Effects of traditional brewery dried residue and field pea hull mixtures supplementation on feed utilization and performance of Washera sheep fed natural pasture grass hay as basal diet

Abstract Background The major feedstuffs (natural pasture and crop residues) used for sheep in Ethiopia are fibrous and the crude protein (CP) content is less than 7% that is inadequate to meet the maintenance requirement of sheep. These poor quality feeds should be improved and can be improved through supplementation with nutritious feedstuff. Therefore, to overcome this challenge, there is a need to look for some alternatives but locally available and cheap sources of protein. In this regard, traditional brewery dried residue (TBDR) and field pea hull (FPH) could be an important sources of feed for ruminant livestock. Objectives This experiment was carried out to evaluate the effects of supplementing mixtures of TBDR and FPH on the feed intake, digestibility, live weight gain, and economic feasibility of the feeding treatments. Methods In a 3‐month experiment, 20 yearling intact male Washera sheep were blocked based on their initial BW of 22.1 ± 1.58 kg (mean ± standard error of mean), and treatment diets were randomly assigned within a block. Treatments comprised feeding natural pasture grass hay (NPGH) ad libitum + 50 g ground nut cake (GNC) (T1, control); T1 + supplemented with 25% TBDR:75% FPH (T2); T1 + 50% TBDR:50% FPH (T3) and T1 + 75% TBDR:25% FPH (T4). The supplement feed was offered twice a day at 08:00 and 16:00 while, common salt lick and water were available all time. Results NPGH, FPH, TBDR, and GNC in the current study contained 5.7%, 13.4%, 22.2%, and 45.4% CP and 62%, 61%, 34%, and 20% neutral detergent fibre, respectively. Sheep in supplemented treatments had higher (p < 0.05) apparent digestibility percentage of dry matter and nutrients than those in T1. Among the supplemented treatments, sheep fed T4 recorded 4.49 kg extra (p < 0.0001) body weight as compared to that fed T1 by growing at an average of 49.8 g/day and returned the highest net income (255.8 Ethiopian birr) Conclusion Thus, based on the highest body weight gain and net return, the combinations of 75% TBDR and 25% FPH (T4) appeared to be recommendable for poor farmers

Dry Matter Yield and Nutritional Composition of Natural Pasture in East Gojjam Zone, Amhara Region

Next to crop production, rearing livestock in Ethiopia is essential for the community’s food and nutrition security. However, a major obstacle to global livestock production, particularly in Ethiopia, is a shortage of high-quality and sufficient livestock feed. Designing development plans and intervention options for both improving natural pasture and rearing livestock would require an evaluation of the natural pasture yield and nutritional composition. As a result, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the nutrient content and dry matter yield of natural pasture in the study areas. The study area was divided into highland, midland, and lowland agroecologies, and from each agroecology, protected and communal grazing areas were selected randomly. The results showed that the average dry matter yield, crude protein (CP), and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) of natural pasture varied across agroecologies and between grazing sites. The average dry matter yields of natural pasture in highland, midland, and lowland agroecologies were about 1.60, 3.02, and 1.96 t/ha, respectively. The average dry matter yield in protected and communal grazing areas of natural pasture was about 2.70 and 1.69 t/ha, respectively. The crude protein content of the natural pasture was 7.12, 7.63, and 6.90% in the highlands, midlands, and lowlands, respectively. The crude protein content of the natural pasture in protected and communal grazing areas was 6.69 and 7.73%, respectively. In general, the dry matter yield and crude protein contents of natural pasture were low, which would have an effect on livestock productivity, and the overall NDF content of natural pasture was 65.9%, which is classified as low-quality feed and thus would have an impact on feed intake, digestibility, and livestock productivity