• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.15 no.12
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• pp.1719-1724
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• 2002

An investigation was made to evaluate the native range of western India in terms of nutrient supply during different physiological stages in goats. One hundred female and 5 male Kutchi adult goats were grazed on a 35 ha plot of native range. They were maintained on sole grazing. Four experiments, one in a defined physiological stage was carried out. Stage I, when maximum number of females were bred; stage II, when bucks were used for breeding purpose; stage III, 3-months old (weaner) kids were allowed to graze on ranges and stage IV, when the goats were in early stage of lactation. During oestrous period, diet contained 15.2% crude protein (CP), 54.0% neutral detergent fibre (NDF), 31.5% acid detergent fibre (ADF) and 12.6% acid detergent lignin (ADL). Digestibility coefficient of dry matter (DM), CP, NDF and ADF was 0.586,0.531, 0.431 and 0.239, respectively. DM, digestible crude protein (DCP) and metabolizable energy (ME) intakes were $82.7,\;6.71g\;kg^{-1}\;W^{0.75}$ and $0.99MJ\;kg^{-1}\;W^{0.75}$. Diet of buck was constituted by $230g\;kg^{-1}$ DM of grasses and forb and $770g\;kg^{-1}$ DM of tree foliage. CP, NDF, ADF and ADL contents of the diet were 13.6, 57.8, 43.5 and 20.0%, respectively. DM, DCP and ME intakes were $57.9,\;4.13g\;kg^{-1}\;W^{0.75}$ and $0.82MJ\;kg^{-1}\;W^{0.75}$. Digestibility coefficient of CP, NDF and ADF were 0.496, 0.432 and 0.346, respectively. Diet of kids was constituted by Prosopis cineraria ($900g\;kg^{-1}DM$) and Zizyphus nummularia ($100g\;kg^{-1}DM$) leaves. Digestibility of CP, NDF and ADF were 0.456, 0.415 and 0.201, respectively. DM, DCP and ME intakes were $85.8,\;6.44g\;kg^{-1}\;W^{0.75}$ and $1.22MJ\;kg^{-1}\;W^{0.75}$. Lactation phase of goat fell between October-December and tree foliage formed the major portion of the diet. Diet of lactating goat contained only 6.8% CP and 16.5% ADL. Digestibility of DM, CP, NDF and ADF was 0.567, 0.221, 0.307 and 0.233, respectively. DM, DCP and ME intakes were $108.2,\;1.62g\;kg^{-1}\;W^{0.75}$ and $1.50MJ\;kg^{-1}\;W^{0.75}$, respectively. Present study establishes that goats on semiarid range with sufficient number of fodder trees were able to meet the nutrient requirement of ewes during oestrous and bucks during breeding season. However, during lactation and active growth phase, only DM requirement is met. Thus, it is recommended to supplement concentrate mixture to goats grazing on range during lactation and growth phase.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.646-653
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• 2013

Four crossbred Sindhi heifers with an average body weight (BW) of 135 kg and a mean age of 17 months were used to investigate the effect of feeding different combinations of rice straw and ensiled water hyacinth (EWH) supplemented with a source of protein in the form of cottonseed cake (CSC) on intake and digestibility. Four treatments consisting of graded levels of EWH were arranged in a $4{\times}4$ Latin square. The levels of EWH were set at: 0 (EWH0), 15 (EWH15), 30 (EWH30), and 45% (EWH45) of an expected total dietary dry matter (DM) intake of 30 g total DM per kg BW per day. Rice straw was offered ad libitum, while CSC was given at a fixed level of 5 g DM/kg body weight (BW). Voluntary intake and digestibility were measured consecutively in the 4 experimental periods which each lasted 28 days. The crude protein (CP) content of EWH, rice straw and CSC were 174, 53 and 370 g/kg DM, respectively. Rice straw had the highest neutral detergent fibre (NDFom) content (666 g/kg DM), followed by EWH (503 g/kg DM) and the lowest content was 418 g/kg DM in the CSC. The actual EWH contents in the consumed diets were 0, 17, 32 and 52% for EWH0, EWH15, EWH30 and EWH45, respectively. Rice straw intake decreased with level of EWH offered from 3049 for EWH0 to 1014 g/day for EWH45. Crude protein intake was 16, 25 and 33% higher (p<0.001) in EWH15, EWH30 and EWH45 treatments, respectively, as compared to EWH0. Digestibility of organic matter (OM), CP, NDFom and acid detergent fibre (ADFom) increased with increasing level of EWH offered. The highest OM digestibility (72.2%) was found for treatment EWH45 and the lowest (47.4%) for treatment EWH0. In spite of similar dietary CP contents, CP digestibility increased by 21 (EWH15), 31 (EWH30) and 40% (EWH45) with increasing level of EWH in comparison with treatment EWH0. It is concluded that increasing level of EWH in cattle diets considerably improved CP intake and digestibility of nutrients.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.26 no.10
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• pp.1446-1458
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• 2013

The study assessed the effect of dietary supplementation of leaf meal mixture (LMM) containing condensed tannins (CT) on feed intake, nutrient utilization and performance of sheep infected with Haemonchus contortus. Eighteen adult sheep of similar age and body weight ($25.03{\pm}1.52$) were included in this study and out of these, 12 sheep were infected with single dose of infective third stage larvae of H. contortus at 2,000 larvae per sheep. The experimental sheep were allocated in three different groups' i.e. negative control (NC; no infection), control (C; H. contortus infected) and treatment (T; H. contortus infected+CT at 1.5% of the DM through LMM) and the experiment was conducted for a period of 90 d. The intake of dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM) and digestibility of DM, OM, neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and acid detergent fibre (ADF) were comparable among three animal groups. However, digestibility of crude protein (CP) and ether extract (EE) were significantly (p<0.05) higher in NC group as compared to both C and T groups. Nitrogen (N) retention (g/d or % of N intake) was significantly (p = 0.038) lower in C group as compared to T and NC groups. Daily intake (g/kg $W^{0.75}$) of digestible crude protein (DCP), digestible organic matter (DOM) and total digestible nutrient (TDN) did not differ significantly (p<0.05) in the three groups. Haemoglobin (Hb) and packed cell volume (PCV) were significantly (p<0.001) higher in treatment group as compared to control. The level of Hb and PCV reduced (p<0.001) after 30 days of experimental feeding. CT significantly (p<0.001) reduced serum urea in T group as compared to NC and C groups. Serum proteins differed significantly (p<0.01) among the three groups. The activity of serum enzymes AST, ALT, ALP and LDH were also statistically non significant (p<0.05) among treatments. The weight of abomasal lymph nodes (ALN) in T group was higher (p<0.05) than in C group. Treatment group had lower (p<0.05) total worms and fecal egg count compared to control group. It may be concluded that dietary supplementation of CT through LMM significantly improved the N retention, and inhibited the different developmental stages of Haemonchus contortus in experimental sheep.

• Journal of the Korean Professional Engineers Association
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.28-39
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• 1984

Experiments were carried out for the development of a processing method of soybean into full-fat or defatted flour, using two varieties of soybean (kwangkyo produced in Korea and Bragg produced in India) Samples were subjected to dry dehulling, size reduction and wet heat treatment processes to make soybean flours. The quality of soybean flours were evaluated, and the results obtained were summarized as follows. 1. Crude fiber content of dehulled soybean was under 3.0% which indicated satisfactory dehulling, and there was no significant difference in crude fibre content between two varieties. 2. When dehulled soybean was cracked into soy grits by a hammer mill, 98.71∼98.86％ of the soy grit was in the range of 10∼18 mesh which was the optimum size of particle for quick and uniform penetration of heat into the intra-particle air spaces. 3. Moisture content of soy flour after steam treatment at 15 psig for 5 to 30 min was only 0.29∼1.68% which did not hinder the next milling operation. 4. From the color analysis of soy flours, it was observed that the dominant wavelength for all the samples are in a very narrow range from 575 to 581 nm and the color variation was from yellow to yellowish orange. Twenty to twenty five ％ higher reflectance was observed in the defatted flours than full fat flours. The ％ chroma of the defatted flour slightly increased as the duration of steaming of soy grits increased, whereas that of the full-fat flour did not. 5. The protein extractability in the defatted flour at pH 7.6 showed progressive decrease in solubility from 48.40％ (Bragg), 75.20％ (kwangkyo) for untreated flours to 9.75％ (Bragg), 26.27％ (kwangkyo) for 30 min steaming. But Kwangkyo variety showed twice higher protein extractability than Bragg variety.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.12 no.7
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• pp.1049-1053
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• 1999

Chopped wheat straw (0.5-1.5 cm) was subjected to different treatment combinations in a $5{\times}4$ factorial arrangement involving the five levels of urea (0, 2, 3, 4 and 5%, w/w) and four levels of lime (0, 2, 4 and 6%, w/w) at 50% moisture and kept for 3 wk reaction period at about $35{^{\circ}C}$ in laboratory. Treated wheat straw samples were analyzed to study the associative effect of urea and lime on chemical composition, in sacco and in vitro digestibilities. Results showed that cell wall constituents (CWC) solubilized significantly (p<0.01) due to urea and lime treatment on one hand and substantially increase the crude protein (CP) on the other in wheat straw. The main effect on synergism of both chemicals was noticed on organic matter (OM), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), hemicellulose (HC), acid detergent lignin (ADL) and silica by solubilising their contents as a result of considerable increase in cell contents in treated wheat straw. The respective decreases were 5.45, 13.0, 37.23, 44.95 and 26.16% in different treatment combinations. The most interesting feature of the treatment was evident by increase in ash content on each level of lime application. CP content increase up to 12.78% due to urea treatment in comparison with untreated wheat straw (2.56%). The effect of solubilization of structural carbohydrates and increased crude protein due to synergistic effect of urea and lime were clearly seen on improved digestibility of OM and DM. The increase in ISOMD, ISDMD, and IVDMD were 21.67, 21.67, 16.24, and 17.5 units. The increase in digestibility were relative to additions of both chemicals and digestibility values increased with increasing levels of urea plus lime concentration in different treatment combination. The maximum improvement was noticed at 4% urea and 4% lime levels at 50% moisture for 3 wk reaction period in treated wheat straw.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.209-214
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• 1999

Grazing preference, voluntary dry matter intake, stocking rate and digestibility of forage were investigated or sheep grazed in mature oil palm plantations in Malaysia. Dry matter intake (DMI) was estimated using the chromium sesquioxide marker method. The sheep were allowed to graze about 5 hours/day in oil palm plantations of age ranging from 9 to 21 years old. The crude protein, crude fibre and ash contents of selected herbage were 13.1 %; 24.6 %; and 8.3 %, respectively, while the gross energy (GE) and the metabolisable energy (ME) were 16.9 and 6.0 MJ/kg DM, respectively. Broad leaf plants and grasses were normally found in plantation of all ages. Legumes and oil palm seedlings formed the smallest group in the whole mixture. Fern content increased in older plantations. Legumes, oil palm seedlings, fern, broad leaves and grasses were 0.4, 1.3, 11.4, 28.0 and 59.0 %, respectively of total herbage. Grasses showed the highest preference index followed by broad leaf plants, legumes, oil palm seedlings and ferns in that order. The DMI and the metabolisable energy intake (MEI) of sheep at 6, 8, 10, 12 and 14 months of age were 64.8, 65.0, 65.3, 65.6 and 67.4 g/kg $W^{0.75}$ (p<0.05) and 0.39, 0.40, 0.40, 0.40 and 0.41 MJ/kg $W^{0.75}$, respectively. The average stocking rate was 4.3 sheep/ha. It was concluded that the performance of the sheep could be improved by increasing the daily grazing period and also by appropriate concentrate supplementation.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.637-647
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• 2019

Objective: The study aimed at quantifying seasonal and spatial variations in availability and nutritive value of herbaceous vegetation on native pastures and supplement feedstuffs for domestic ruminants in Western Kenya. Methods: Samples of herbaceous pasture vegetation (n = 75) and local supplement feedstuffs (n = 46) for cattle, sheep, and goats were collected in 20 villages of three geographic zones (Highlands, Mid-slopes, Lowlands) in Lower Nyando, Western Kenya, over four seasons of one year. Concentrations of dry matter (DM), crude ash (CA), ether extract (EE), crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), gross energy (GE), and minerals were determined. Apparent total tract organic matter digestibility (dOM) was estimated from in vitro gas production and proximate nutrient concentrations or chemical composition alone using published prediction equations. Results: Nutrient, energy, and mineral concentrations were 52 to 168 g CA, 367 to 741 g NDF, 32 to 140 g CP, 6 to 45 g EE, 14.5 to 18.8 MJ GE, 7.0 to 54.2 g potassium, 0.01 to 0.47 g sodium, 136 to 1825 mg iron, and 0.07 to 0.52 mg selenium/kg DM. The dOM was 416 to 650 g/kg organic matter but differed depending on the estimation method. Nutritive value of pasture herbage was superior to most supplement feedstuffs, but its value strongly declined in the driest season. Biomass yields and concentrations of CP and potassium in pasture herbage were highest in the Highlands amongst the three zones. Conclusion: Availability and nutritive value of pasture herbage and supplement feedstuffs greatly vary between seasons and geographical zones, suggesting need for season- and region-specific feeding strategies. Local supplement feedstuffs partly compensate for nutritional deficiencies. However, equations to accurately predict dOM and improved knowledge on nutritional characteristics of tropical ruminant feedstuffs are needed to enhance livestock production in this and similar environments.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.522-527
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• 2002

The experiment was conducted for a period of 56 days with twelve Bangladeshi bull calves of average body weight of $127.20{\pm}11.34$ kg. The calves were divided into 3 groups having 4 animals in each. The animals were fed urea-treated rice straw designated as A) 4% urea-treated rice straw, B) 4% urea+4% soybean-treated rice straw and C) 4% urea+6% soybean-treated rice straw. In addition, all the animals were supplied 2 kg green grass, 350 g Til-oil-cake and 100 g common salt per 100 kg body weight of animals. Straw was treated with 4% urea solution and soybean meal at 4 and 6% were added to treated straw and kept for 48 h in double layer polythene bags under anaerobic condition. Urea treatment improved crude protein (CP) content of rice straw from 2.68 to 8.70% and it was further increased by 10.74 and 12.12% with the addition of 4 and 6% soybean meal. Dry matter (DM) intake (kg) was higher (p<0.05) in C (4.2) followed by B (4.1) and A (4.0). Crude protein intake was significantly higher (p<0.05) in group B and C than group A. Total live weight gains were 20.2, 24.8 and 25.6 kg for calves of group A, B and C respectively (p<0.01). The addition of soybean meal to treated rice straw did not affect the coefficients of digestibility of DM, OM, EE and NFE. However, CP and CF digestibility were significantly higher in group B and C (p<0.05). The values for digestible crude protein (DCP), digestible ether extract (DEE), digestible nitrogen free extract (DNFE) and total digestible nutrients (TDN) were significantly (p<0.05) higher in diet C and B in comparison to diet A, but there were no significant difference in digestible organic matter (DOM) and digestible crude fibre (DCF) value among the groups. It may be concluded that 4% urea treated rice straw can be fed to growing bull calves with 2 kg green grass and a small quantity of concentrate without any adverse effect on feed intake and growth. Moreover, soybean meal at 4 and 6% can be added to urea treated rice straw at the time of treatment for rapid hydrolyzing of urea, which resulted an improvement in nutrient digestibility and better utilization of rice straw for growth of growing bull calves.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.24 no.7
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• pp.946-951
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• 2011

The study was conducted to evaluate enzose (corn dextrose), a corn milling byproduct, as substitute for corn grain as energy in growing lambs. Five iso-caloric and iso-nitrogenous diets were formulated. The control diet (E0) had no enzose whereas enzose replaced 20, 40, 60 and 80% corn grain in E20, E40, E60 and E80 diets on the basis of energy supply, respectively. Fifty growing lambs were divided into 5 groups, 10 animals in each, in a randomized complete block design. Nutrients (dry matter, crude protein, neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fibre) intake and digestibilities increased with gradual replacement of corn grain by enzose. Lambs fed E80 diet also retained higher nitrogen (N) than those fed E0 diet. Plasma glucose, $T_3$ and $T_4$ increased while urea N decreased in lambs receiving higher enzose content. Maximum weight gain was recorded in lambs fed diets containing maximum concentration of E as a replacement for corn grains. A better feed conversion ratio was recorded in lambs fed E80 compared with those fed E0 diet. The study suggests that enzose can be used as an economical feed ingredient to replace corn grain upto 80%, without any adverse effects on growth performance of growing lambs.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.58-63
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• 2015

An experimental rearing of tropical tasar silkworm, Antheraea mylitta Drury was conducted to study silkworm-food plant-interaction and thereby to search for an alternate silkworm food plant. The silkworm-food-plant-interaction was studied with six different food plant species viz. Terminalia tomentosa, Terminalia arjuna, Terminalia belerica, Terminalia chebula of Combretaceae family and Lagerstroemia speciosa, Lagerstroemia parviflora of Lythraceae family. The rearing performance of silkworm on Lagerstroemia speciosa in terms of cocoons per DFL and silk ratio was found comparable with Terminalia tomentosa and Termonalia arjuna, the primary tasar silkworm food plant species. These three plant species also possessed better results in terms of physiological (leaf moisture content and net photosynthesis rate) and biochemical (Chlorophyll, protein, carbohydrate and crude fibre contents) characteristics to support silkworm rearing than Terminalia belerica, Terminalia chebula and Lagerstroemia parviflora. The correlation study between silkworm rearing performance and food plant's constituents indicates commercial perspective of Lagerstroemia speciosa as an alternate food plant for tasar silkworm rearing.