Intake and digestibility of nutrients of elephantgrass silage with coffee hulls, by sheep

Abstract

The experiment was carried out to evaluate the intake and the digestibility of nutrients of elephantgrass silage with levels (0,0; 10,0; 20,0 and 30,0%, natural matter basis) of coffee hulls, fed to sheep. Sixteen crossbreed castrated sheep, with 48.5 kg average live weight, were used in a randomized blocks design with four replicates. The intake of dry matter was influenced by coffee hulls which showed a quadratic effect, estimating maximum intake of 991.5 g/day (2.04% of live weight) with 7.2% of coffee hulls added. The intake of organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), total carbohydrates (TC), neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and total digestible nutrients (TDN), in g/day, showed a quadratic effect, estimating maximum intake of 907.0, 118.2, 773.5, 727.7 and 591.0 g/day with 7.2, 5.6, 6.2, 4.7 and 2.9% of coffee hulls added, respectively. The digestibility of DM, OM, CP, TC and NDF decreased as the levels of coffee hulls in the silages were increased. The ether extract digestibility was not affected. In conclusion, the level of 7.0% of coffee hulls promoted maximum nutrient intake. However, nutrient digestibility was reduced.