the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of frequency of feeding total mixed ration (tmr) on total-tract digestibility, milk production and composition in lactating cows, using meta-analysis and meta-regression approaches. data of fourteen experiments having containing 25 comparisons between treatment (higher feeding frequency) and control (lower feeding frequency) groups, defined...

Six ruminally cannulated steers were used to determine the effects of altering dietary concentrates on fiber digestion. Diets contained 30, 60 or 90% of a concentrate based on flaked sorghum grain plus a 50:50 mixture of wheat straw and alfalfa hay. Total tract digestibility of NDF was not altered, but digestibility of potentially digested NDF (PDF) decreased (P less than .05) from 92 to 48% as...

Sixteen Holstein cows in midlactation were used in a 4 × 4 Latin square design to determine the effect of replacing alfalfa neutral detergent fiber (NDF), with NDF from a combination of whole linted cottonseed, dried distillers grains, and wheat middlings. The four diets were a basal control diet that was low in forage and fiber [(5.9 g of corn silage NDF and 6.1 g of alfalfa NDF/100 g of dry m...

portion of UIP and the amino acid spectrum of the UIP. Therefore, it is absolutely essential to measure or predict the relative amounts of MP (metabolizable protein) from microbes and UIP in any given feeding scenario. Both the production potential of the beef animal and microbial protein synthesis are driven by energy. It is impossible to predict MP supplied to the lower gut and MP needs of th...

We quanti®ed the effect of dietary non®ber carbohydrate (NFC) concentration (30, 35, 40, or 45% of DM) on in vitro digestion kinetics of neutral detergent ®ber (NDF) from alfalfa and corn silages at pH 5.8 or 6.8. The objective was to simulate the effect of diets differing in effective ®ber content on the optimal NFC-to-NDF ratio that resulted in maximal ®ber digestion. Ash-free NDF was determi...

Diets with low forage concentration may depress feed intake and average daily gain, while diets with high forage concentration may limit feed intake due to rumen filling. Adequate forage level may range from 7% to 14% in ration for feedlot lambs, depending on forage source and ingredient composition. Small amounts of good quality forage may improve growth performance of sheep in the first stage...

We conducted a study to determine the effects of treating barley grain with a fibrolytic enzyme mixture on chewing activities, ruminal fermentation, and total tract digestibility in cattle. We also investigated the potential benefits of using barley straw rather than barley silage as a roughage source in high-grain diets for feedlot cattle. Steers were given ad libitum access to one of four die...

To determine the effect of forage moisture content on intake and digestion kinetics in sheep, a metabolism trial was conducted using 16 mature wethers (44 kg BW) in a completely randomized design. Forage was harvested at two maturities in early spring from a naturalized pasture composed of temperate grass and legume species. Herbage was harvested at either 8 (early) or 16 cm (late) in height an...