Vol. 7, Issue 7 (2018)

Author(s):
Kiran Attri and Avijit Dey

Abstract:
The study was conducted to examine the effect of composite feed additive on milk urea (MU) concentration the lactating buffaloes. A total of 18 Murrah lactating buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) (avg. milk yield 10.83± 1.56 kg) and (avg. live weight, 507.24 ± 44.18 kg; parity, 2-5) at early stage (30 days) of lactation were selected and divided into two groups of 8 animals each using a completely randomized block design. They were allocated into two dietary groups, control and treatment containing basal feed without or with composite feed additives, respectively. Composite feed additive (CFA) was fed @ 2.5% of total dry matter intake in the treatment group along with concentrate mixture. The urea conc. (mg dl^-1) in milk of experimental buffaloes at weekly interval was recorded. Initial milk urea (MU) concentration was comparable (p>0.05) between the groups. The concentration of MU in weekly milk samples throughout the experiment remained variable among the buffaloes. However, overall mean concentration of MU (mg dl^-1) irrespective of periods remained lower (p = 0.01) in CFA fed buffaloes in comparison to control. It was concluded that composite feed additive reduces the milk urea concentration and protein degradation in rumen in lactating Murrah buffaloes.