96 A.K. Samanta et al. Small Ruminant Research 48 2003 95–102
in itself is complete in all respects of nutrients which when fed alone, leads to imbalance of nutrients in
animals Nagpal and Arora, 2002
. Complete feed is comprised of forage, concentrate
and other supplementary nutrients in desired propor- tion capable to fulfil nutrient requirements of animals.
The feeding of complete feed stabilises rumen fermen- tation, minimises fermentation loss and ensures better
ammonia utilisation
Prasad et al., 2001 . This pattern
of rumen fermentation enhances utilisation of poor quality of roughages and improves the palatability of
unconventional feeds. Because of seasonal availability and low bulk density, storage, handling and transporta-
tion of roughage materials are very difficult. Thus, complete feed in block form may overcome the above
problems and will transport feed resources to deficit region or areas of natural calamities cost effectively.
During the last decade, efforts were made to change from the traditional extensive animal farming to an
intensive system. The extensive system provides abun- dant and constant availability of forages year round. A
complete diet, used in cattle and buffalo
Verma et al., 1996; Singh et al., 2001
feeding, can be explored for small ruminants. This will in turn increase pos-
sibilities of providing animal requirements, facilitate management, allow full mechanisation and more flexi-
bility for inclusion of a wide range of alternative feeds
Cavani et al., 1991 . The preparation of a feed block
offers scope for incorporation of tree leavesshrubs in routine diets besides the potentiality to protect loss of
feed ingredients during sneezing. In this endeavour, the roughage-based complete diets were densified and
evaluated in Barbari goats to investigate effects on nutrient utilisation and rumen parameters.
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Preparation of complete feed block Natural grass predominated by Sehima nervosum
and Heteropogon contortus at mature stage and Leu- caena leucocephala
leaves were collected from the Experimental Farm of the Indian Grassland and Fod-
der Research Institute at Jhansi. In order to prepare complete feed blocks, the grass was mixed with the
formulated concentrate mixture Table 1
where 15 or 30 CP of mustard cake were replaced by Leucaena
Table 1 Ingredients of concentrate mixtures used in different treatments
Ingredient Proportion kg100 kg
A B
C Mustard cake
35 30
25 Barley grain
15 15
10 Wheat bran
37 32
32 Leucaena
leaf meal 00
10 20
Urea 1
1 1
Molasses 10
10 10
Mineral mixture 1
1 1
Common salt 1
1 1
A: concentrate mixture for mash diet; B: concentrate mixture for complete feed block B; C: concentrate mixture for complete feed
block C.
leaf meal LLM. The complete diet containing nat- ural grass and concentrate mixtures B and C at the
ratio of 60:40 on the DM basis was subjected to the preparation of blocks at 4000 psi in an automatic feed
blocking machine. The physical characteristics of the blocks were evaluated in terms of bulk density, keep-
ing quality, texture, etc.
2.2. Animals and feeding Fifteen Barbari female goats, age 8–10 months,
were randomly divided into three groups comprising of five goats each. The average body weights were
13.28 ± 1.15, 13.32 ± 1.23 and 13.24 ± 1.16 kg in T
1
, T
2
and T
3
, respectively. The animals of group T
1
served as controls and were maintained on the com- plete diet consisting of natural grass and concentrate
mixture A in the ratio of 60:40 in mash form while the animals of group T
2
and T
3
were fed on the complete diet of natural grass and concentrate mixtures B or C,
respectively at the same ratio in block form. All the goats were maintained on ad libitum feeding regime.
Weighed quantities of feed were offered in separate troughs to individual goats once daily at 10:00 h for
the entire experimental periods. The blocks were bro- ken into two to three pieces in a trough and goats did
not face any difficulty while eating. Left over was quantified daily and discarded. Clean drinking water
was provided to all the animals twice daily 11:00 and 16:00 h. After 3 weeks of experimental feeding,
animals were placed in cages having facilities for quantitative collection of faeces and urine separately,
A.K. Samanta et al. Small Ruminant Research 48 2003 95–102 97
and a digestibility and metabolism trial of 7 days col- lection period was conducted to evaluate the nutritive
value and balance of N from the various forms of the complete diets.
2.3. Analytical techniques Dry matter in feed and faeces was determined by
oven drying at 100
◦
C overnight. For chemical analy- sis, pooled samples of feed offered, refusals and faeces
were dried at 60
◦
C and ground to pass through a 2 mm sieve. Wet faeces and urine samples, preserved in di-
luted and concentrated sulphuric acid, respectively, were analysed for N by the standard Micro Kjeldahl
method. Feed and faecal samples were analysed for CP, EE and total ash contents
AOAC, 1990 and fi-
bre fractions were analysed as per Van Soest et al.
1991 .
Before the onset of the digestibility trial, rumen liquor was collected at 2 h of post-feeding through
an oesophageal tube. Rumen liquor samples were analysed for total N Micro Kjeldahl, ammonia N
Conway, 1957 , total VFA
Barnett and Reid, 1957 ,
TCA-precipitable N Tagari et al., 1964
. Rumen liquor samples were also used to monitor the popu-
lation of anaerobic bacteria Hungate, 1966
, fungi Samanta and Walli, 1999
. Rumen ciliates were identified according to
Hungate 1966 . Spirotrichs
not identified to generic level were classified into small Spirotrichs mainly Entodinia with an average
size 42 m × 23 m and large Spirotrichs mainly Diplodinia
with an average size of 132 m × 66 m. The protozoa numbers were calculated according to
Kamra et al. 1991 .
Blood samples were collected in heparinised test tubes before the onset of the digestibility trial to study
various blood metabolites, glucose Somogyi, 1945
,
Table 2 Chemical composition of different feed ingredients DM basis
Feed CP
CF EE
NFE Ash
NDF ADF
OM Mixed grass
3.10 32.06
1.12 53.39
10.33 68.19
38.64 89.67
Mustard cake 35.20
6.62 8.30
41.02 6.86
24.59 18.06
93.15 Leucaena
leaf meal 16.76
12.65 2.98
58.39 9.22
34.52 14.04
90.81 Concentrate mixture A
19.50 6.92
4.78 61.29
7.51 23.36
10.12 92.49
Complete feed mash A T
1
9.60 23.12
2.73 55.30
9.27 50.30
28.02 90.73
Complete feed block B T
2
8.99 25.48
2.82 56.39
6.32 55.64
33.29 93.68
Complete feed block C T
3
9.16 25.56
2.61 53.87
8.80 54.06
33.30 91.20
urea Rahmatullah and Boyde, 1980
and protein Reinhold, 1953
. 2.4. Statistical analysis
The data were subjected to analysis of variance for a randomised block design
Snedecor and Cochran, 1967
.
3. Results and discussion
