EFFECT OF SUPPLEMENTING Moringa oleifera LEAVES AS FEED ADDITIVES ON BLACK BENGAL GOAT

Abstract

Moringa (Moringa oleifera Lam. moringaceae) is a highly valued plant that is mostly cultivated in the tropics and subtropics. It is used for food, medication and industrial purposes. The objective of the study was to assess the nutritional value of Moringa leaves and to determine the effect of supplementing Moringa oleifera leaves (MOL) on growth performance, carcass and non-carcass characteristics of Black bengal goats. The dried leaves had crude protein levels of 30.3%. Thedried leaves had the following mineral contents: calcium (3.65%), phoshorus (0.3%), magnesium (0.5%), potassium (1.5%), sodium (0.164%), sulphur (0.63%), zinc (13.03 mglkg), copper (8.25%), manganese (86.8 mglkg), iron (490 mglkg) and selenium (363 mg/kg). The fiber content was neutral detergent fibre (NDF) (11.4%), acid detergent fibre (ADF) (8.49%), acid detergent lignin (ADL) (1.8%) and (acid detergent cellulose (ADC) (4.01 %). The condensed tannins had a value of 3.2%, while total polyphenols were 2.02%. In the other hand, a total of 36 castrated goats aged 8 months, with a mean initial weight of 7.63±O.8 kg, were randomly divided into three diet groups with twelve goats in each. The duration of the trial was 90 days. All goats received a basal diet of grass ad libitum and mixed basal diet (200 g/day each). The MOL groups were fed additional lOOg (MOLl) and 200 g (MOLZ) of dried M. aleifera leaves, respectively. The third group (Control) did not receive any additional ration. The attained average daily weight gain for goats fed MOLl, MOL2 and Con were 103.3, 101.3 and 43.3 g, respectively (p<0.05). Higher (P<0.05) feed intakes observed were in MOL2 (491.5 g) and MOLl (490.75 g) compared with Con (404.5 g). The hot carcass weight was higher (p<0.05) for MOL2 (7.18 kg) and MOLl (7.14 kg) than for the Con group (5.46 kg). The dressing percentage in MOL2 (50.8%) and MOLl (50.0%) were higher (P<0.05) than that of the Con (44.9%). The growth performance and carcass characteristics of MOL2 and MOll goats were not different. Moreover the experimental result reveal that MOL has a cholesterol lowering effect and no lesion has been identified in the gastrointestinal mucosa of the parasitized animals fed on MOL mixed diet. Feeding MOL improved the growth performance and carcass characteristics of goats in an almost similar way, which indicates that M. oleifera could be used as a supplement or additives in goats.