The effects of feeding chickpea grains on the lactating performance and blood metabolites of ewes

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to see how replacing soybean meal with chickpea grains (CHPE) affected the performance, milk production, digestibility, nitrogen (N) balance, and blood metabolites of Awassi ewes. Thirty Awassi ewes with an initial body weight of 53.2 ± 2.31 kg and aged between 4 and 5 years were selected and randomly assigned to different feeding treatments (10 ewes per diet). Dietary dry matter (DM) was (1) 0 g/kg CHPE (CON); (2) 150 g/kg CHPE (CHPE150); and (3) 300 g/kg CHPE (CHPE300). The costs of these diets were determined using current ingredient prices. The experiment lasted 9 weeks. During the trial, ewes and their lambs were kept in individual pens. Daily nutrient intake was monitored. Every 2 weeks, the body weight (BW), milk output, and composition of the ewes were measured. In comparison to the CON diet, adding the CHPE to the experimental diets lowered feed costs (US$) per ton by 11% for CHPE150 and 21% for CHPE300. The CHPE300 group had a lower (P < 0.05) consumption of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) than the CHPE150 group, while the CON group had the highest (P < 0.05) intake of NDF. The intake of ether extract (EE) (g/d) was higher (P < 0.05) in the ewes fed the CHPE300 compared to the ewes fed CHPE150, and it was lowest in ewes fed the CON diet. When the ewes were fed the CHPE300 and the CHPE150 diets, the total solids (g/kg) in each kg of milk produced per day was higher (P < 0.05) than when they were fed the CON diet. The cost per kg of milk produced by the ewes was lowered (P < 0.05) when the CHPE was added to their diets. When the ewes on the CHPE300 and the CHPE150 diets were compared to the ewes on the CON diet, crude protein (CP) digestibility was higher (P < 0.05). The EE digestibility was higher (P < 0.05) for the CHPE300 group, while the CHPE150 group had an intermediate outcome. The CHPE300 group had lower amounts of N in their feces and urine (P < 0.05) than the other groups. The retention of N (g/100 g) in the ewes fed the CHPE300, and the CHPE150 diets was higher (P < 0.05) than in the ewes fed the CON diet. As a result, the current research demonstrates that part of soybean meal and barley grain could be replaced with chickpeas in the diets of lactating Awassi ewes.

Keywords: Awassi ewes; Chickpeas; Intake and digestibility; Nursing performance.