Effects of fiber sources in lamb starter feed on performance, chewing behavior, and blood energy metabolites

Document Type : Research Article (Regular Paper)

Authors

Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture, Isfahan University of ‎Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111, I. R. Iran‎.

Abstract

In this study, the effects of partially replacing cereal grains (corn and barley) by forage (straw) or non-forage (beet pulp) source in lamb starter diets were investigated on performance, chewing behavior, nutrient digestibility, and blood energy parameters. Thirty Ghezel lambs (body weight of 5.3 ± 0.5 kg) from 2 to 65 days of age were assigned to 3 starter feeds: 1) with no fiber source [NF, 16.3 % neutral detergent fiber (NDF), 48.7% starch], 2) containing 7 % wheat straw (WS, 20.5 % NDF, 43.7% starch), and 3) containing 15 % beet pulp (BP, 19.7 % NDF, 39.1 % starch). Lambs were free to suckle their dams until d 30 and were then pair-housed and allowed to suckle at night until weaning on d 45 of age. Lambs had free access to starter creep feeds during pre- and postweaning periods. The results showed that offering both fiber sources improved starter intake by 15%. Feeding BP decreased total tract dry matter (DM) digestibility from 77.6 to 70.1%, but NDF digestibility was similar across the treatments. Postweaning body weight (27.5 kg), average daily gain (341 g/d), and postweaning feed efficiency (0.41) were not affected by the treatments. Further, dietary treatments did not affect serum concentrations of cholesterol, total protein, albumin, and globulin, but WS inclusion increased triacylglycerol, glucose, and beta-hydroxybutyrate concentrations. Eating (221 vs. 174 min) and ruminating (383 vs. 278 min) activities were also greater in lambs on WS as compared with lambs on NF or BP. These results indicated that decreasing starch content in the starter with the inclusion of a fiber source, in particular WS, did not negatively affect the growth performance, but appeared to be associated with better chewing activity and rumen metabolic development.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

  • Alcock, D., 2006. Creep feeding lambs. Prime facts: Profitable and sustainable primary industries. 224: 1-4. www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/primefacts database. Accessed 11 May 2016.
  • Allen, M.S., 2000. Effects of diet on short-term regulation of feed intake by lactating dairy cattle. Journal of Dairy Science 83, 1598–1624.
  • AOAC, 1990. Official Methods of Analysis. 15th Ed. Association of Official Analytical Chemists, Arlington, VA, USA.
  • Baldwin, R.L., 1999. The proliferative actions of insulin, insulin-like growth factor-I, epidermal growth factor, butyrate and propionate on ruminal epithelial cells in vitro. Small Ruminant Research 32, 261–268.
  • Broderick, G.A., Clayton, M.K., 1997. A statistical evaluation of animal and nutritional factors influencing concentrations of milk urea nitrogen. Journal of Dairy Science 80, 2964–2971.
  • Castells, L., Bach, A., Araujo, G., Montoro, C., Terré M., 2012. Effect of different forage sources on performance and feeding behavior of Holstein calves. Journal of Dairy Science 95, 286–293.
  • Cavini, S., Iraira, S., Siurana, A., Foskolos, A., Ferret, A., Calsamiglia, S., 2015. Effect of sodium butyrate administered in the concentrate on rumen development and productive performance of lambs in intensive production system during the suckling and the fattening periods. Small Ruminant Research 123, 212-217.
  • Dennis, T.S., Suarez-Mena, F.X., Hill, T.M., Quigley, J.D., Schlotterbeck, R.L., Lascano, G.J., 2018. Effect of replacing corn with beet pulp in a high concentrate diet fed to weaned Holstein calves on diet digestibility and growth. Journal of Dairy Science 101, 408-412.
  • Drackley, J.K., 2008. Calf nutrition from birth to breeding. Veterinary Clinics of North America: Food Animal Practice 24, 55–86.
  • Firkins, J.L., 1997. Effects of feeding non-forage fiber sources on site of fiber digestion. Journal of Dairy Science 80, 1426–1437.
  • Giger-Reverdin, S., 2018. Recent advances in the understanding of subacute ruminal acidosis (SARA) in goats, with focus on the link to feeding behaviour. Small Ruminant Research 163, 24-28.
  • Kalscheur, K.F., 2017. Replacing starch with non-forage fiber sources in dairy cow diets. Penn State Dairy Cattle Nutrition Workshop. Penn State Extension. Grantville, Pennsylvania, US.
  • Kay, M., Fell, B.F., Boyne, R., 1969. The relationship between the acidity of the rumen contents and rumenitis in calves fed barley. Research in Veterinary Science 10, 181–187.
  • Khan, M.A., Lee, H.J., Lee, W.S., Kim, H.S., Kim, S.B., Park, S.B., Baek, K.S., Ha, J.K., Choi, Y.J., 2008. Starch source evaluation in calf starter: II. Ruminal parameters, rumen development, nutrient digestibilities, and nitrogen utilization in Holstein calves. Journal of Dairy Science 91, 1140-1149.
  • Khan, M.A., Bach, A., Weary, D.M., von Keyserlingk, M.A.G., 2016. Invited review: Transitioning from milk to solid feed in dairy heifers. Journal of Dairy Science 99, 1–18.
  • Kononoff, P.J., 2005. Understanding effective fiber in rations for dairy cattle. University of Nebraska–Lincoln and the United States Department of Agriculture.
  • Liu, T., Li, F., Wang, W., Yue, X., Li, F., Li, C., Pan, X., Mo, F., Wang, F., La, Y., Li, B., 2016. Effects of lamb early starter feeding on the expression of genes involved in volatile fatty acid transport and pH regulation in rumen tissue. Animal Feed Science and Technology 217, 27-35.
  • Maktabi, H., Ghasemi, E., Khorvash, M., 2016. Effects of substituting grain with forage or non forage fiber source on growth performance, rumen fermentation, and chewing activity of dairy calves. Animal Feed Science and Technology 221, 70-78.
  • Mojahedi, S., Khorvash, M., Ghorbani, G.R., Ghasemi, E., Mirzaei, M., Hashemzadeh-Cigari, F., 2018. Performance, nutritional behavior, and metabolic responses of calves supplemented with forage depend on starch fermentability. Journal of Dairy Science 101, 7061-7072.
  • Norouzian, M.A., Valizadeh, R., Vahmani, P., 2011. Rumen development and growth of Balouchi lambs offered alfalfa hay pre-and post-weaning. Tropical Animal Health and Production 43, 1169-1174.
  • Oba, M., Allen, M.S., 2003. Intraruminal infusion of propionate alters feeding behavior and decreases energy intake of lactating dairy cows. Journal of Nutrition 133, 1094–1099.
  • Quigley, J.D., Caldwell, L.A., Sinks, G.D., Heitmann, RN., 1991. Changes in blood glucose, nonesterified fatty acids, and ketones in response to weaning and feed intake in young calves. Journal of Dairy Science 74, 250-257.
  • Soltani, M., Kazemi-Bonchenari, M., Khaltabadi-Farahani, A.H., Afsarian, O., 2017. Interaction of forage provision (alfalfa hay) and sodium butyrate supplementation on performance, structural growth, blood metabolites and rumen fermentation characteristics of lambs during pre-weaning period. Animal Feed Science and Technology 230, 77-86.
  • Terré, M., Pedrals, E., Dalmau, A., Bach, A., 2013. What do preweaned and weaned calves need in the diet: A high fiber content or a forage source? Journal of Dairy Science 96, 5217-5225.
  • Van Keulen, V., Young, B.H., 1977. Evaluation of acid-insoluble ash as natural marker in ruminant digestibility studies. Journal of Animal Science 26, 119–135.
  • Van Soest, P.J., 1994. Nutritional Ecology of the Ruminant. 2nd edn., Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, pp. 476.
  • Van Soest, P.J., Robertson, J.B., Lewis, B.A., 1991. Methods for dietary fiber, neutral detergent fiber, and nonstarch polysaccharides in relation to animal nutrition. Journal of Dairy Science 74, 3583–3597.
  • Vranić, M., Grbeša, D., Bošnjak, K., Mašek, T., Jareš, D., 2017. Intake and digestibility of sheep-fed alfalfa haylage supplemented with corn. Canadian Journal of Animal Science 98, 135-143.
  • Yáñez-Ruiz, D.R., Abecia, L., Newbold, C.J., 2015. Manipulating rumen microbiome and fermentation through interventions during early life: a review. Frontiers in Microbiology 6, 1133.
Journal of Livestock Science and Technologies
Volume 7, Issue 2
December 2019
Pages 1-7

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics