Irkham Widiyono

Influence of feed intake on blood chemistry parameters in Kacang goats

Influence of feed intake on blood chemistry parameters in Kacang goats was studied. Nine clinically healthy female adult goats were used in this study. Animals were kept in individual box for 8 weeks. During the first 4 weeks the animals were fed at the level of about 40% of the feed requirement for maintenance plus medium activity (the restricted feeding period) and during the 5th-8th week (the fullfeeding period) they were offered full feed intake for maintenance plus medium activity (dry matter intake at the level of 3% of body weight). Feed intake was measured daily and the body weight was measured weekly. Blood samples were collected at the end of the 4th week and the 8th week for blood chemistry analyses. Paired t-test was used to evaluate the effects of feed intake on blood chemistry parameters. Restricted feeding (0.320±0.065 kg dry matter/d) for 4 weeks in clinically healthy female adult Kacang goats resulted in a decrease of body weight gain as well as serum calcium and protein concentrations, b...