Effect of feeding poultry waste based diets on milk production from Galla goats

Abstract

A study was conducted to ~xamine the potential of poultry waste as a source of nitrogen in supplemental diets for lactating Galla goats. In Experiment I. eighty four goats (21 per treatment) maintained on Chloris gayana hay were supplemented for 12 weeks of lactation with 500g (as is) of concentrate containing 0, 15, 30 and 45% poultry waste for Treatment I, II, III and IV respectively. The poultry waste used, was obtained from the litter after disposal of layer pullets at the end of the laying period. The basic litter materials (wood shavings) were sieved off through a 1cm wire grid before feeding. The experiment lasted for 90 days. With an increase in the level of poultry waste from 0 to 45% there was a corresponding increase in the mean percent proximate composition values of ASH: 5.9 to 8.4; CF: 12.1 to 15.7 and ADF: 13.4 to 17.8 in the four treatment diets. Values for the other proximate compon~nts viz:- DM, OM, EE, CP and NFE were similar. All the concentrate diets were acceptable to the goats without any appreciable leftovers. Voluntary hay DM' intake was 1020.7±.31.3, 1026.0±.31.6, 1050.6~30.5 and 1069.3±.31.3 g/doe/day for Treatment I, II, III and IV respectively, showing no significant (P>O.05) difference among the treatments. The mean 12 week lactation yields were 680.7~62.6, 730.6~63.6, 600.7±.61.2and 673.1±.63.9 mIs/doe/day for Treatment I, II, III and IV respectively with no significant xxii (P>O.05) differences among treatments. The mean percentage values for the milk composition in the four Treatments ranged from 13.3±O.25 and 13.9±O.26 for Total Solids; 4.2±O.14 and 4.6±O.14 for Gerber Fat; 9.1±O.22, and 9.6±O.22 for Solid Not Fat; 3.9±O.09, and 4.1±O.09 for Total protein and O.7±O.17 and O.8±O.17 for ASH. No statistically significant (P)O.05) differences among treatment means were observed. However, there was a trend towards increasing Gerber Fat and Ash contents as the poultry waste levels were raised in the treatment diets. During the study period, all the does lost weight, in the order of 61.4±8.4, 63.9±8.9, 69.2±8.6 and 63.1±8.9 g/doe/day for Treatment I, II, III and IV respectively, but the differences were not statistically signif~cant (P)O.05). The respective growth rates for the kids were 55.5±3.1, 50.6±3.4, 51.4±3.5 and 48.4±3.2 g/kid/day over the same period. In Experiment. II twenty four goats (six per treatment diet) were usen to determine the digestibilities of the various nutrients of the diets used in Experiment I. The digestibility coefficients in the four treatment diets showed a decreasing trend from 60.3±1.5 to 55.7±1.5 for DM; 64.5±1.5 to 60.0±1.5 for OM; 69.8±2.0 to 60.0±2.0 for EE; 67.7±3.0 to 60.7±3.0 for CP; 59.5±1.8 to 54.2±1.8 for CF and similarly 26.0±2.3 to 26.3±2.3 for ASH with increasing levels of poultry waste in the diets but these differences were not significant (P>O.05). Does on the different xxiii diets maintained similar of 8.1±O.53, 7.6±O.53, Nitrogen/doe/day, for respectively. The lack of significant differences among the treatment means for most of the variables studied in this work suggests that poultry waste could be used effectively as a source of nitrogen in the diets for lactating Galla goats, as opposed to the conventional type of concentrate without significantly reducing performance.