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Supplementation of maize stover with cowpea on growth performance of sheep

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 November 2017

K.D.N. Koralagama ,
S. Fernandez-Rivera ,
J. Hanson ,
F. L. Mould ,
E. Owen ,
D.I. Givens  and
P. Q. Crauford
K.D.N. Koralagama
Affiliation:
International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Department of Agriculture, The University of Reading, Earley Gate, P.O. Box 237, Reading, RG6 6AR, UK
S. Fernandez-Rivera
Affiliation:
International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
J. Hanson
Affiliation:
International Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
F. L. Mould
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, The University of Reading, Earley Gate, P.O. Box 237, Reading, RG6 6AR, UK
E. Owen
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, The University of Reading, Earley Gate, P.O. Box 237, Reading, RG6 6AR, UK
D.I. Givens
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, The University of Reading, Earley Gate, P.O. Box 237, Reading, RG6 6AR, UK
P. Q. Crauford
Affiliation:
Department of Agriculture, The University of Reading, Earley Gate, P.O. Box 237, Reading, RG6 6AR, UK
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Extract

While livestock sector is the back-bone of Ethiopian economy, production levels are low due to a variety of causes. It is characterized by low milk production, poor growth rates, extended calving or lambing intervals and a relatively late age at maturity. The major constrain for this is seasonality of feed quality and poor availability during the dry season, with nitrogen supply especially limiting. However legume forages such as cowpea offer the possibility to enhance dietary N levels and improve livestock production (Abule et al., 1995). With its quick growth, drought resistance and rapid ground cover cowpea has become an essential component of sustainable subsistence agriculture in marginal lands and drier regions of the tropics. This study was conducted to examine the ability of cowpea forages, offered as a supplement to low quality maize stover, to enhance intake and production performance in growing Ethiopian highland sheep.

Type
Poster Presentations
Information
Proceedings of the British Society of Animal Science , Volume 2004 , 2004 , pp. 203
Copyright
Copyright © The British Society of Animal Science 2004

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References

Abule, E., Umunna, N.N., Yami, A. and Nsahlai, (1995). Effect of cowpea and Dolichos lablab hay supplementation on NH3 concentration and microbial -N supply in calves fed tef straw. In: Proceedings of the Third National Conference of the Ethiopian Society of Animal Production, p 105–111.Google Scholar