Cassava dreg as replacement of corn in goat kid diets

Kidney changes in lambs fed cactus pear varieties resistant to Dactylopius opuntiae as the only roughage

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of four varieties of cactus pear resistant to carmine cochineal as exclusive roughage for lambs on the biochemical, histopathological, and histomorphometric parameters of kidneys. Twenty-four castrated male crossbred lambs at eight months of age and an initial body weight of 21.0 ± 0.5 kg were distributed in a completely randomized design, with four treatments and six repetitions. The experimental treatments consisted of four diets containing Miúda cactus pear, IPA-Sertânia cactus pear, IPA-F21 cactus pear, or Orelha de Elefante Mexicana (OEM) cactus pear as the only roughage. Blood samples were collected every two weeks (14 d, 28 d, 42 d, and 56 d) to quantify serum urea and creatinine levels. After 72 days of the introduction of the tested diets, the animals were slaughtered and fragments of the kidneys were collected for histological analysis. The serum urea level was higher in animals fed a diet based on the Miúda variety (49.38 mg dL^-1), and the serum creatinine levels were lower in the last two collections (P = 0.009). The most frequent histopathological findings in the kidneys were calcification, congestion, glomerular atrophy, presence of luminal cellular debris, and nephrosis, regardless of the cactus pear variety. The Miúda cactus pear and OEM cactus pear varieties caused more severe damage to the nephron components, while the varieties IPA F-21 and IPA-Sertânia caused less significant injuries. The use of IPA-Sertânia and IPA F-21 cactus pear varieties is suggested in lamb's diets, due to the lower impact on the renal parenchyma. However, there was no expressive impairment of renal function, and there was no difference between the cactus pear varieties tested in this study on the weight gain of the animals, and they can all be used to feed feedlot sheep.

Energy sources in diets for lambs in confinement

ContextThe use of alternative sources in ruminant feeding features advantages such as diminished dependence on traditional cereals that can be used for human consumption or monogastric animals.AimsThis study was conducted to examine nutrient intake, apparent digestibility, mean growth rate, nitrogen balance, and microbial protein synthesis in lambs fed diets containing different energy sources in the concentrate.MethodsThe experiment involved five uncastrated Santa Inês lambs, with an initial BW of 22.85±1.0kg, which were allocated individual metabolic cages and randomly assigned to one of the following five experimental treatments: maize (MA), wheat bran (WB), sorghum (SO), mesquite pod meal (MP) and peach palm meal (PP) in a 5×5 Latin square design, with five replicates each. Diets were isoenergetic with a roughage:concentrate ratio of 60:40.Key resultsThe energy sources in the concentrate influenced (P<0.0001) the intakes of DM and nutritional components. The apparent digestibility coefficients of the ether extract and NDFap were significantly (P<0.05) different between WB and the other diets. The different energy sources in the concentrate (MA, WB, SO and MP) increased (P<0.0001) the mean growth rate of the lambs. The diet containing PP as an energy source provided a smaller (P=0.0002) N intake than that from any other diet, and the PP diet resulted in a negative N balance (P=0.0200). Lambs fed with diets containing MP (80.38g day−1) as an energy source showed a larger (P=0.0007) microbial protein synthesis than did those fed with PP (24.47g day−1).ConclusionsWheat bran, sorghum, and mesquite pod meal can completely replace maize for lambs fed diets based on 270gkg−1 of maize.ImplicationsA variety of unusual feed ingredients facilitates the raising of lambs in various regions, with ingredients being local and of the lowest cost, promoting benefits to sheep producers.