Supplementation of Whole Cottonseeds in Ruminal Fermentation and Digestibility in Sheep Fed a Basal Diet with Grass Hay

Whole cottonseed (WCS) is rich in energy, protein and crude fibre content which is a good to be used as a feed supplement for ruminant. This experiment was conducted in vivo to investigate the effects of feeding WCS as a supplement for sheep fed GH (Grass hay) on the apparent feed digestibility, and the rumen fermentation. Four different diets (T1-T4) were used, GH alone, or GH plus 150, 300 or 500 g WCS d-1 (fresh basis). Latin square (4x4) experimental design was employed to examine the feed digestibility and feed fermentation. The main objective of the in vivo experiment was to examine digestibility and rumen characteristics (pH, ammonia and VFA concentration) of sheep fed the four diets. The results of this experiment indicated that supplementation of GH with WCS at level of 500 g d-1 (0.37 of the diet) reduced DM, ADF and NDF digestibility. There was no statistically significant effect on total rumen VFA, surprising the molar proportions of acetate, propionate and butyrate were altered by the highest rate of inclusion of WCS. These results suggested that WCS might have reduced the numbers or activities of cellulolytic rumen microorganisms.