The supplementary value of forage legume hays in sheep feeding: Feed intake, nitrogen retention and body weight change
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Elsevier
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Assesses the potential of Desmodium intortum, Macrotyloma axillare and Stylosanthes guianensis in improving the utilization of a basal diet of maize stover by sheeMaize stover used in this experiment was high in lignocellulosic cell-wall constituents and very low in CS. guianensis hay contained higher CP and lower NDF, ADF, and lignin contents than D. intortum and M. axillare hays. According to animal responses, under the conditions of the experiment, S. guianensis was superior to the other two legumes in improving the feeding value to sheep of maize stover based diets. M. axillare was found to be inferior. In general, 250 g. of S. guianensis and 350 g of D. intortum hays per day per sheep were found to be optimum levels of supplementation to maize stover. At these levels of supplementation, modest levels of bodyweight gain were achieved.
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sheep, desmodium intortum, macrotyloma axillare, stylosanthes guianensis, hay, maize stover, body weight, supplementary feeding, feed intake, nitrogen retention, chemical analysis, nitrogen balance