A comparative in vitro digestion trial using inocula of livestock from South Turkana and Kitale, Kenya

Abstract

SummaryThe dry-matter digestibilities of 13 important herbaceous and browse forages from an arid rangeland in north-western Kenya were evaluated in a comparative in vitro trial using rumen fluid from indigenous sheep, goats, a camel, and Merino sheep kept at an agricultural laboratory. All inoculum donors had varied diets preceding the experiment, but little substantial difference was observed in the ability of each fluid to digest test materials. Tt was concluded that the Merino sheep inoculum provided an adequate substitute for inocula from indigenous animals for studies of the nutritional ecology of free-ranging livestock.