Effect of feeding urea ammoniated rice straw with varying JeveJs of cottonseed-cake on the performance of crossbred heifers

Abstract

The experiment was designed to study the effect cif supplementing urea treated rice straw with four levels of cotton seed-cake to provide 15.0 (T₂), 30 (T₃), 45 ( T₄) and 60.0 (T₅)% of crude protein (CP) requirements in comparison to a control ration of untreated rice straw supplemented with a concentrate mixture (T₁) (0 balance the ME and CP requirements of growing heifers in a randomised block design. The DMI through roughage components as well as digestibility coefficients for DM, OM, NDF, hemicellulose and energy were Significantly (P<0.05) higher for treated straw rations. The average body weight gains for T₁ T₂, T₃, T₄ and T₅ were 391.4, 325.6, 368.6, 471.6 and 494. 4g/day, respectively, with the differences between body weight gains significant (P<0.05). Treated straw supplemented with cotton seed-cake to supply 45% of CP requirements resulted in optimum body weight gain at lowest feed cost in growing heifers.