Performance, Haematological Parameters and Faecal Egg Count of Semi-intensively Managed West African Dwarf Sheep to Varying Levels of Cassava Leaves and Peels Supplementation.

Thirty West African dwarf (WAD) sheep aged 18-24 months with average weight of 17.96±0.89kg, managed under semi-intensive system, were used in a 56-day experiment to investigate the effects of varying levels of cassava leaves (CL) and cassava peels (CPL) supplementation on the performance, haematological indices and faecal egg count of sheep. Animals were subjected to 6 dietary treatments of 100% CL, 100% CPL, 75% CL/25% CPL, 25% CL/75% CPL, 50% CL/50% CPL, and natural pasture (0% CL/0% CPL) in a complete randomized design. Results showed that weight gain (g/day) varied (P<0.05) across treatments from 26.25 to 44.64 with sheep supplemented with 75CL/25CPL having the highest (P < 0.05) growth rate and the least values observed in sheep on control treatment. The dry matter and crude protein digestibilities were least (P<0.05) in sheep supplemented with 100%CPL relative to other treatments. The white blood cells and total protein of sheep varied (P<0.05) across treatments, while supplementary diets of CL reduced faecal egg count in sheep. It was therefore concluded that the performance of sheep managed under the semi-intensive system, grazing natural pasture could further be enhanced through the supplementation of cassava leaves and peels with dietary levels of 75% CL/25% CPL recommended for sheep's optimum performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]