Use of spineless cactus associated with legume hay in the feedlot-finishing of lambs in semi-arid regions

Abstract

The objective of this study were to examine the effects of diets containing spineless cactus associated with hays of different legume species [gliricidia (Gliricidia sepium), “catingueira” (Caesalpinia bracteosa), “sabiá” (Mimosa caesalpiniifolia Benth) and “catanduva” (Piptadenia moniliformis Benth)] on the intake, digestibility, performance and carcass traits of lambs. Twenty-four ½ Santa Inês × ½ Soinga lambs with an average body weight of 21.4 ± 2.53 kg were distributed into four treatments in a completely randomized design. Treatments consisted of diets formulated with the association of spineless cactus (Opuntia ficus-indica Mill) and hay of four legume species, namely, “catanduva”, “sabiá” “catingueira” and gliricidia. The lowest intakes (P<0.05) of dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and total carbohydrates occurred in the animals that received the diet containing catingueira hay. However, there were no diet effects (P>0.05) on the intakes of crude protein (CP), ether extract and non-fibrous carbohydrates. The diets also did not change (P>0.05) the weight gain (0.197 kg/day) or final weight (33.18 kg) of the lambs or the apparent digestibility coefficients of DM, OM, CP and NDF. Consequently, the parameters of live weight at slaughter (34.10 kg), hot carcass weight (14.81 kg), cold carcass weight (14.66 kg), hot carcass yield (45.60%) and cold carcass yield (45.07%) exhibited the no response to treatment. In addition to these variables, the diets also did not influence subcutaneous fat thickness (2.54 mm), longissimus muscle area (13.34 cm2), morphometric measurements of the carcass, or the proportions of muscle and fat. Therefore, legume hays associated with spineless cactus can be used to feed ½ Santa Inês × ½ Soinga lambs in the feedlot, as this strategy provides heavy animals at the time of slaughter and carcasses with desirable degrees of muscularity and adiposity.

Could Cratylia argentea replace Tifton 85 hay on growing and finishing lamb diets in tropical areas?

“…The effectiveness of fiber was broken by the particle size of the roughage, so the intestinal passage rate could not reveal possible interactions between the roughages used (Tifton 85 or Cratylia hay). The digestibility coefficient values found in this study are similar to those described by other authors [29], which included shrub hay and tree legume species as roughage sources in the total diet of feedlot lambs.…”

Fortification of diets with omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids enhances feedlot performance, intramuscular fat content, fat melting point, and carcass characteristics of Tattykeel Australian White MARGRA lambs

“…The weight and yield of carcasses are significant determinants of commercial value with better returns ( 75 ). The mean tissue content of the leg showed that the muscles had the greatest contribution (66.70%), followed by bone (18.89%) and fat (10.09%) ( 76 ). Bautista-Díaz et al ( 77 ) reported that bones made up 1.46 ± 0.27 kg of suckling lambs.…”

“…On account of the weights of primal cuts recorded in this study, the carcasses provided reasonable cut yields when the leg, loin, and shoulder were considered ( 78 ). Da Trindade Silva et al ( 76 ) reported that these are responsible for an estimated 60% of the entire yield of cuts. Results generated from this study with other carcass traits could therefore be useful when making decisions regarding the selection and the most appropriate husbandry system to employ.…”

Effect of using hydrogel polymers on morphometric, forage production, and nutritional characteristics of cactus pear

“…The forage cactus plants are widely used in arid and semi-arid regions, since, due to their phenotypic plasticity, they are more efficient in water use in scenarios with low precipitation rates (Silva et al, 2021;Pereira et al, 2021;Lima et al, 2023). Furthermore, according to Edvan et al (2020) plants of Opuntia stricta cv.…”