1. Effects of replacing peanut vine with Zhangzagu straw on growth performance, nutrients apparent digestibility, meat quality, and serum biochemical indexes of finishing sheep.
- Author
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WANG Hao-cheng, LIU Hong-kai, LI Jin-fa, WANG Jia-ning, WANG Shao-hua, YUE Chun-wang, and SUN Mao-hong
- Subjects
MEAT quality ,FEED analysis ,PEANUTS ,STRAW ,CLIMBING plants ,NUTRIENT density ,WEIGHT gain - Abstract
The purpose of this experiment was to study the effects of different proportions of Zhangzagu straw instead of peanut vine on the growth performance, nutrients apparent digestibility, meat quality, and serum biochemical indexes of finishing sheep. Twenty-four healthy 'Du x Hu' hybrid finishing rams with the body weight of (32.73± 2.46) kg aged about three months were randomly divided into three groups, with eight replicates in each group and one sheep in each replicate. The control group only added peanut vine. In the experimental Group I, 50% Zhangzagu straw was used to replace peanut vine. In the experimental Group II, 80% Zhangzagu straw was used to replace peanut vine. The pre-feeding period was 10 days, and the formal trial period was 70 days. The results showed that compared with the control group, the average daily feed intake of Group I decreased significantly (P<0.05), and the apparent digestibility of neutral detergent fiber increased significantly (P<0.05). Compared with the control group, the L* value of flesh color in Group I significantly increased (P<0.05) and the shear force significantly decreased (P<0.05), the pH45 min value in Group II significantly increased (P<0.05) and the shear force value significantly decreased (P<0.05), while the L* value of flesh color in Group II was significantly lower than that of Group I (P<0.05). Compared with the control group, the levels of total protein (TP), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and cholesterol (CHOL) were significantly increased in Group I (P<0.05), and the TP content in Group II increased significantly (P<0.05). The study indicates that replacing peanut vine with Zhangzagu straw has certain effects on the growth performance, nutrients apparent digestibility, meat quality, and serum biochemical indexes of finishing sheep, and 50% Zhangzagu straw instead of peanut vine has the best weight gain effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
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