Impact of black plum (Vitex doniana) leaf meal on blood biochemistry, hormone and cholesterol level of West African dwarf goat-bucks

Fifteen (15) West African Dwarf (WAD) goat-bucks with average initial weights of 10±0.53kg were used in an experiment to investigate the effect of varying levels of Vitex doniana leaf meal on the blood profiles, hormone and cholesterol level of WAD goat-bucks. The animals were randomly assigned to five dietary treatments consisting of graded levels of Vitex doniana in a Completely Randomized Design experiment which lasted twenty-eight (28) days. At the end of the feeding trial, blood samples were collected from the jugular veins of the animal for the determination of haematological and serum biochemical characteristics using standard laboratory methods. The Vitex doniana leaf had a crude protein of 8.53, crude fibre of 7.15, crude fat of 6.44 and ash of 8.26 percent and were moderately high in flavonoids 20.82, phenols 96.14, saponin 6.48mg/100g with slight presence of alkaloids, tannins, terpenoids, steroids and anthraquinones. The effects of graded levels of Vitex doniana leaf meal on haematology of WAD goat-bucks reveals that red blood cell (RBC) significantly (p<0.05) increase with concurrent increase in Vitex doniana leaf meal whereas the haemoglobin (Hb) and packed cell volume (PCV) reduced with the addition of the leaf meal. Other parameters were not significantly (p>0.05) different from the control, although it varies with increase in the leaf meal addition. The serum biochemistry of West African dwarf bucks showed that total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), urea and glucose significantly increased with increase in Vitex doniana leaf meal. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP), Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) was significantly (p<0.05) influenced by the increase in Vitex doniana leaf meal inclusion. The ALT and AST were not significantly (p>0.05) different from the control in treatment D. Phytochemical results shows Vitex doniana has high content of phenol, flavonoid and saponin; it significantly increase total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein with a reduction in high density lipoprotein with 20g/kg feed while triglyceride and high density lipoprotein were high with 10g/kg feed. It significantly reduced luteinizing hormone while causing an increase in follicle stimulating hormone, testosterone and prolactin with 15g/kg. The administration of 15g inclusion level of Vitex doniana leaf meal increases the reproductive performance while administration of 10g inclusion level helped to lower the cholesterol level in WAD bucks with no conspicuous adverse effects and their health status was not compromised. All the haematological and serum biochemical characteristics of the bucks were within the normal/ standard blood ranges for apparently healthy bucks. The study therefore concludes that farmers can supplement feed with up to 20% Vitex doniana leaf meal in formulated diets meant for goats, without fear of compromising haematopoietic processes. Keywords: Blood, Feed, leaf-meal, WAD goat-buck

Effect of plumage colour on carcass characteristics and meat quality of Nigeria local turkeys

This study examined the effect of plumage colour on carcass characteristics and meat quality of Nigeria local turkeys. Nine 14 weeks local turkeys of different plumage colour (3 blacks, 3 white, and 3 mixed colour) were studied during the experiment. The birds were allotted into treatments based on the 3 plumage colours. Data taken were carcass weight, dressing percentage, prime cuts and relative organs’ weights, pH, drip loss, cook loss, meat colour and sensory attributes of cooked meat. Data collected were subjected to analysis of variance using SPSS version 25. The result obtained revealed that plumage colour affects the pH of turkey meat with a significantly higher carcass pH (5.68) from the mixed colour plumage group. It was also noted that, carcass weight, prime cuts and relative organ weight showed no significant difference (P > 0.05) irrespective of plumage colours. Similarly, the drip loss, cook loss and meat colour (lightness, redness and yellowness) were not influenced by plumage colour of the turkey while the sensory evaluation revealed that black plumaged birds group were more juicy, and had the best aroma and overall acceptability compared to others. It is therefore concluded that plumage colour affects the pH and juiciness, aroma and overall acceptability of Nigeria local turkey meat