Effect of temperature on water intake of Savannah Brown goats fed graded levels of maxigrain enzyme treated rice husk diets supplemented with shea butter leaves

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate the water intake and influence of temperature on savannah brown goats fed graded levels of Maxigrain® enzyme treated rice husk supplemented with shea butter leaves. A total number of 36 He- Savannah Brown Goats aged between 2-3 months with an average body weight of 5.5 kg were assigned to four dietary treatments in a completely randomized design. Treatments consisted of varied inclusion (0, 25, 50 and 75%) of Maxigrain® enzyme treated rice husk and given four (4) litres of water daily ad libtum for eight (8) weeks experimental period, during which parameters like; body weight, ambient temperature, evaporatory water loss, feed and water intake were measured. The result showed that the highest total body weight gain (4139.01g), daily weight gain (73.67g) and the lowest value (0.3533) of feed conversion ratio (FCR) were obtained in goats fed diet T2 which differed significantly (P<0.05) from other treatment groups. This study revealed that a strong correlation between body weight, feed intake and water intake. Therefore, feeding Maxigrain® enzyme treated rice husk up to 25% in the diets of savannah brown goats can be recommended.