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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Booneville, Arkansas » Dale Bumpers Small Farms Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #78535

Title: INTAKE AND DIGESTION BY HOLSTEIN STEERS CONSUMING DIFFERENT PARTICLE SIZE FRACTIONS OF BROILER LITTER

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

Submitted to: Animal Feed Science and Technology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/29/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Broiler litter is abundant in many areas of the U.S., and disposal of this byproduct is often problematic. One of the characteristics of broiler litter limiting value as a cattle feedstuff is the low available energy concentration. Most fiber in broiler litter, of limited and variable digestibility, arises from bedding materials such as rice hulls and pine shavings. Visually, bedding materials appear of largest particle size in broiler litter. Therefore, separation of broiler litter into two fractions differing in particle size might yield one low in fiber and high in available energy and another fraction with the opposite characteristics. Separating deep-stacked broiler litter into two fractions differing in size did not alter feed intake or digestibilities compared with whole, unseparated litter. Nonetheless, these results indicate that if use of a small particle size fraction of broiler litter for a purpose in which a greater concentration of crude protein and lower level of fiber are desirable and greater value realization from the by-product results, the accompanying large particle size fraction could be used as a cattle feedstuff without sacrifice of feeding value.

Technical Abstract: Eight Holstein steers (153 +/- 13.6 kg body weight) were used in two simultaneous 4 x 4 Latin squares with 21-day periods to determine effects of separating deep-stacked broiler litter into small and large particle size fractions on feed intake and digestibility. Steers were fed diets with different levels of two sources of deep-stacked broiler litter (source A: 24% crude protein and 35% neutral detergent fiber; source B: 23% crude protein and 44% neutral detergent fiber). Bermudagrass hay was consumed ad libitum by Control steers (without broiler litter) or at 0.5% body weight (dry matter basis) for treatments with dietary broiler litter. Broiler litter was consumed ad libitum without separation (whole; W) or after separation (1-mm screen aperture) into small (S; 27 and 33% crude protein for A and B, respectively) and large (L; 22 and 18% crude protein for A and B, respectively) particle size fractions. Organic matter intake was increased (P=0.06) by dietary inclusion of broiler litter (4.55, 4.56, 4.63, 4.73, 4.24, 5.18, 4.77 and 4.59 kg day-1 for Control-A, W-A, S-A, L-A, Control-B, W-B, S-B and L-B, respectively; SE 0.211). Total tract organic matter digestibility was greater (P=0.08) for broiler litter source A than for B (57.4, 57.8, 54.9, 57.6, 56.5, 48.4, 47.2 and 54.8%; SE 3.90), and digestible organic matter intake tended (P=0.11) to be greater for Source A (2.56, 2.64, 2.54, 2.72, 2.36, 2.51, 2.18 and 2.58 kg day-1 for Control-A, W-A, S-A, L-A, Control-B, W-B, S-B and L-B, respectively; SE 0.174). In conclusion, separating deep-stacked broiler litter into two particle size fractions did not alter feeding value as assessed by digestible organic matter intake by growing steers.