Haematological and serum biochemical responses of west African dwarf goats fed <i>Panicum maximum</i> replaced with untreated cocoa pod husk meal

Abstract

It has been proven that blood profile of an animal dictates its health status. Meanwhile, the health implication of feeding graded levels of untreated cocoa pod husk meal (UCPHM) to animals was the crux of this study. Thus, a 56 day trial was conducted to assess the haematological and biochemical responses of West African Dwarf (WAD) goats fed Panicum maximum replaced with UCPHM. The feed components were blended into five diets such that Diet A (control) contained 100 % P. maximum, Diet B (75 % P. maximum and 25 % UCPHM), Diet C (50 % P. maximum and 50 % UCPHM), Diet D (25 % P. maximum and 25 % UCPHM) while Diet E (100% UCPHM) and were fed to 25 WAD goats of 5 replicates per treatment in a completely randomized design experiment. The dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), crude fibre (CF) and gross energy (GE) contents of the diets were adequate to support the growth and maintenance of WAD goats. The values obtained for parameters observed, except CP increased with increased replacement for UCPHM across the treatment diets. Nutrient intake and apparent digestibility co-efficient values were significantly (p<0.05) influenced by dietary treatment. WAD goats fed with Diet A had better haematological profiles, though the RBC, WBC, lymphocyte and neutrophil values had statistically (p>0.05) similar values with goats fed Diet B (75 % P. maximum + 25 % UCPHM). Hence, replacing P. maximum with untreated cocoa pod husk at 25 % replacement level was acceptable and tolerable to the WAD goats and would not pose any health challenges.

Keywords: Haematology, Serum biochemical, Untreated cocoa pod husk, Panicum maximum, West African dwarf goat