Effects of dietary protease supplementation on soybean meal protein, dry matter digestibility, and productive performance in starter-to-finisher pigs.

Background And Aim: Pig industries are currently facing a crisis in terms of protein and energy costs. Proteases were used to increase protein digestibility and metabolizable energy (ME) in diets. This study evaluated the effects of protease supplementation on protein digestibility and productive performance in starter-to-finisher pigs.

Enhancement of selectivity, 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 level, alkaline phosphatase activity and reproductive performance in gilts and primiparous sows using 14-epimer of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3.

Selecting breed-worthy gilts as sow replacements is essential for continuity of pig production cycle. Though vitamin D3 (VD3) is known to enhance reproductive performance of multiparous sows, there is still a knowledge gap on its impact in developing gilts and primiparous sows. This study was aimed to quantify plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25(OH)D3), serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and examine the reproductive performance of primiparous sows fed diets supplemented with regular VD3, and its 25(OH)D3 epimers.

Evaluation of pineapple stem starch as a substitute for corn grain or ground cassava in a cattle feedlot for 206 or 344 days: feedlot performance, carcass characteristics, meat quality, and economic evaluation.

The pineapple stem starch substituted for ground cassava or corn as a carbohydrate source in the concentrate diet. The experiment used 36 Holstein crossbred steers (aged 22 months) with an average initial body weight of 453.0 ± 35.

Cashew nut shell liquid potentially mitigates methane emission from the feces of Thai native ruminant livestock by modifying fecal microbiota.

The methane-mitigating potency of cashew nutshell liquid (CNSL) was evaluated by investigating gas production from batch cultures using feces from Thai native ruminants that had been incubated for different periods. Feces was obtained from four Thai native cattle and four swamp buffaloes reared under practical feeding conditions at the Kasetsart University farm, Thailand. Fecal slurry from the same farm was also included in the analysis.

Feeding cashew nut shell liquid decreases methane production from feces by altering fecal bacterial and archaeal communities in Thai local ruminants.

The effect of feeding cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL) on fecal fermentation products and microbiota was investigated in Thai native cattle and swamp buffaloes. Four of each animal were fed rice straw and concentrate diet with control pellets without CNSL for 4 weeks, followed by the same diet with pellets containing CNSL for another 4 weeks, so that CNSL was administered at a level of 4 g/100 kg body weight. Feces were collected the last 2 days in each feeding period.

Effect of pineapple stem starch feeding on rumen microbial fermentation, blood lipid profile, and growth performance of fattening cattle.

Pineapple stem starch (PS) was evaluated for its suitability as a new starch source in concentrate for fattening cattle, based on the growth performance, blood profile, and rumen parameters of 36 steers in a 206-day feeding study. PS was formulated as a 40% concentrate and fed with forage in comparison with ground corn (GC) and ground cassava (CA) formulated at the same level. PS feeding improved weight gain and feed conversion ratio without affecting feed intake.

Selection of plant oil as a supplemental energy source by monitoring rumen profiles and its dietary application in Thai crossbred beef cattle.

Objective: The present study was conducted to select a plant oil without inhibitory effects on rumen fermentation and microbes, and to determine the optimal supplementation level of the selected oil in a series of in vitro studies for dietary application. Then, the selected oil was evaluated in a feeding study using Thai crossbred beef cattle by monitoring growth, carcass, blood and rumen characteristics.

Methods: Rumen fluid was incubated with substrates containing one of three different types of plant oil (coconut oil, palm oil and soybean oil) widely available in Thailand.