This trial was conducted to study the effects of replacing corn with increasing levels of cassava starch by-products on carcass and meat characteritics for fedlot young bulls. Percentages of substitution were 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100, in dry matter basis. Forty crossbred bulls (½ and ¾ Bos taurus x Bos índicus), averaging 21 months old and 363 kg of initial body weight and 570 kg of final body weight were assigned to a block design with eight replicates by […]

The work was carried out to evaluate the voluntary intake, feed conversion and weight gain of bovines in feedlot, fed with elephantgrass silage (Penisetum purpereum, Schum.) with and without acipin associated with two protein sources, and to evaluate also the digestibility of dry matter of elephantgrass silage. The experimental feedlot was conducted during 167 days, with 28 steers, average 24 months old and initial average live weight of 310 kg. Four rations (T1: silage with acipin and urea; T2: silage […]

This work was carried out to characterize agronomically birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.) genotypes, including eight populations derived from the cultivar São Gabriel, one rhizomatous cultivar (ARS-260) and one cultivar without rhizomes (Trueno). Individual plants were submitted to seven cuts under field conditions during one year, at Passo Fundo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The genotypes showed variability relative to internode lenght, height, diameter, legume lenght, forage production and nutritive value. On the average, the populations and the cv. Trueno […]

Meat physical and chemical characteristics of Nellore (NE) and F1 Nellore x Sindi (NS) cattle and Mediterranean buffaloes (BM) castrated and entire were evaluated. The experimental design was completely randomized in a factorial arrangement 3 (genetic groups) x 2 (sexual conditions) with 24 plots. Animals were confined, received the same diet and were slaughtered at average weight of 437.5 kg. Meat samples were taken from Longissimus dorsi muscle between 12th and 13th ribs. Castrated and entire animals meat obtained higher […]

Twenty sheep were allotted in metallic crates during 15 days, to determine the effects of different levels of poultry litter on consumption and nutrient digestibility, nitrogen balance and on the major elements apparent availability. The animals were distributed in four treatments in a blocks design, with five replicates. Tifton 85 (Cynodon spp) hay was the forage source and poultry litter was composed of chopped corn cobs and coffee hulls in the ratio of 1:1. The diets were isoprotein with four […]

An experiment was performed to evaluate the chemical composition values and Apparent Metabolizable Energy corrected for nitrogen excretion (AMEn) of wheat grain harvested at different maturity stage (13, 16, 20 and 30% of humidity levels) and drying temperatures (40, 70 and 100 ºC). The grain with 13% of humidity level was considered dried at harvest and was not submitted to drying. The level of 16% of grain humidity at harvesting and the drying temperature of 40 ºC provided the highest […]

A study was conducted to evaluate the performance and the dry matter and nutrients intake in feedlot sheep fed diets with different levels of hray from tropical grasses: elephantgrass, buffelgrass, “milhã-roxa” and “urochloa”grass. Santa Inês hairy sheep (16 males and 16 females; average weight = 26,5 kg). A completely randomized design, with four replicates and two animals per experimental unit, was used. Males and females showed the same response to all treatments. Weight gain was similar for all diets, with […]

A study was conducted to evaluate three cultivars of Panicum maximum Jacq. under rotational grazing for the nutritive value,where the estimates of crude protein, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, lignin, cellulose, silica, and in vitro digestibility of the organic material were performed in samples of leaves and stems. Additional nitrogen was applied in cv. Tanzania at the end of the rainny season. Samples were taken in June, September, and October 1998 and in March 1999. Some differences among treatments […]

The objectives of this research were to identify the nitrogen level that promotes the highest animal production per ha and to test the possible effect on the individual animal performance on triticale and ryegrass pasture. The sowing occurred on April 21 of 1997, later on subjected to the following treatments: 0, 150, 300 and 450 kg/ha of nitrogen divided in five applications. Nellore, Charolais heifers and their crosses, with initial average weight of 154 kg were used. The grazing period […]

The experiment was carried out with the objective of determining the daily average intake (DAI) and apparent digestibility coefficient (ADC) of corn, sorghum and sunflower silages nutrients. The nitrogen balance was also evaluated. Nine castrated, male sheeps, kept in metabolism cages, in a 3 x 3 (three treatments and three periods), latin square design, were used. DAI of dry matter (DM), acid detergent fiber (ADF) and crude protein (CP) of corn silage of sunflower silage did not differ. DAI of […]