NUTRIENT DIGESTIBILITY OF SHEEP FED DIFFERENT MULTI-NUTRIENT BLOCKS (MNB) AS SUPPLEMENT TO MILLET STOVER IN SEMI-ARID ZONE OF NIGERIA

Abstract

The study was conducted to determine the influence of multi nutrient blocks (MNB) as supplement to millet stover in the semi-arid region of Nigeria. From the results of proximate and in sacco degradability properties, four multi nutrient blocks (MNB) were selected and subjected to in vivo trial. Twenty (20) Yankasa sheep with average weight of 21.75 kg were used for the feeding trial. Each group of four animals with four replicates were randomly assigned to one of the five (5) treatments in a completely randomized design. Data on nutrient digestibility were collected and subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA). The study lasted 56 days. The results of the present study showed that there were significant (P <0.05) differences in all the parameters measured. On average, T3 (55% wheat bran + 5% locust bean pulp + 40% Faidherbia albida) was better in values compared to the other four treatments. Therefore, use of multi nutrient blocks is strongly recommended in feeding regime of ruminant animals in semi-arid regions where the quality roughages is poor.