DOI: https://doi.org/10.5513/JCEA01/26.1.4295

2025, 26 (1)   p. 45-55

Şevket EVCİ, Mehmet KARSLI

Abstract

This study aimed to determine the in-situ nutrient degradation and degradation kinetics of some starch-rich cereal and legume grains in sheep consuming diet containing high (32%) level of starch. Three cannulated Akkaraman sheep, 5-6 years old, were utilized in the study. Sheep with rumen cannula were fed with diets containing 32% starch 10 days before and throughout the trial. The study used barley, and corn as starch-rich cereal grains, Hungarian vetch, and forage pea grains as pulse grains to determine nutrient degradations. The feed samples used in the in-situ study were incubated for 0, 2, 4, 8, 12, 24 and 48 hours in the rumen for 3 sheep as 6 replicates for each incubation time. Dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP) and starch degradation rate of feeds were calculated. The water-soluble fraction, the potentially degradable fraction, and the non-degradable nutrient fraction were also calculated. Degradation kinetics of nutrients were determined. By-pass CP contents of feedstuffs were calculated using 12 h incubation values. Except for starch, all degradation values for all incubation times, degradation rates, and nutrient fractions for all nutrients were significantly different among feedstuffs (P < 0.05). It can be concluded from this study that DM, OM and CP degradations of corn and forage peas and Hungarian vetch (HV) were higher after 48 hours of incubation, while starch degradations of barley were higher than corn. From the point of view of acidosis, it was concluded that the degradation rates of corn and HV were significantly slower than barley and forage pea and that these feedstuffs can be preferred at higher rates, especially in high starch rations, which may reduce the risk of acidosis.

Keywords

In situ, starch-rich grain, degradation, starch, crude protein, by-pass protein

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