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- The effects of milk replacer, fresh grass, and concentrate on growth...
The effects of milk replacer, fresh grass, and concentrate on growth performance and rumen development of neonatal dairy calves.
Thesis Abstract:
The effects of milk replacer with or without forage and concentrate on production performance and rumen development of neonatal dairy calves were determined using 16 two-week-old calves randomly distributed to four dietary treatments in a completely randomized design. Dry matter intake of calves significantly increased with the supplementation of concentrate, followed by those fed with forage alone or forage plus concentrate, and least in those fed with milk replacer alone. Similarly, average daily weight gain was highest in calves fed with concentrate and forage. Consequently, feed conversion was significantly more efficient in calves supplemented with concentrate, followed by those fed with forage alone and forage plus concentrate. Highest return above feed cost was realized in calves fed with milk replacer plus concentrate, followed by those fed with milk replacer plus both concentrate and forage. Supplementation of solid feeds increased the size of the rumen. Anatomical evaluation of rumen development showed significant differences in papillary length and density in calves fed with concentrate.