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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Booneville, Arkansas » Dale Bumpers Small Farms Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #78298
Title: FEED INTAKE AND DIGESTION IN STEERS CONSUMING BROILER LITTER HARVESTED AFTER ONE, THREE, OR SIX BROILER GROWING PERIODS

Author
item WANG, Z - UNIV OF ARKANSAS
item Goetsch, Arthur
item ROSSI, J - UNIV OF ARKANSAS
item GALLOWAY, D - UNIV OF ARKANSAS

Submitted to: American Society of Animal Science
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/29/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Eight Holstein steers (171 +/- 13.8 kg initial BW) were used in two simultaneous 4 x 4 Latin squares (2 x 4 factorial treatment arrangement) to determine effects of the number of 6-wk broiler growing periods (one, 1P; three, 3P; six, 6P) before harvest of litter consumed ad libitum with .5% BW of bermudagrass hay and .5 or 1.0% BW (DM) of ground corn (LC and HC, respectively). Control steers ingested hay ad libitum. Broiler litter was 63, 43, and 35% NDF, 2.2, 3.5, and 4.1% N, and 18, 39, and 27% ash for 1P, 3P, and 6P, respectively. Dry matter intake was greater (P<.05) for diets with than without broiler litter (4.32, 5.43, 6.21, and 5.68 kg/d; SE .393), although OM intake was similar among treatments (4.14, 4.83, 5.05, and 4.76 kg/d for Control, 1P, 3P, and 6P, respectively; SE .298). Organic matter digestibility differed more among broiler litter sources with LC vs HC (57.8, 38.0, 50.7, 59.5, 59.5, 53.9, 57.0, and 61.1% for LC-Control, LC-1P, LC-3P, LC-6P, HC-Control, HC-1P, HC-3P, and HC-6P, respectively; (SE 2.41); whereas, digestible OM intake was not altered (P>.05) by treatments (2.35, 2.25, 2.72, and 2.81 kg/d for Control, 1P, 3P, and 6P, respectively; SE .171). In conclusion, these results suggest that effects of the number of broiler growing periods before litter harvest on OM digestibility decrease with increasing number of periods and are less with high vs low dietary cereal grain levels.