Effects of Age, Energy Sources and Non-Protein Nitrogen on Feed Intake, Nutrient Digestibility and Nitrogen Retention in Saanen Crossbred Goats
Effects of Age, Energy Sources and Non-Protein Nitrogen on Feed Intake, Nutrient Digestibility and Nitrogen Retention in Saanen Crossbred Goats
Ho Xuan Nghiep1,2, Nguyen Binh Truong1,2*
ABSTRACT
This experiment aimed to evaluate the influence of age, energy sources and urea on feed intake, nutrient digestibility and nitrogen retention in Saanen crossbred goats. This study employed a 2×(4×4) Latin square design. The first factor was months (5 to 8 and 9 to 12 months), the second factor was an energy source (maize and broken rice), and the third factor was with or without urea. The basic diet consisted of cassava chips, tofu waste, premix, Operculina turpethum vines, and fresh elephant grass ad libitum. It was found that dry matter (DM) consumption of goats at 5-8 months was higher (P<0.05) than at 9-12 months; DM intake was lower (P>0.05) for maize compared to broken rice while with or without urea was not affected (P>0.05) to DM intake. Crude protein (CP) intake was lower (P<0.05) in goats aged 9-12 months than in those aged 5-8 months. No significant difference (P>0.05) was observed between maize and broken rice, but CP intake was higher with urea supplementation (P>0.05) than without. The organic matter (OM) digestibility (%) of goats at 9-12 months was higher (P<0.05) than at 5-8 months. However, there was no significant difference (P>0.05) between maize and broken rice as energy sources and the OM digestibility tended to be higher (P>0.05) with urea than without. CP digestibility (%) significantly differed between diets with and without urea in this study. However, there were no significant differences (P>0.05) in months and energy sources. Nitrogen retention was lower (P<0.05) without urea and higher with urea. The maize and broken rice were not different (P>0.05) for nitrogen retention. However, nitrogen retention in 5 to 8 months was higher than in 9 to 12 months. No significant interactions were observed between age, energy source, and urea supplementation (P>0.05), but the urine significantly differed from the interaction of energy source and NPN. Therefore, broken rice and urea supplementation were optimal for the goats’ diet. The goat from 9 to 12 months had more nutrient digestibility than the 5-8 months. The interaction of the energy source and NPN was statistically different in the urine.
Keywords | Small ruminant, Energy feed, Nutrient digestibility, Weight gain, Interaction, NPN
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May 2025
Adv. Anim. Vet. Sci., Vol. 13, Iss. 5,
