Effect of including ensiled broiler-house litter in the rations of sheep on the digestibility of nutrients and the retention of nitrogen

Abstract

The palatability and nutritive value of rations for sheep containing ensiled broiler-house litter and crushed barley (1:1 ratio) were compared with rations containing unprocessed broiler-house litter and barley. The ensiling of poultry litter together with barley (30 per cent moisture) for three or six weeks resulted in increased feed intakes compared with diets containing poultry litter ensiled alone for three or six weeks and mixed with barley or a diet in which neither poultry litter nor the barley were ensiled. The nitrogen digestibility of the totally ensiled diets was greater than that of the other diets when these values were corrected for differences in feed intake by covariance. Nitrogen retention by the sheep fed the totally ensiled diets was also greater than when they were fed the other diets. The greater feed intakes and nitrogen retention of the sheep when fed the totally ensiled diets compared with those diets that were partially ensiled or not ensiled at all may have been due to a change in the form of nitrogen and to the production of volatile fatty acids during the fermentation of the rations.