Growth performance and nutrient utilization in crossbred heifers fed various levels of non-leguminous green fodder

Abstract

Crossbred (HF×Tharparkar) heifers (16) of almost similar age (9 to 11 months) and body weight (98.2 kg) were randomly divided into 4 groups (T1, T2, T3 and T4) of 4 animals each. The animals were fed 0 kg (T1), 5 kg (T2), 10 kg (T3) and 15 kg (T4) green maize alongwith ad lib. wheat straw and concentrate as per requirement. The DMI and TDNI was significantly higher in T4 group as compared to other groups. The digestibility coefficient of DM, OM, CP, CF and EE were nonsignificant among the groups except for NFE. A nonsignificant difference for ADG was observed between T4 and T3 groups on one hand and T2 and T1 groups on other. Thus, the nutrient utilization and growth performance was significantly higher in animals fed on higher levels of green maize, which concluded that crossbred heifers might be fed on higher levels of green fodder for better performance.