Veterinary World

Abstract

Aim: To study the effect of dietary supplementation of lecithin and carnitine on growth performance and nutrient digestibility in pigs fed high-fat diet.

Materials and Methods: A total of 30 weaned female large white Yorkshire piglets of 2 months of age were selected and randomly divided into three groups allotted to three dietary treatments, T1 - Control ration as per the National Research Council nutrient requirement, T2 - Control ration plus 5% fat, and T3 - T2 plus 0.5% lecithin plus 150 mg/kg carnitine. The total dry matter (DM) intake, fortnightly body weight of each individual animal was recorded. Digestibility trial was conducted toward the end of the experiment to determine the digestibility coefficient of various nutrients.

Results: There was a significant improvement (p<0.01) observed for pigs under supplementary groups T2 and T3 than that of control group (T1) with regards to growth parameters studied such as total DM intake, average final body weight and total weight gain whereas among supplementary groups, pigs reared on T3 group had better intake (p<0.01) when compared to T2 group. Statistical analysis of data revealed that no differences were observed (p>0.05) among the three treatments on average daily gain, feed conversion efficiency, and nutrient digestibility during the overall period.

Conclusion: It was concluded that the dietary inclusion of animal fat at 5% level or animal fat along with lecithin (0.5%) and carnitine (150 mg/kg) improved the growth performance in pigs than non-supplemented group and from the economic point of view, dietary incorporation of animal fat at 5% would be beneficial for improving growth in pigs without dietary modifiers.

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Abstract

Aim: This study was conducted to assess the effect of feeding paddy straw plus nonforage fiber sources based complete rations with different levels of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) on hemato-biochemical and mineral parameters of lactating dairy cows.

Materials and Methods: The study was conducted for 6 months in 18 lactating dairy cows, divided into three groups of six each, by feeding them on paddy straw plus nonforage fiber sources based complete rations containing different levels of NDF, in two phases of 3 months (90 days) each, being the early and mid lactation phases, respectively. Three isonitrogenous and isocaloric complete rations, T1, T2 and T3 with 25%, 30% and 35% NDF, respectively, were fed to the experimental animals. Blood samples were collected at the beginning and the end of each of the two phases to estimate the different hematological, plasma protein, and mineral parameters to know the overall health status of the animals and standard methods were followed to analyze the samples.

Results: There was no significant difference (p>0.05) in various hematological parameters such as hemoglobin, glucose, and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) in blood; plasma protein parameters such as total protein, albumin, globulin and albumin: globulin ratio and mineral parameters such as plasma calcium and phosphorus levels at the beginning and end of Phase I (1^st day and 90^th day) and Phase II (91^st day and 180^th day) as well as between the three dietary treatments, with all the values being in the normal range for lactating dairy cows. Even though nonsignificant (p>0.05), the BUN values of animals fed on ration T1, both at the beginning and end of Phase I, were higher than that of animals fed on rations T2 and T3 because the diet T1 with lowest NDF and the highest soluble carbohydrate content underwent rapid fermentation in the rumen, produced more energy, which was utilized by the rumen microbes to degrade the protein in the feed to ammonia, the excess ammonia being transported to the liver and excreted through the blood resulting in a higher BUN content.

Conclusion: Feeding of paddy straw plus nonforage fiber sources based complete rations with different levels of NDF had no effect on hemato-biochemical and mineral profile as well as overall health status of lactating dairy cows. However, the higher, BUN values found in cows fed on diet T1 with 25% NDF as compared to those fed on T2 and T3 with 30% and 35% NDF, respectively, indicate more wastage of protein in T1 as compared to T2 and T3, in early lactation.

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