo-controlled sea water (salinity 32–34, 25°C, 8 L/min) with ordinary aeration (400–600 mL/min) under laboratory light conditions (light–dark 12 h:12 h). Fish were fed three times a day at 10:00, 14:00 and 18:00 hours by hand for 42 days at 6% body weight on each experimental diet. Studies revealed that growth performance, survival and nutrient retention were significantly ( P  < 0.05) higher in the groups fed a diet containing spheroplasts (PS diet). Further, the fish fed the PS diet showed significantly ( P  < 0.05) lower feed conversion rates. Both groups of the PS and control diets had similar levels of body nutritional profile in terms of proximate compositions and fatty acids without compromising blood serum related parameters. From these experimental results, thus, it is comprehensible that a supplementary diet containing Porphyra spheroplasts can be used for maximizing not only growth of P. major but also for utilization of the feed ingredients.     

Effects of adding urea on fermentation quality of pruned persimmon branch silage and its digestibility,preference, nitrogen balance and rumen fermentation in beef cattle

Four cattle were used in a 4 × 4 Latin square design experiment to study digestibility, ruminal fermentation, nitrogen retention and preference of ensiling pruned persimmon branch (PPB) chips treated with urea. After 60 days of ensiling, urea‐treated PPB showed higher (P < 0.05) pH, acetic acid and ammonia‐N levels than no‐urea PPB. Both urea‐treated PPB and rice straw diets showed higher (P < 0.05) apparent digestibility and digestible nutrient content in cattle than no‐urea PPB diet. Neither mold nor yeast was detected in any urea‐treated PPB. Urinary and fecal excretion as well as nitrogen retention in cattle fed urea‐treated PPB were higher (P < 0.05) than in those fed no‐urea PPB and rice straw. With the exception that ruminal ammonia‐N levels in cattle fed urea‐treated PPB were higher (P < 0.05) than in those given no‐urea PPB and rice straw, ruminal pH, volatile fatty acid concentrations, and the acetic : propionic acid ratio of rumen content were unaffected by diets. The rank order of preference was rice straw > low‐urea > no‐urea > high‐urea. The results suggested that urea treatment of PPB inhibited growth of mold and yeast during silage storage, enhanced its digestibility and had nutritive value almost equivalent to that of rice straw.