OVERCOMING THE NUTRITIONAL LIMITATIONS OF RICE STRAW FOR RUMINANTS 2. RESPONSE OF GROWING SAHIWAL AND LOCAL CROSS HEIFERS TO UREA UPGRADED AND UREA SUPPLEMENTED STRAW

Thirty-six heifers of three different breeds were fed rice straw, either upgraded with 4% urea, or supplemented with 2% urea, sprayed on the straw just prior to feeding. The effects on liveweight gain and dry matter intake were measured for pure Sahiwal heifers, Sahiwal ${\times}$ local crosses and Jersey ${\times}$ local crosses. Urea upgraded straw gave better growth than urea supplemented straw, average 217 g/day/ animal versus 71 g/day/animal. This was associated with a higher intake of upgraded straw, compared to supplementation straw (2.4 versus 1.8 kg/100 kg BW). No overall breed effect on growth was found (P>0.05).