Digestibility of nutrients in diets containing ammoniated elephantgrass and cocoa meal or palm kernel cake fed to sheep

The objective of this trial was to evaluate the apparent total tract digestibility of nutrients on sheep fed diets containing ammoniated clephantgrass silage plus cocoa meal or palm kernel cake, which partially replaced corn and soybean meal in the concentrate. Eighteen non-castrated Santa Ines sheep averaging 22.6 kg of body weight were assigned to a completely randomized design with a 2 x 3 factorial arrangement of treatments. The experiment lasted 77 days with 14 clays for diet adaptation and three 21 days periods for data and sample collection. Diets were composed by 60% of forage and 40% of concentrate. Treatments containing treated (urea) or untreated elephant grass silage plus one the following concentrate mixture: 1) corn and soybean meal, 2) corn, soybean meal and cocoa meal, or 3) corn, soybean meal and palm kernel cake. Ammoniation and replacement of 40% of corn and soybean meal in the concentrate with cocoa meal or palm kernel cake did not significantly change the dietary digestibility of nutrients. It is recommended the partial replacement of corn and soybean meal with cocoa meal or palm kernel in diets of sheep.