Desirable Characterstcis of a Ration
1. The ration should have highly digestible feed ingredients For example, feather meal contains 87% CP But its digestibility is a low as 15-20%.Therefore it is not the amount which is present in the feed is important but how much is digested by the animal i.e DCP and TDN.The ration should be balanced.
2. The feed must be palatable.Evil smelling, musty, mould feed shouldnot be given. If unpalatable, improve the palatability by the addition of salt and molasses.
3. Variety of feeds in the ration makes it more palatable. A balanced by combination of proteins, vitamins and othe nutrients are furnished by the incorporating many feed in a ration.
4. The ration should contain enough of mineral matter. This is especially important in case of milch animals since each litre of milk had more than 0.7% ash.
5. The ration should be fairly laxative; otherwise the animal may suffer from constipation. Hence succulent green fodders should bi include in the ration.
6. The ration should be fairly bulky to satisfy the hunger.If it is too bulky the animal will fail to get all its nutrient requirements.
7. The ration should include green fodder. Green succulent fodders have cooling and slightly laxative action. They aid the appetite and keep the animal in good condition. They are bulky, easily digestible, rich fodders are rich in proteins and calcium.
8. Avoid sudden change in the diet; it may cause tympanitis, impaction etc. All changes of food must be gradual and slow.
9. Maintain regularity in feeding.The time of feeding should be evenly distributed so that the animals are not kept too long without feed.
10. Feed should be properly prepared to render it more digestible and palatable.etc grains chaffing of coarse fodders moistening of dry fooders, soaking of cooton seed and other cakes before feeding.
11. Economoy in labour and cost: The cost of feed and labour charges should bi minimized to make rearing of livestock profitable.
Computatation of Ration for Goats
Computation of ration involve translating the recommendations contained in feeding standards into actual formulation of feed mixtures and feeding practices. In computing rations for ruminants the dry matter, digestible protein (DCP), energy (TDN), minerals and vitamin A are given consideration.
Dry matter:
The DM requirement of an animal depends on its body weight and its status of productivity. Goat generally eat daily 3 kg DM for every 100 kg of body weight. Bucks and lactating goats are slightly heavy eaters and their DM consumption varies from 3.5 to 4.0 allowance is divided as follows.
*If the green fodder is a lengume, the proportion of green fodder may be reduced to ¼ DM of the total roughage component and the remaining ¾ is dry roughage.
Requirement of other nutrients for maintenance, growth, milk production, gestation and work are given separately.
Partitioning of DM between Roughages and Concentrates: An Example
A 30 kg goat require 900 gm dry matter per day.
If green legume is available
DM as green roughage 600 gm x ¼ = 150 gm;
(e.g. subabul green fodder (34% DM) = 150/0.34 = 0.5 kg)
DM as dry roughage 600 gm x ¾ = 450 gm
If nonlegume green fodder is available
DM as green fodder 600 gm x 1/3 = 200 gm; (e.g. Hybrid
Napier / Para grass (25% DM) = 200 gm/0.25 = 800 gm)
DM as dry roughage 600 gm x 2/3 = 400 gm
Steps in formulating a Ration
- Calculate the probable DM intake (DMI) of the animal in question.
- Calculate the nutrient requirements of the animal
- Determine the amounts of available ingredients within its expected DMI limits.
Feeding of milch animals:
The nutrient requirements of a lactating goats can be conveniently divided into two parts, viz. maintenance requirement and milk production requirement. If the lactating animal is in first and second lactation, extra allowance, neededto atake care of growth production, has also to be added.
Similarly pregnant animals are to be offered extra nutrients during the last month of gestation, the aim is that by the end of gestation period the goats should not only gain their initial body weight but also put on an extra 5 to 7 kg of body weight. This is necessary to enable the animal to withstand the stress of parturition and to maintain the persistency of milk production during the subsequent lactation period. The provision of extra nutrients should be given in the form of concentrate mixture and not as forage because roughages are not as efficient as concentrates in increasing the body weight. The rest of the ration must contain sufficient green feeds so that the colostrums secreted after parturition should be rich in vitamin A.
During the last 3 days prior to kidding, the amount of concentrate mixture should be reduced and a little warm bran is fed to keep the animal in laxative condition before calving.
After parturition, the goats should be given fresh warm water and a mash consisting of 150 gm wheat bran, 150 gm ground / cooked grain, 100 gm jiggery and 5 g each of common salt and mineral mixture. This mash may be continued for 3 to 4 days after kidding; the regular feed is gradually introduced to the goat.