Abstract
ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to evaluate diets substituting corn grain with passion fruit peels on the consumption, ingestive behavior, digestibility of diets and sheep performance. A total of 20 sheep were used, confined in individual pens, fed twice a day, with diets which included passion fruit peels in the proportions of 0; 25; 50; 75 and 100% replacing corn grain. The corn grain represented 70% of the dry matter of the diet and the passion fruit peels were supplied in dehydrated form. The experimental design was completely randomized with five treatments and four replicates. The data were submitted to analysis of variance and regression analysis at the significance level of 5%. There was a linear increase in dry matter consumption with an increase of 3.89 g for each inclusion level of passion fruit peel. The apparent digestibility of dry matter decreased and neutral detergent fiber increased linearly with the substitution of corn grain with passion fruit peels. The feeding, rumination, leisure and water intake times presented averages of 3.74; 2.92; 16.92 and 0.42 hours, and were not influenced by the diets (P>0.05). The average daily weight gain was similar for the animals in the different diets and consequently the final weight presented average values of 0.226 kg day-1 and 32.1 kg, respectively. The inclusion of passion fruit peels in the sheep diet is an interesting alternative because even with the reduced dry matter digestibility, it increased the consumption and promoted similar weight gains.
Highlights
Sheep farming in Brazil has ceased to be only used as production for family survival and has become of great importance at the commercial level (Gonzaga et al, 2018)
This project was submitted to the Ethics Committee on the Use of Animals (CEUA), Faculty of Biomedical Sciences of Cacoal (FACIMED), and approved for execution according to protocol number PP 008/2017 on 07/31/2017
The DMC and DMC/BW increased linearly as the passion fruit peel was included in the diet, with an increase of 3.89 g and 0.018% for each inclusion level, respectively (Table 3)
Summary
Sheep farming in Brazil has ceased to be only used as production for family survival and has become of great importance at the commercial level (Gonzaga et al, 2018). Studies on its nutritional value are important (Cruz et al, 2011), as it has a low acquisition cost and its alternative use can reduce the effects of environmental impact (Couto Filho et al, 2010). The lignin level in the cell wall is important to hinder access by microorganisms and preserve the stability of the rumen environment (Silva et al, 2013). In this context, the objective of this study was to evaluate using passion fruit peels in diets with different corn grain substitution levels on consumption, ingestive behavior, diet digestibility and performance of confined sheep
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
