Dry matter intake, dry matter digestibility and growth performance in goats fed grass-based diet (Brachiaria or Cenchrus) compared with a concentrate-based diet

Dry matter digestibility (DMD), dry matter intake (DMI) and growth performance of concentrate- and forage-based diets were investigated using 24 growing Blended goats (12 males, 12 females) weighing 16.5±1.2 kg (mean±sd). Goats were blocked by sex and assigned randomly to three dietary treatments that were fed for 10 weeks, after two weeks of adaptation. Dietary treatments were MRG (40% maize bran, 40% rice bran, 20% Gliricidia leaf meal), BG (80% Brachiaria brizantha cv. Piatã, 20% Gliricidia leaf meal) and CG (80% Cenchrus ciliaris, 20% Gliricidia leaf meal). All diets contained sufficient nutrients to meet the requirements of growing goats. The MRG diet had lower DMI than CG, likely because MRG had small particle size and goats adapted slowly to that diet. Average daily weight gain was 10.7, 9.9 and 22.8 g/day for MRG, BG, and CG respectively, and did not differ among the diets. Goats fed MRG had lower overall live weight change than goats fed CG, while goats fed BG were intermediate. These findings indicate that B. brizantha cv. Piatã and C. ciliaris are equally useful as supplementary feedstuffs for growing goats during the dry season.