Performance, feeding behavior, and fecal characteristics of Nellore bulls fed snaplage in finishing diets

Bernardes, Thiago Fernandes; Justino, Túlio Gomes; Domingues, Edmilson Heleno dos Reis; Gionbelli, Mateus Pies; Casagrande, Daniel Rume; Ladeira, Marcio Machado

Performance, feeding behavior, and fecal characteristics of Nellore bulls fed snaplage in finishing diets

Bernardes, Thiago FernandesJustino, Túlio GomesDomingues, Edmilson Heleno dos ReisGionbelli, Mateus PiesCasagrande, Daniel RumeLadeira, Marcio Machado

The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of snaplage on fecal characteristics, feeding behavior, and performance of finishing bulls. Seventy-two single-sourced Nellore bulls (initial body weight [BW] = 400 ± 27.4 kg; 2.4 years old) were randomly assigned to one of three treatments (three bulls/pen; eight pen replicates/treatment). Treatments consisted of finishing diets with the following sources of fiber and energy: corn silage, reconstituted corn grain silage, and dry-ground corn (control; inclusion of 22.9, 42.1, and 20.0% of dry matter (DM), respectively); snaplage (inclusion of 65% of DM) and dry-ground corn (SNAP65); and snaplage only (inclusion of 85% of DM; SNAP85). Bulls were adapted over a 15-d period and fed for a total of 86 d. Fecal samples were collected on days 42, 65, and 73. Feeding behavior was assessed on days 51 and 69. All data were analyzed as a completely randomized block design. No differences were obtained for initial BW, gain:feed ratio, hot carcass, and dressing. The SNAP85 diet had a greater intake, followed by SNAP65 and control diets (P = 0.02). There was a tendency of greater average daily gain and final BW (P = 0.07 and 0.08, respectively) for SNAP65 diet, followed by SNAP85 and control treatments. A tendency (P = 0.07) was also observed for greater ribeye area in bulls consuming SNAP65 (85 cm2), followed by control (81 cm2) and SNAP85 (80 cm2). Bulls consuming SNAP65 and SNAP85 spent more time chewing (on average, 249 min/d) than those consuming control diet (177 min/d; P = 0.01). Fecal starch was lower, and pH was greater for SNAP85 (P = 0.01 for both variables). Overall, snaplage is a suitable ingredient in high-starch diets for providing energy and physically effective neutral detergent fiber. The inclusion of 65% of snaplage and 20% of dry-ground corn (DM basis) showed a slight superior performance in Nellore bulls.(AU)