EFFECT OF SUPPLEMENTARY CRUDE PROTEIN LEVEL AND DEGRADABILITY IN GRASS SILAGE-BASED DIETS ON PERFORMANCE OF DAIRY-COWS, AND DIGESTIBILITY AND ABOMASAL NITROGEN FLOW IN SHEEP

Four concentrate supplements differing in crude protein (CP) and undegradable protein (UDP) content were offered to 16 lactating Friesian cows together with grass silage (dry matter (DM) 196 g/kg, pH 4·38, CP 160 g/kg DM, in vitro DM digestibility 0·68) ad libitum in a Latin-square trial with 3-week periods. The supplement treatments were: (1) barley 122 g CP per kg DM, degradability (dg) 0·77; (2) barley/soya-bean meal 210 g CP per kg DM, dg 0·69; (3) barley/soya-bean meal/fish meal 190 g CP per kg DM, dg 0·61; (4) barley/soya-bean meal/fish meal 219 g CP per kg DM, dg 0·59. Supplements were given at 8 kg/day. Total daily intakes of silage (kg DM), CP and UDP (g) on treatments 1 to 4 were 7·77, 2087, 375; 8·35, 2804, 655; 8·29, 2676, 717; 8·70, 2917, 826, respectively. Milk yield (kg/day) and yields of fat, protein and lactose (g/day) on the four treatments were 21·3, 791, 617, 984; 23·0, 816, 688, 1055; 23·0, 818, 696, 1050; 23·6, 813, 735, 1071 for treatments 1 to 4 respectively. Yield and concentration of protein and lactose were significantly lower on treatment 1 than on the other treatments, while the of blood metabolites indicated treatment effects on blood glucose, non-esterified fatty acids, plasma protein and urea. Digestibility of organic matter and non-ammonia nitrogen (NAN) flow to the abomasum (g/day), measured in sheep given a fixed silage/supplement ratio at maintenance, were 0·81 and 18·4, 0·81 and 20·8, 0·82 and 21·4, 0·82 and 22·4 for treatments 1 to 4 respectively. The NAN flow was significantly greater on treatment 4 than on treatment 1. © 1990, British Society of Animal Science. All rights reserved.