Management of Meskit (Prosopis juliflora) Tree in Oman: The Case of Using Meskit (Prosopis juliflora) Pods for Feeding Omani Sheep
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 32769
Management of Meskit (Prosopis juliflora) Tree in Oman: The Case of Using Meskit (Prosopis juliflora) Pods for Feeding Omani Sheep

Authors: S. Al-Khalasi, O. Mahgoub, H. Yaakub

Abstract:

This study evaluated the use of raw or processed Prosopis juliflora (Meskit) pods as a major ingredient in a formulated ration to provide an alternative non-conventional concentrate for livestock feeding in Oman. Dry Meskit pods were reduced to lengths of 0.5- 1.0 cm to ensure thorough mixing into three diets. Meskit pods were subjected to two types of treatments; roasting and soaking. They were roasted at 150оC for 30 minutes using a locally-made roasting device (40 kg barrel container rotated by electric motor and heated by flame gas cooker). Chopped pods were soaked in tap water for 24 hours and dried for 2 days under the sun with frequent turning. The Meskit-pod-based diets (MPBD) were formulated and pelleted from 500 g/kg ground Meskit pods, 240 g/kg wheat bran, 200 g/kg barley grain, 50 g/kg local dried sardines and 10 g/kg of salt. Twenty four 10 months-old intact Omani male lambs with average body weight of 27.3 kg (± 0.5 kg) were used in a feeding trial for 84 days. They were divided (on body weight basis) and allocated to four diet combination groups. These were: Rhodes grass hay (RGH) plus a general ruminant concentrate (GRC); RGH plus raw Meskit pods (RMP) based concentrate; RGH plus roasted Meskit pods (ROMP) based concentrate; RGH plus soaked Meskit pods (SMP) based concentrate Daily feed intakes and bi-weekly body weights were recorded. MPBD had higher contents of crude protein (CP), acid detergent fibre (ADF) and neutral detergent fibre (NDF) than the GRC. Animals fed various types of MPBD did not show signs of ill health. There was a significant effect of feeding ROMP on the performance of Omani sheep compared to RMP and SMP. The ROMP fed animals had similar performance to those fed the GRC in terms of feed intake, body weight gain and feed conversion ratio (FCR).This study indicated that roasted Meskit pods based diet may be used instead of the commercial concentrate for feeding Omani sheep without adverse effects on performance. It offers a cheap alternative source of protein and energy for feeding Omani sheep. Also, it might help in solving the spread impact of Meskit trees, maintain the ecosystem and helping in preserving the local tree species.

Keywords: Growth, Meskit, Omani sheep, Prosopis juliflora.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI): doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1099547

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2717

References:


[1] A.Y. Abdullah, B.Y. Abdel Hafes, ”Inclusion of Prosopis juliflora pods in finishing Awassi lamb diets",. Proc. 11thAAAP Animal Science Congress, vol. 2, pp. 373–375, 2004.
[2] A.S .Ali, S.T .Sarawut, R. K. Kaewtrakulpong., "Effect of Feeding Prosopis juliflora Pods and Leaves on performance and carcass characteristics of Afar Sheep". KasetsartJ. (Nat. Sci.) 46, 871 – 881, 2012.
[3] H.M. Andrade-Montemayor, A.V. Bodova-Torres, "Alternative foods for small ruminants in semiarid zones, the case of Mesquite (Prosopis laevigata spp.) and Nopal (Opuntia spp.)" Small Rumin. Res. 98, 83-92, 2011.
[4] AOAC, "Official Methods of Analysis, 17th ed. Association of Official Analytical Chemists", Gaithersburg,MD, USA, 2000.
[5] A.M. Batista, A.F. Mustafa, J.J. McKinnan, S. Kennasha, "In situ ruminal and intestinal nutrient digestibility of mesquite (Prosopis juliflora) pods". Anim.Feed Sci. Technol. 100, 107 – 112, 2002.
[6] B.S. Obeidat, Y.A. Abdullah, F.A. Al-Lataifeh, "The effect of partial replacement of barley grains byProsopis juliflora pods on growth performance, nutrient intake, digestibility, and carcass characteristics of Awassi lambs fed finishing diets". Anim. Feed Sci. Technol. 146, 42-54, 2007.
[7] Y. Benjamin, j. Bakai, D. Benjamin, R., Eyal, "Edibility and digestibility of mesquite (Prosopis juliflora ) pods by sheep". Hassadeh 61, 1359 – 1360, 1981.
[8] J.P. Cristina, M. L. Pereira, C. A. Santana,D. Oliveira, L. S. Argôlo, H. G. Silva, M. S. Pedreira, P. J. Almeida, A. B. Santos. "Mesquite pod meal in diets for lactating goats". Revista Brasileira de Zootecnia42, 102-108, 2013.
[9] A.A. Ibrahim, E.S. Gaili,. "Performance and carcass traits of goats fed on diets containing different proportionsof mesquite (Prosopis chilensis)". Trop. Agric. (Trinidad) 62, 97–99, 1985.
[10] O. Mahgoub, I. T. Kadim, D.S. Al-Ajmi, N.M. Al-Saqry, A.S. Al-Abri, A.R. Ritchie, A.S. Al-Halhali, N.E. Forsberg, "Use of local range tree (Prosopis spp.) pods in feeding sheep and goats in the Sultanate of Oman". Options Méditerranéennes. Serie A: Séminaires Méditerranéennes, Numéro 59, 191-195, 2004.
[11] O. Mahgoub, I. T. Kadim, D.S. Al-Ajmi, N.M. Al-Saqry, A.S. Al-Abri, K. Annamalai, N.E. Forsberg, "Effects of replacing Rhodesgrass (Chlorisgayana) hay with ghaf ( Prosopiscineraria ) pods on performance of Omani native sheep". Trop.Anim.Hlth. Prod. 36, 281 – 294, 2004.
[12] O. Mahgoub, I.T. Kadim, E.H. Johnson., A. Srikandakumar, N.M. Al- Saqry, A. Al-Abri,, Ritchie, "The use of a concentrate containing Meskit (Prosopis juliflora) pods and date palm by-products to replace commercial concentrate in diets of Omani sheep". Anim. Feed Sci. Technol. 120, 33- 41, 2005.
[13] O. Mahgoub, I.K. Kadim, N.E. Forsberg, D.S. Al-Ajmi, N.M. Al-Saqry, A.S. Al-Abri, K. Annamalai, "Evaluation of . (Prosopis juliflora) pods as a feed goats". Anim. Feed Sci. Technol.121, 319-327, 2005b.
[14] NRC (National Research Council), "Nutrient Requirements of Sheep". National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC, USA, 1981.
[15] R.L.Ott,. "Analysis of variance in some standard experimental designs". In: Introduction to Statistical Methods and Data Analysis. Duxbury Press, Belmont, CA , pp . 842 – 928, 1993.
[16] M. Ortega-Nieblas, L. Văzquez-Moreno, M.R. Robles-Burgueňo, "Protein quality and antinutritonal factors of wild legume seeds from the Sonoran desert". J. Agric. Food Chem. 44, 3130-3132, 1996.
[17] M.A. Habit, J.C. Saavedra, "The Current State of Knowledge on Prosopis juliflora. FAO, Plant Production and Protection Division, Rome, Italy, 1988.
[18] K. Ravikala, A.M. Patel, K.S. Murthy, K.N. Wadhwani, "Growth efficiency in feedlot lambs on Prosopis juliflora based diets".Small Rumin. Res. 16, 227-231, 1995.
[19] SAS,"User’sGuide:Statistics,Version5.SASInstituteInc.,Cary,NC,USA. 1991.
[20] P. J. Van Soest, J. B. Roberston, B.A. Lewis, "Methods for dietary fibre NDF and non-starch polysaccharides in relation to animal nutrition". J.DairySci.74,3583–3597, 1991.