Dry Matter Intake, Digestibility and Milk Production of Toggenburg Dairy Goats Fed on Napier Grass (Pennisetum Purpureum) Basal Diet Supplemented With a Concentrate in Kenya

Abstract

Dairy goats are an important source of nutritious milk. The main basal feeds for dairy goats in Kenya are Napier grass and crop residues that are low in nutrients, and therefore they need energy and protein supplementation to enhance milk production. Dairy meal is the main protein and energy supplement for dairy animals. Relevant information on the appropriate amount of dairy meal to supplement the basal diet to feed dairy goats, the daily total dry matter intake and milk production upon supplementation is scarce in Kenya. Therefore, a concentrate with a crude protein content of 160 gkg-1 DM and metabolizable energy content of 10 MJkg-1 DM was constituted to represent the dairy meal, and fed to lactating Toggenburg dairy goats on Napier grass basal diet, at supplementation levels of 0, 150, 300 and 450 g/goat day-1 in a 4 x 4 Latin square design. The basal and total dry matter intake by the goats were 0.86-0.99 and 0.99-1.31 kg DM/goat day-1, respectively, with a milk production of 306.8-476.9 mL/goat day-1. The dry matter and organic matter digestibility of the diets were 767-786 and 792-804 gkg-1 DM, respectively. It was concluded that farmers feed the energy and protein concentrate at 300 g/goat day-1, as it resulted in the highest daily milk production.