Intake , digestibility and growth performance of Nilotic type lambs fed on concentrate diet containing graded levels of mesquite ( Prosopis juliflora ) pods

Abstract

Studies were conducted to determine the effect of replacing concentrate 
diets by graded levels of mesquite pods powder upon intake . digestibility 
and growth performance of Sudanese indigenous lambs . Three dietary 
treatments were compared ( four lambs per treatments ) . The control 
group received a basal concentrate conventional diet ( sorghum grain 25 % 
. groundnut cake 32 % , wheat bran 40 % , limestone 2 % and common salt 
1 % ) The other treatment groups : ground Prosopis juiflora pods replaced 
15 % and 30 % of the conventional diet respectively . Intake and 
digestibility experiment ( 4 weeks ) were measured using twelve lambs ( 
234 +2.76 kg body weight ) , while growth performance trial ( 14 weeks ) 
was conducted using another twelve local lambs ( 15.1 5.18 kg ) . The daily 
dry matter intake ( g / kg metabolic weight : 1. ) was not affected ( p > 0.05 
) by inclusion of ground P i pods in lambs concentrate diets ( 792-853x nor 
was the digestibility coefficient . A similar trend in growth of lambs fed the 
experimental diets and recorded a daily growth rate of 1013-139.3 g The 
inclusion of ground Pj pods in local lambs concentrate diet up to 30 % 
exerts no negative action on lambs on term of feed intake , digestibility and 
growth . Using ground P. j . pods in lamb feed is beneficial towards reducing 
feed cost and controlling the spread of mesquite through seedlings.