Abstract
Twenty four Black goat does at 1st week post kidding were adapted to control diet for 2 weeks and then blocked into 4 groups (6 does/group) to be fed on one of the experimental diets (0, 5, 10 and 15% oak acorns) to study the effect of different levels of oak acorns on milk yield, milk composition and some serum biochemical traits. Results revealed that at 10th week of lactation, there was a significant increase in daily milk yield in does fed on 15% oak acorns. In contrast the group fed on 15% oak acorns exhibited a significant decrease in milk protein and solid non-fat contents at 10th week of lactation. The milk lactose yield was significantly higher in group fed on 15% oak acorns at 10th week of lactation. The serum glucose concentration at 8th week of lactation was significantly higher in does fed on 10% oak acorns while at 10th week; it was significantly higher in does fed 5% oak acorns. It could be concluded that feeding does on diets containing 15% oak acorns caused a significant increase in daily milk yield of Black goats and a significant decrease in milk protein content.
Highlights
It is known that a major restriction on livestock production in the world is the scarcity of the year-round feedstuffs supply
Preparation of Plant Material Oak acorns were collected at Hadena village at Duhok governorate, Kurdistan region, Iraq and stored in shed at 25Cfor 15 days, grinded using a hammer mill and were analyzed in for DM, OM, ash, EE, CP, CF, condensed tannins, total phenolics and total flavonoids (Table 1), and later mixed with other feed ingredients in experimental diets
Determination of Condensed Tannins The condensed tannin content in the samples of oak acorns was determined according to Makkar (11). 10ml of 70% aqueous acetone was added to 0.2g of dried ground sample and in 4 ̊C centrifuged at 3000g for 10 minutes. 3ml of butanol-HCl reagent and 0.1ml of Ferric reagent (2% of ammonium iron sulfate in 2N HCl) were added to 0.5ml of supernatant, vortexed and put in heating block at 97C° for one hour
Summary
It is known that a major restriction on livestock production in the world is the scarcity of the year-round feedstuffs supply To overcome this shortage, it might be achieved through better utilization of nonconventional feeds such as trees, shrubs, pods, fruits and seeds that do not compete with human food (2), high in protein and minerals and that can be used as supplements to improve the nutritional value of conventional poor quality roughages (18). Among those acorns from different oak species are considered very energetic alternative sources and have potential nutritive values for ruminant animals due to their high starch contents and may be used to some extent in sheep and goats diets where there is food scarcity (8).
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