Urea can replace soybean meal in sheep diet without alter intake, digestibility and ruminal parameters
International Journal of Development Research
Urea can replace soybean meal in sheep diet without alter intake, digestibility and ruminal parameters
Received 28th August, 2020; Received in revised form 29th September, 2020; Accepted 14th October, 2020; Published online 30th November, 2020
Copyright © 2020, Armando Pereira Grell et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
This study aimed to evaluate the replacement of soybean meal by urea on ruminal parameters, nutrient intake and digestibility in sheep fed with spineless cactus based diets. Four rumen fistulated sheep, non-emasculated, without defined breed were used. Samples were collected for determination of nutrient intake and digestibility.Ruminal fermentation pattern was determinatethrough the collection of ruminal liquid immediately prior to feeding and at 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, and 22 h post-feedingfor determination of pH, ammoniacal nitrogen (N-NH3) and short-chain fatty acids (SCFA). The replacement of soybean meal by urea did not influence the intakes of dry matter, crude protein, ether extract, organic matter, mineral matter, total carbohydrates, non-fibrous carbohydrates and neutral detergent fiber. The replacement of soybean meal by urea did not influence the apparent digestibility coefficients of dry matter, crude protein, ether extract, neutral detergent fiber, total carbohydrates and non-fibrous carbohydrates. Ruminal parameters evaluateddid not influence the levels of urea replacement by soybean meal on any of the observed variables. Urea can replace soybean meal up to 24.0 g/kg in the diet of sheep fed on spineless cactus based diets without altering intake, nutrient digestibility and ruminal parameters.
