ABSTRACT This study aimed at assessing the impacts of chemical de-bushing on herbaceous plants and ground-dwelling invertebrates at Neudamm farm. Three experimental sites (camp’s 5, 6 and 7) treated in 2015, 2016 and 2017 respectively with a general purpose arboricide were selected alongside one (camp 4) untreated site. Pitfall traps were placed under 15 Senegalia mellifera trees which were strategically selected in each site. Three quadrates, two placed contiguous under the canopy and one...
ABSTRACT This study evaluated the effects of pelleting and replacing maize with pearl millet (PM) cultivar (Okashana 2) on the production performance and cost efficiency of broilers. The experimental design used in this study was a Completely Randomized Design with a 2 x 3 factorial arrangement of treatments (i.e. two processing methods (grinding and pelleting) and three replacement levels (50%, 75% and 100%). A commercial finisher pelleted diet was used as a positive control. The first expe...
ABSTRACT The objectives of this study were to quantify and characterize the nutritional content of milled Senegalia mellifera milled biomass obtained from nine blocks at Neudamm farm and to determine the dry matter intake (DMI), apparent digestibility and nitrogen retention in female Boer goats fed with Senegalia mellifera bush based feeds. Wood ash (WA), Polyethylene glycol (PEG, 6 000) and Biochar were evaluated as tannin deactivation methods. The milled biomass of S. mellifera was mixed u...
ABSTRACT ■3 W The performance, nutrient digestibility and carcass characteristics of rabbits fed dehydrated sweet potato tops and sweet potato root meal in proportions of 100 : 0. 90 : 10, 80 : 20. 70 : 30, 60 : *40 and 50 : 50 were investigated. There was no significant difference (P>0.05) in daily feed intake. However, rabbits fed diets in proportion of 80 : 20 (T.) recorded the highest daily weight gain and was significantly different (P0.05) was reported for the apparent digestibility o...
ABSTRACT The objective of the study was to screen indigenous forage legumes found in central Namibia and evaluate their potential as fodder and protein source for livestock. The growth rate, biomass yield and nutritional value of four indigenous legumes (Otoptera burchellii, Vigna lobatifolia, Crotalaria argyraea and Cullen tomentosum) and four improved legumes (Lablab purpureus, Medicago sativa, Canavalia ensiformis and Vigna unguiculata) were evaluated in a split-plot design with Single su...
ABSTRACT This study was conducted in the Sibbinda constituency of Zambezi region in Namibia to determine and contrast the nutritional values of available browsable plants and to recommend and promote the use of these browsable plants and plant parts as cattle feed supplements during dry seasons. In depth focus group discussions and interviews were conducted to glean indigenous knowledge on how cattle utilize the browse in- situ. A total of 200 households from the Sibbinda constituency were i...
Abstract A case study assessment of rangeland condition and evaluation of the nutritional value of common grass and browse species at the Neudamm experimental farm was done from January to September 2011. The study objectives were to determine the botanical composition of grass and browse species, evaluate the nutritive values of common grass and browse species, determine rangeland condition among three camps under different management practices at the Neudamm experimental farm of the Univer...
ABSTRACT A research involving six cattle herds was carried out to determine the effect of season: intermediate, peak rains and dry seasons, on characteristics of grazing lands and grazing behaviour within peri-urban areas of three selected districts, namely: Tamale Metropolis, Savelugu Municipality and Sagnarigu District in the Northen Region of Ghana. The effect of management style, that is, Fulani and Non –Fulani management styles on grazing behaviour of cattle was also investigated. T...
Significant effort has been put into the development of cost-effective abalone cultivation systems in South Africa, but the limited availability of suitable seaweed for abalone food is an obstacle to future development. The aim of this study was to investigate whether land-based integrated aquaculture (tank cultivation) and seaweed culture using Ulva lactuca in aquaculture effluent was feasible. This study was carried out at two abalone farms: Danger Point (I & J) (140 km east of Cape Town) a...
ABSTRACT The objectives of this research were to determine the chemical composition, palatability, voluntary feed intake (VFI) and effects on body weights of Boer goats fed native forage legumes compared to lucerne and lablab. In experiment 1, the chemical composition of 14 legumes was determined. In experiment 2, the palatability of Crotalaria argyraea, C. podocarpa, Otoptera burchellii and Vigna lobatifolia was determined relative to Lucerne in a cafeteria feeding system over a 10-day peri...
Abstract Sixty “day old” broiler chickens were used to evaluate the growth performance, haematological parameters, organ characteristics and meat quality of broiler birds fed, pawpaw leaf meal (PLM). The birds were divided into four treatments with three replicates per treatment. Each replicate contained five birds. Broiler finisher rations were formulated in which PLM was incorporated at levels of 0%, 0.5%, 1.5%, and 2.0% in the control (T1), T2, T3 and T4 diets respectively. The diets ...
ABSTRACT Twenty four (24) cross bred rabbits of both sexes, made up of twelve (12) males and twelve (12) females were used for the experiment to investigate, the growth and carcass characteristics of weaner rabbits fed four(4) dietary levels of Moringa oleifera leaf, meal (MOLM). Treatments 1, 2, 3, and 4 received 0, 10, 20, and 30% MOLM, respectively. Results obtained showed that rabbits on T3 diet achieved the highest weight gain (1600.00 ±56.27g) while T2, T4 and T1 recorded weight gains...
ABSTRACT Double muscling is a heritable trait. It has been revealed that myostatin (MSTN) or growth differentiation factor 8(GDF8) is the genetic agent of this trait. The gene is a myokine, a protein that inhibits myogenesis (muscle cell growth and differentiation). In-Silico genetic analysis was done to analyze the sequences of the Myostatin gene in cattle, sheep and goat. A total of thirty-seven (37) nucleotides with their corresponding amino acid sequences comprising (26 for goat, 9 for c...
ABSTRACT The effect of dietary supplementation of organic selenium at different levels on the reproductive performance of rabbit does was investigated using 16 (12 does and 4 bucks) rabbits. The rabbits were of New Zealand white, Dutch and chinchilla breeds. The twelve rabbit does were randomly assigned to four experimental treatment groups (T0, T1, T2 and T3) according to the amount of organic selenium supplementation in a completely randomized design (CRD). Rabbits in T0 served as the cont...
ABSTRACT The study was carried out in Caprivi region situated in the North East of Namibia. The region was divided into three predominant vegetation types with substantial grazing potential. Nine (9) sites (three in each vegetation type) were randomly selected for data collection. The objective of the study was to estimate and compare the biomass production of the rangelands of the three vegetation types in the Caprivi. At each site 200m X 100m transect was laid down for collecting herbaceou...