Effect of Supplementation on Feed Intake and Body Weight Gain of Abergelle Goats in Tigray, Ethiopia

The feeding trial was conducted at Abergelle Agricultural Research Center breed evaluation and distribution site which is located in central zone of Tigray, North Ethiopia. The objective of this study was to determine the optimum supplementation option that can promote better feed utilization and animal performance. Twenty-four yearling uncastrated male growing Abergelle goats were purchased from the local market. The average initial weight of the purchased goats was 14.2 ± 1.09 kg. A randomized complete block design was employed and goats randomly assigned to any of the three feeding options (dietary treatments). The three experimental rations were composed of different industrial by-products made as treatment1 (43% wheat bran + 35% cotton seed cake + 20% molasses), treatment2 (43% wheat bran + 35% noug seed cake + 20% maize grain) and treatment 3 (33% wheat bran + 45% dried brewery grain + 20% molasses). The supplementary feeds were formulated according to the growth requirements of the experimental animals considering their body weight. The experiment was conducted for 90 days of feeding, 14 days of adaptation trial, 7 days of digestibility and 3 days of adaptation trial for carrying fecal collection bags. Grass hay and clean water were offered adlibitum to each animal. Data were collected on feed intake, nutrient intake; digestibility and body weigh change following appropriate procedures. The collected data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) with least significant difference mean separation. No variation was seen on feed intake and nutrient digestibility among the treatments (p > 0.05). The body weight gain and feed conversion efficiency were affected by the supplementation feeds (p < 0.05) with higher for goat group in treatment two. The marginal rate of return (MRR) was also higher for the same animal group when compared with treatment one and treatment three, showing the economic benefit to the producer. Animal producers are advised to use supplementation option treatment two and treatment three in that order based on the local availability of the feeds.

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