Effects of Partial Replacement of Conventional with Alternative Feeds on Nutrient Intake, Digestibility, Milk Yield and Composition of Awassi Ewes and Lambs

Abstract

Simple SummaryAlternative feeds have been used to feed animals for decades by replacing traditional feeds to increase the profit of raising livestock. In this study, alternative feeds (dried distillers grains with solubles, carob pods, olive cake, and bread by-product) were fed to Awassi ewes and ewe lambs at 0, 200, and 400 g/kg. Chemical composition was similar among diets. Feed intake, body weight change, and milk yield did not differ among diets. Cost of milk production decreased in alternative feeds containing diets, with no negative effect on health, welfare, and productivity.AbstractTwo experiments were done to assess the effects of alternative feeds (AF; dried distillers grains with solubles, carob pods, olive cake, and bread by-product) on lactating performance of ewes and digestibility and nitrogen (N) retention of lambs. Diets were: no AF (CON); 200 g/kg AF (AF200); and 400 g/kg AF (AF400). In Experiment 1, 27 Awassi ewes were randomly distributed into three groups, and each was fed one of the diets described before (9 ewes/diet). Evaluation of milk composition and yield was performed at the beginning of the experiment and on days 18, 36, and 54. In Experiment 2, 18 Awassi lambs were allocated to the same diets (6 ewe lambs/diet) during a 21-day trial (14 days housed individually in shaded pens and 7 days in metabolic cages). In Experiment 1, no differences in body weight (BW) of the ewes and their lambs were detected. With the exception of neutral detergent fiber intake, which was lower in the AF-containing diets compared with CON, dry matter, crude protein, and acid detergent fiber intake were not affected by dietary treatment. Milk yield and composition was comparable among diets, and the cost of milk production was lower in AF compared to CON diet. In Experiment 2, nutrient digestibility and N retention were not affected by the diet. Results showed the possibility of including different AF in ewe and lamb diets to mitigate production cost without negatively affecting intake, milk yield, and composition, digestibility, and animal welfare and health.

Lactation performance of Awassi ewes fed diets containing either Atriplex halimus L. or olive cake

“…In agreement with previous studies dealing with alternative feedstuffs (Obeidat 2018(Obeidat , 2020Aloueedat et al 2019;Hatamleh and Obeidat 2019), the cost of diets diminished by 20 and 24% in the OC and ATR diets, respectively, compared to the CON diet. These findings could be due to the fact that the cost of alternative feeds is cheaper than that of conventional feeds.…”

The Inclusion of Black Cumin Meal Improves Growth Performance of Growing Awassi Lambs

“…Therefore, this critical period requires a well-balanced diet, which in general is considered very costly. To solve this problem, livestock producers have started to depend on alternative feeds as part of the diet [14], due to their price and good availability [15]. Consistent with the current study, no health problems were observed in other studies conducted in our laboratory using different alternative feeds (sesame meal, olive cake, bread by-products, dried distillers' grains with solubles, carob pods, Atriplex halimus L.) [14][15][16][17].…”

“…To solve this problem, livestock producers have started to depend on alternative feeds as part of the diet [14], due to their price and good availability [15]. Consistent with the current study, no health problems were observed in other studies conducted in our laboratory using different alternative feeds (sesame meal, olive cake, bread by-products, dried distillers' grains with solubles, carob pods, Atriplex halimus L.) [14][15][16][17]. Overall the nutrient content in the BCM (such as the CP and EE; Table 1) indicates how this ingredient to be used as an alternative feed.…”

Growth Performance and Carcass Traits Responses to Dried Distillers’ Grain with Solubles Feeding of Growing Awassi Ram Lambs

“…Consequently, as the amount of DDGS used in feed is increased, the cost of the feed is reduced. Previous studies conducted in our laboratory have produced similar results in studies where conventional feeds were replaced by alternative feeds, indicating the beneficial use of DDGS in ruminant diets [1,6,12].…”