Growth performance of red sokoto goats fed cowpea husk supplemented with graded levels of <i>Moringa oleifera</i> leaves

Abstract

A twelve-week feeding trial was conducted to determine the growth performance of Red Sokoto goats fed cowpea husk supplemented with graded levels of moringa leaves. Sixteen Red Sokoto bucks aged 8-10 months with mean live weight of 10 + 0.5kg were subjected to four dietary treatments consisting of four animals per treatment in a completely randomized design (CRD). Four dietary treatments were formulated; cowpea husk only (T₁) control, cowpea husk plus 50g moringa leaves (T₂), cowpea husk plus 100g moringa leaves (T₃) and cowpea husk plus 150g moringa leaves (T₄), water and mineral lick were offered ad libitum. Data on feed intake, water intake, weight gain and digestibility were collected and analysed. Results indicated that moringa supplementation significantly (P<0.05) influenced the feed intake of the experimental animals across the dietary treatments in which animals in T₃ recorded the highest value (74.90g) however water intake was not significantly (P>0.05) affected. T₃ had the highest weight gain values (60.95g/h/day) and the best feed conversion ratio value (7.50). There were significant (P<0.05) difference in all the digestibility values measured across the dietary treatments in which goats in T₃ recorded the highest values. It can be concluded that supplementation of moringa leaves up to 100g will improve better feed utilization and growth performance of Red Sokoto goats.

Keywords: Red Sokoto Goats, Cowpea husk, Moringa leaves, Intake, Weight gain