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Intake and digestibility by sheep of artificially dried forages in several physical forms

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

J. A. Milne  and
R. C. Campling
J. A. Milne
Affiliation:
Wye College (University of London), Ashford, Kent
R. C. Campling
Affiliation:
Wye College (University of London), Ashford, Kent
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Summary

In three experiments high quality, autumn-harvested dried Italian ryegrass and lucerne in the form of cobs and pellets and in one of these experiments in the chopped form were offered to mature castrated male sheep at a maintenance level of feeding. Only small differences were found between the physical forms of forage in digestibility of organic matter, retention of nitrogen and loss of energy in the urine, but the digestibility of crude fibre and the mean retention time of stained feed in the gut decreased with decreasing particle size. Increasing the level of feeding of cobs and of pellets from 800 g daily by three equal increments of 400 g caused a linear decline in digestibility but no difference was found between cobs and pellets in the rate of decline of digestibility. In three experiments the dried forages were offered ad libitum and in a fourth experiment a wide range of particle size was simulated by offering ad libitum five ratios of chopped and pelleted grass. Voluntary intake tended to increase as the particle size was reduced over the whole range, but there was no significant difference between the voluntary intakes of mixtures with a modulus of fineness of 4·4 or less. No difference was detected between the voluntary intake of cobs and pellets.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 78 , Issue 1 , February 1972 , pp. 79 - 86
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1972

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