Performance of West African Dwarf (WAD) Goats Fed N-treated Source and Forage Supplemented Cassava Peels in Humid Cross River State, Nigeria

Abstract

An investigation to ascertain the performance of West African Dwarf (WAD) goats fed N-treated source and forage supplemented cassava peels (CSP) in Cross River State, Nigeria was carried out. Cassava peels were treated and supplemented with materials rich in nitrogen: fertilizer grade urea [U] (T1 – CSP + U), broiler litter (T2 – CSP + BL), sweet potato (T3 – CSP + SPF) and cassava (T4 – CSP + CSF) forages in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) for 90 days of the growth trial. Results revealed that the bucks in the cassava peel forage supplemented groups (T3 and T4) have better performance in terms of feed intake, weight gain, feed conversion ratio (FCR) and dry matter digestibility. This is due to the presence of fermentable and readily degradable proteins in the sweet potato and cassava forages. It is therefore recommended that basal crop by-product supplementation by small holder goat keepers should be geared towards the use of forages which is seen as a cheap and alternative supplement with crop by-products