Growth performance and nutrients digestibility of yankasa sheep fed sugarcane waste silage

Abstract

A Feeding trial was conducted for twelve weeks (eighty four days) to assess the performance of Yankasa sheep fed ensiled sugarcane waste (ESCW) enhanced with non – protein nitrogen (urea and poultry litter) sources and soybean meal. Sixteen (16) Yankasa rams (mean body weight 25kg±0.46; aged 8 to 15 months) were randomly allotted to the treatments groups viz; T1 (100% SCW plus urea, unensiled) as control, T2 (100% SCW plus urea, ensiled), T3 (75%SCW plus 25% SBM, ensiled) and T4 (75% SCW plus 25% PL, ensiled) with four animals per treatment in a randomised complete block design (RCBD). The experimental diets were offered as basal diet along with clean drinking water and mineral salt lick ad-libitum, while a concentrate diet was formulated containing 16.26% CP and offered at 1.5% body weight to each of the experimental animals. The results obtained indicated non significant (P>0.05) differences in the treatment means of all the growth parameters evaluated however, all the values obtained for T3 and T4 were numerically higher. The digestibility of DM, CF and NFE showed that T3 and T4 gave significantly (P<0.05) higher values. In conclusion ensilage of SCW with urea, soybean meal and poultry litter enhanced its utilization by Yankasa rams, since all the animals in all the treatments gained weight. It is therefore recommended that SCW could be enhanced and ensiled with either urea (4% : 100% SCW), SBM (25% : 75% SCW) or PL (25%:75% SCW) for dry season sheep feeding.

Keywords digestibility, sugarcane waste, non-protein nitrogen, Yankasa sheep