Effects of concentrate mixtures on feed intake, milk yield and milk composition of Begait cattle fed sorghum Stover

Abstract

The study was conducted in Humera cattle ranch to determine the effect of concentrate mixtures on feed intake, milk yield, and milk composition of Begait cows fed sorghum Stover (Sorghum bicolor) as a basal diet in Northern Ethiopia. The dietary treatments used in the study were: sorghum Stover + what bran (control) (T₁), sorghum Stover + wheat bran +noug seed cake (T₂), sorghum Stover + wheat bran + cotton seed cake (T₃), and sorghum Stover + wheat bran +noug+ Cotton seed cake (T₄)with the same amount of salt to each treatments. The treatments (T2, T3, and T4) except T1 were Isnitrogeniuos. Four early lactation (70 days after calving) dairy cows with body weights averaging 322±11and initial milk yield of 2.2±0.14 kg/cow/day were allocated randomly in 4 x 4 Latin Square Design. Each cow was given a daily feed ration according to Tropical lactating dairy cows standards. Milk samples were analyzed for fat, crude protein (CP) and total solids (TS). Concentrate mixtures fed cows had significantly higher (P<0.05) milk yield and nutrient intake compared to wheat bran alone fed cows. The lowest and highest milk yields were recorded for control group (T₁) and group (T₄), respectively. No differences were observed in milk composition. The economic return for concentrate mixtures was found to be very high. It is concluded that using concentrate mixtures as a supplementation were effective in increasing milk yield and was economically profitable compared to wheat bran alone.