Livestock Science最新文献

{"title":"Corrigendum to “Investigation of apparent digestibility, caecal fermentation and microbiota of rabbit fed with raffinose” [Volume 295, May 2025, 105692]","authors":"Kai Yang, Shuo Yang, Zixuan Tie, Zhenxin Li, Meinan Ji, Kun Wang, Shugui Zheng, Fangfang Li","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105702","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105702","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"296 ","pages":"Article 105702"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143854947","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Validity and reliability of animal-based measures of welfare protocols in finisher pigs","authors":"Mathilde Coutant,&nbsp;Benjamin H. Rasmussen,&nbsp;Tine Rousing,&nbsp;Lene J. Pedersen,&nbsp;Mona L.V. Larsen","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105704","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105704","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Animal-based measures are a key part of welfare protocols, but to what extent these measures can report differences in welfare among pigs provided e.g. with different accesses to valued resources (i.e., whether the measures are valid) and whether a single measurement point is representative of the entire production period (i.e., whether the measures are reliable) is not well documented. In this study, a total of 814 finishing pigs were assigned to either 1 of 4 welfare improving treatments (increased space: 1.4 [S9] or 2.1 m² [S6] per pig, provision of roughage [R], extra provision of enrichments [E]) or to a control treatment (C). Animal-based measures of a refined version of the Welfare Quality® protocol were assessed weekly (Batch 1) or once during the period (Batch 2). All parameters showed poor reliability throughout the 10 weekly assessments of Batch 1. Among the clinical parameters, only few indicators showed differences between welfare improving treatments. Among the behavioural indicators, differences were recorded for manipulation of the pen (<em>C</em> &gt; S6) and of enrichment materials (<em>E</em> &gt; all other treatments). When aggregating indicators into domains (nutrition, health, environment, behaviour), the reliability did not improve, and treatment effects were recorded within the domain of nutrition (<em>R</em> &gt; all other treatments), and behaviour (<em>E</em> &gt; S9). When aggregating domains into a final welfare score, both reliability and validity, as defined for the study, were poor. These results call for attention over the interpretation of the animal-based measures obtained from a single welfare assessment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"296 ","pages":"Article 105704"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143873482","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The impact of post-weaning feeding strategies on feed consumption and body weight variation in pigs","authors":"Katrijn Hooyberghs ,&nbsp;Sophie Goethals ,&nbsp;Amy de Mey ,&nbsp;Wim Gorssen ,&nbsp;Roel Meyermans ,&nbsp;Léa Chapard ,&nbsp;Evy Beckers ,&nbsp;Steven Janssens ,&nbsp;Nadine Buys ,&nbsp;Sam Millet","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105703","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105703","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>At weaning, piglets experience stress due to various changes. Adequate post-weaning feed intake is crucial for optimal growth. Pre-starter feed may facilitate this transition. Feeding strategies were used to test the following hypotheses: 1) use of the same type of feed bowl for pre-starter feed in both farrowing pen and nursery enhances piglet performance; 2) liquid pre-starter provided post-weaning positively impacts piglet performance; and 3) these feeding strategies may have long-lasting effects on performance and carcass quality.</div><div>In two experiments, all piglets received pre-starter feed in a bowl in the farrowing pen. After weaning, piglets from one litter were split over two treatments.</div><div>In Experiment 1 (120 piglets, 26 pens), piglets received either 1) ad libitum weaning feed in a standard nursery feeder plus ad libitum pre-starter in the familiar farrowing bowl during the first week after weaning (two-feeder) or 2) ad libitum weaning feed after a fixed volume of pre-starter in a standard nursery feeder (one-feeder). One-feeder piglets therefore had to consume all pre-starter before accessing the weaning feed, while two-feeder piglets could choose between feeds at the same time. Two-feeder piglets consumed less pre-starter (77 vs. 125 g/d) but more weaning feed (188 vs. 68 g/d) and total feed (266 vs. 193 g/d) during the first week post-weaning. However, their gain-to-feed ratio was lower (0.47 vs. 0.60 kg/kg). In the following week, the two-feeder group showed slower weight gain (209 vs. 239 g/d) and tended to consume less feed (302 vs. 346 g/d/piglet) compared to the one-feeder group.</div><div>In Experiment 2 (164 piglets, 32 pens), during the first week post-weaning all piglets received pre-starter in the same type of bowl as in the farrowing pen, either as dry feed or liquid feed, with weaning feed presented to all piglets in the standard nursery feeder. Pens with liquid pre-starter consumed more pre-starter (64 vs. 26 g/d) and total feed (170 vs. 134 g/d) and showed lower weight variation (15.7 vs. 18.4 %) during the first week post-weaning. However, a lower gain-to-feed ratio (0.88 vs. 0.90 kg/kg) was observed for pens with liquid pre-starter over the first five weeks post-weaning. Furthermore, the average daily gain (370 vs. 317 g/d) during the second week post-weaning was higher with liquid pre-starter.</div><div>In summary, both feeding strategies impact post-weaning performance. Liquid pre-starter increased feed intake, body weight uniformity and growth performance short term, but reduced feed efficiency. Despite short term effects post-weaning, no significant long term effects on performance were observed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"296 ","pages":"Article 105703"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143848444","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The relationship between activity level, litter performance and motion symmetry in adult sows","authors":"Katja Nilsson,&nbsp;Anna Bergh","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105701","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105701","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Lameness and poor limb quality of the sow is, apart from being painful and causing discomfort to the sow, also associated with an increased risk of crushing of piglets. Records of sow activity, as a potential indicator for increased risk of crushing, or increased risk of limb problems, were studied. Records of activity were collected using accelerometers attached to a collar around the neck of the sow. Data was collected on 63 sows at Research centre Lövsta, Uppsala, before and after farrowing. The accelerometers recorded movements over a period of 2.5 days per recording period. Sows were housed individually in farrowing pens with access to straw. Litter size at birth, number of dead piglet and cause of death was recorded by the staff in the stable. A pressure mat was used to investigate how sow gait was affected before and after farrowing. Differences in sow gait parameters were small before and after farrowing. The results show a significant difference in stride velocity between the left and right forelimbs. Further differences were recorded for the stride length of hind limbs. No significant changes were recorded for the weight load distribution between limbs. Activity levels varied over the day with highest activity during the day and lowest at night and in the early morning. Sows with higher levels of activity had a larger proportion of dead piglets, and high levels of activity in total after farrowing was associated with a higher proportion of crushed piglets. However, sows with higher activity levels during the night before farrowing had a lower proportion of crushed piglets. There was no association between activity levels and signs of lameness. In conclusion, activity may serve as an indicator of risk of piglet mortality, but activity in the farrowing pen does not seem to be a useful indicator of lameness.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"296 ","pages":"Article 105701"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143873481","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Total nutrient digestibility and small intestine starch digestion in Nellore and Nellore × Angus steers fed whole shelled corn-based diet with or without roughage","authors":"Priscilla D. Teixeira ,&nbsp;Aline C. Rodrigues ,&nbsp;Daniel R. Casagrande ,&nbsp;Erick D. Batista ,&nbsp;José M. Oliveira ,&nbsp;Ana C.O. Santos ,&nbsp;Pedro V.R. Paulino ,&nbsp;Marcio M. Ladeira","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105699","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105699","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study aimed to evaluate total nutrient digestibility, pancreatic α‐amylase, and the expression of <em>maltase-glucoamylase (MGAM)</em> and <em>solute carrier family 5 member 1 (SLC5A1)</em> in the small intestine in Nellore and Nellore × Angus steers fed whole shelled corn-based diet with or without inclusion of sugarcane bagasse as a roughage source. Sixteen Nellore and 16 Nellore × Angus steers with 353 ± 25.3 kg were allotted in a completely randomized design using a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement (2 breeds and 2 diets). The two experimental diets [dry matter (DM) basis] comprised: 800 g/kg of whole shelled corn and 200 g/kg of protein-mineral pellet (<strong>WSC)</strong> or 740 g/kg of whole shelled corn, 200 g/kg of protein-mineral pellet, and 60 g/kg of sugarcane bagasse (<strong>WSCB</strong>). The intake of DM and other dietary components were greater in steers fed WSCB than in steers fed WSC (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01). However, WSCB decreased the total tract digestibility of DM, organic matter, crude protein, neutral detergent fiber, and total digestible nutrients (<em>P</em> ≤ 0.01) and tended to decrease ether extract digestibility (<em>P</em> = 0.08). There were no effects of breed on DM intake, nutrient intake, or nutrient digestibility (<em>P</em> &gt; 0.10). Feeding WSCB to steers increased fecal output as well as starch excretion in feces (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01), whereas it tended to decrease starch in feces when expressed as a percentage (<em>P</em> = 0.09). Steers fed WSCB had greater pancreatic α-amylase activity (<em>P</em> = 0.03) and tended to have greater <em>MGAM</em> (<em>P</em> = 0.09) expression. On the other hand, animals fed WSC had greater <em>SLC5A1</em> (<em>P</em> = 0.03) expressions. In conclusion, WSC diet increased total nutrient digestibility. However, there was no effect of diet on total starch digestibility, but the inclusion of sugarcane bagasse may increase small intestine starch digestibility since it has greater pancreatic α-amylase activity and <em>MGAM</em> expression.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"296 ","pages":"Article 105699"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143873480","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Net energy requirements for maintenance and weight gain in male guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) of the Peru breed","authors":"W.A. Tapie ,&nbsp;S.L. Posada-Ochoa ,&nbsp;J.R. Rosero-Noguera","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105700","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105700","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study aimed to estimate the net and metabolizable energy requirements for maintenance (NE_m, ME_m) and gain (NE_g, ME_g), along with the efficiencies of metabolizable energy utilization for maintenance (<em>k_m</em>) and weight gain (<em>k_g</em>), in intact male guinea pigs of the Peru breed. Sixty animals were assigned to three feeding levels: <em>ad libitum</em>, restricted (75 % of <em>ad libitum</em> intake), and maintenance (150–160 kcal DE/kg BW^0.75/day). A metabolism trial and a comparative slaughter technique were employed to determine gross energy intake (GEI), digestible energy (DE), metabolizable energy (ME), heat production (HP), and retained energy (RE). NE_m and ME_m were estimated at 100 and 149 kcal/kg EBW⁰·⁷⁵/day, respectively, with corresponding efficiencies <em>k_m</em> and <em>k_g</em> of 67 % and 48 %. The NE_g requirement increased with both body weight (BW) and daily weight gain (DWG), ranging from 15.3 to 18.7 kcal/day for 5 g DWG in animals weighing 900 to 1200 g. The NE_g ranged between 3.06 and 3.74 kcal/g of BW gained, with higher values attributed to increased fat deposition. These findings highlight the importance of considering both growth rate and body composition in energy requirement estimations. The results support the development of more accurate and tailored feeding systems for guinea pigs raised for meat production.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"295 ","pages":"Article 105700"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143817108","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The effect of finishing diet neutral detergent fibre content on South African Mutton Merino lamb performance, meat fatty acid composition, tenderness and stability","authors":"Inalene De Klerk ,&nbsp;Arnold Hugo ,&nbsp;Abraham Vlok Ferreira ,&nbsp;Michael Denis Fair ,&nbsp;Ockert Bernard Einkamerer","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105698","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105698","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;A trial was conducted studying the effect of reducing neutral detergent fibre (NDF) content in the diet of finishing South African Mutton Merino wether lambs on meat fatty acid (FA) composition, tenderness and stability. Fifty four-month-old lambs (29.14±1.66 kg; mean±SD) were assigned at random to the five dietary treatments with &lt;em&gt;n&lt;/em&gt; = 10 lambs per treatment (&lt;em&gt;n&lt;/em&gt; = 1 lamb per replicate), culminating into a randomised trial design. The lambs were housed individually in pens (1.404 m²) on elevated wooden slatted floors. Five dietary treatments similar in nitrogen content were formulated differing in respect to the NDF content thereof. Treatments were described as containing 379 (CON), 314 (NDF1), 251 (NDF2), 192 (NDF3) and 143 (NDF4) gram NDF/kg dry matter (DM), respectively. The production study was conducted over a period of 61 days. Means were analysed using the LSMEANS/DIFF with treatment as fixed effect, and post hoc using Tukey's HSD test. Regression analyses was conducted by PROC REG. All estimates were tested at the 5 % probability level. A reducing dietary NDF content linearly decreased the stearic and α-linolenic acid content of South African Mutton Merino muscle tissue, but linearly increased the palmitic, palmitoleic, vaccenic, linoleic acid, total omega-6 (n-6) and n-6:omega-3 (n-3) ratio, as well as ∆&lt;sup&gt;9&lt;/sup&gt; desaturase index of the same tissue. Subcutaneous lipid tissue was more extensively affected by dietary treatment and linearly increased (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; &lt; 0.0001) oleic, vaccenic, linoleic and arachidonic acid content, ∆&lt;sup&gt;9&lt;/sup&gt; desaturase index, as well as total mono-unsaturated fatty acid (MUFA), poly-unsaturated fatty acid (PUFA), unsaturated fatty acid (UFA), n-6, n-6:n-3 and PUFA:SFA ratios following decreased dietary NDF content. In contrast, adipose tissue lipid content, stearic acid and total saturated fatty acid (SFA) content, as well as atherogenicity index linearly decreased (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; &lt; 0.0001) following a decreased dietary NDF content. Treatment did not affect the conjugated linoleic acid (CLA: C18:2c9,t11) content of lamb muscle or adipose tissue. Reducing dietary NDF content linearly decreased lamb &lt;em&gt;longissimus&lt;/em&gt; muscle tissue lightness (L*) of day-4 and day-8 storage samples, yellowness (b*) and hue angle of the fresh (day-0) and day-8 samples, as well as chroma of the day-8 sample. In contrast, the redness (a*) of the day-8 storage muscle tissue increased linearly following a decrease in dietary NDF content. Dietary treatment had no effect on &lt;em&gt;longissimus&lt;/em&gt; muscle tenderness nor oxidative stability. The advantage of reducing the NDF contend of a finishing diet for South African Mutton Merino lambs seems to favourably affect the PUFA:SFA ratio of subcutaneous lipid tissue, but negatively affect the n-6:n-3 ratio of both lipid and muscle tissue, whereas the total n-3 content was left unaffected. A lipid source high in n-3 would be of benefit if added to a low-NDF fini","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"295 ","pages":"Article 105698"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143799474","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Milk somatic cell count and its relationship with feed efficiency, and with GreenFeed-estimated methane emission and energy partitioning variables in Nordic Red cows","authors":"Abdulai Guinguina ,&nbsp;Rebecca Danielsson","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105697","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105697","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship of somatic cell count (SCC) with production efficiency, energy partitioning, and methane emission in Nordic Red cows. Data were obtained from 10 previously conducted experiments consisting of 3 milk production trials and 7 GreenFeed (GF) studies, with available information on SCC, body weight (BW), milk production and feed intake. The complete data set consisted of a total of 924 cow/period observations from 265 cows. A subset of 150 cow/period observations from three of the GF studies, with available data on digestibility, and heat production were used for analysing energy partitioning variables. All measurements were made on cows fed diets based on grass silage with a range of protein and energy supplements. Production efficiency and energy partitioning variables were evaluated by mixed-model regression in SAS (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC). with the natural logarithm of SCC (lnSCC) treated as a fixed variable. Experiment (Exp), diet(Exp), and period(Exp) were included as random effects, allowing their effects to be excluded from the fixed-effect estimates. Additionally, segmented regression (PROC NLMIXED in SAS) was applied to determine SCC thresholds affecting feed efficiency variables. An increase in lnSCC showed a negative relationship with milk lactose concentration, milk yield, energy corrected milk (ECM), residual ECM, and feed conversion efficiency. Conversely, milk protein concentration increased with rising lnSCC. A trend towards increased BW was noted with rising lnSCC. Methane energy intensity and heat production increased while the efficiency of metabolizable energy (ME) use for lactation (<em>k_l</em>) decreased with elevated lnSCC. We identified SCC thresholds of 40 000 cells/mL for heat production (HP) and 74 000 cells/mL for <em>k_l</em>, indicating that HP increases at an earlier stage of infection, while a more advanced infection is required to impair energy utilization efficiency. These findings underscore the importance of early SCC management to sustain production, minimize energy losses, and enhance feed efficiency and overall dairy sustainability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"296 ","pages":"Article 105697"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143825892","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Methane and nitrous oxide emissions from excreta of different beef cattle breeds fed with different concentrate:roughage ratios and finished in feedlots under tropical conditions","authors":"Alan Figueiredo de Oliveira ,&nbsp;Edilane Costa Martins ,&nbsp;Ramon Costa Alvarenga ,&nbsp;Mônica Matoso Campanha ,&nbsp;Bruno José Rodrigues Alves ,&nbsp;Letícia Gobbo Oliveira ,&nbsp;Leandro Sâmia Lopes ,&nbsp;Ângela Maria Quintão Lana","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105694","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105694","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Excreta from confined beef cattle are sources of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; however, little is known about the effects of different concentrate:roughage ratios and cattle breeds on these emissions. This study evaluates methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions from the excreta of Nellore or crossbred (Nellore × Angus) beef cattle that are fed diets containing 65% or 85% of concentrates under tropical conditions. The excreta were applied to the floor of feedlot pens, and N₂O and CH₄ emission rates were monitored for 84 days in static chambers. The animals were confined for 106 days to evaluate their intake, weight gain and feed efficiency. In addition to average emission rates, emissions from excreta were estimated based on ratios per kg of dry matter intake (DMI; CH₄/DMI and N₂O/DMI) and per kg of weight gain (average daily weight gain, ADG; CH₄/ADG and N₂O/ADG). The data were subjected to variance analysis in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement, and the means were compared using a Tukey test (P &lt; 0.05). Results indicated that CH₄ emissions were 2.40 times higher from the excreta of crossbred cattle than in Nellore cattle (P &lt; 0.039). N₂O emissions were 50.1% lower from the excreta of animals consuming diets with low concentrate:roughage ratios than in those consuming diets with high concentrate:roughage ratios. The CH₄/DMI and CH₄/ADG ratios were higher in the excreta of crossbred cattle than in Nellore cattle. The N₂O/ADG and N₂O/DMI ratios in the excreta of animals fed with high concentrate:roughage ratios were also 18.2% and 36.1% higher in crossbred cattle than in Nellore cattle. The N₂O/DMI and N₂O/ADG ratios in the excreta of crossbred and Nellore cattle were lower when fed with diets containing low compared to high concentrate:roughage ratios. The results suggest that crossbred animals with more concentrate feed diets emit more CH₄ and N₂O from their excreta. This is the first study to report that Nellore cattle, the predominant breed in Brazil, and diets with lower concentrate:roughage ratios may be associated with a reduced potential for GHG emissions from excreta in confined beef cattle under tropical conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"295 ","pages":"Article 105694"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143817110","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Intake, feed efficiency, carcass traits, muscle colour and sensory characteristics of beef from steers offered grass silage and barley-based supplementary concentrates with increasing levels of dry corn gluten feed","authors":"M.J. Kelly ,&nbsp;A.P. Moloney ,&nbsp;A.K. Kelly ,&nbsp;M. McGee","doi":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105695","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.livsci.2025.105695","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Increasing awareness of feed-food competition means the inclusion of human-inedible by-product feed ingredients rather than cereals in concentrate feedstuffs for beef cattle is now preferred. The objective of the present experiment was to evaluate the complete replacement of soya bean meal and partial replacement of rolled barley with increasing levels of dry corn gluten feed (DCGF) in the concentrate supplement to grass silage on intake, growth, carcass traits and meat quality attributes of finishing beef cattle. The control concentrate (DCGF-0) was based on rolled barley (865 g/kg fresh weight) and soya bean meal (60 g/kg fresh weight). In three other concentrates, barley and all the soya bean meal was replaced with either 250 g/kg (DCGF-250), 500 g/kg (DCGF-500) or 750 g/kg (DCGF-750) fresh weight of DCGF. Forty-eight late-maturing breed suckler steers were individually offered <em>Lolium perenne</em> dominant grass silage <em>ad libitum</em> supplemented with 4.0 kg dry matter (DM) of the respective concentrates daily, for 124 days. Inclusion of DCGF in the concentrate had no effect on silage DM intake, daily live weight gain, feed conversion ratio, pre-slaughter weight, ultrasonic measures of body fat, carcass weight, estimated carcass gain, kill-out proportion, carcass conformation score, carcass fat score, carcass fat depth or on subcutaneous fat redness, yellowness and saturation. There was a linear increase (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01) in subcutaneous fat lightness and hue as DCGF inclusion level increased. Inclusion of DCGF in the concentrate had no effect on ultimate pH, temperature, drip loss, colour or meat sensory characteristics of the <em>M. Longissimus dorsi</em> muscle. Under the conditions of this experiment, DCGF had a feeding value comparable to that of rolled barley (+ soya bean meal) with little effect on meat quality, when included at up to 750 g/kg fresh weight in a concentrate supplement to grass silage. The overall implication of these findings is that the human-edible food-feed efficiency of beef production can be enhanced further by the use of DCGF.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":18152,"journal":{"name":"Livestock Science","volume":"295 ","pages":"Article 105695"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-04-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143791467","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}