Methane emission, performance and metabolism of finishing Nellore bulls receiving functional oils in replacement or combination with monensin in diet

Abstract

The purpose with this project is to evaluate the effect of using functional oils to replace or combination with monensin in feed coproducts based on the performance of non-castrated male Nellore feedlot. Will also be assessed on nutrient digestibility, energy value of diets and metabolic variables. Will be performed threeexperiments. In Experiment 1 will be used 160 animals subjected to performance test comparing the following treatments: 1) control without additive, 2) Monensin sodium, 3) Essential (commercial additive oils extracted from castor beans and cashew), 4) Essential + monensin. The treatments will be added to a diet (12% sugarcane bagasse, 80% corn, 4% soybean meal, 2.5% mineral mixture and 1.5% urea). Will assess the dry matter intake, daily weight gain, feed efficiency, nutrient digestibility, carcass traits (hot carcass weight, dressing percentage, fat thickness and loin eye area) and animal behavior . In Experiment 2 will be used 16 males and castrated Nelore rumen fistulated , housed individually in order to determine ruminalparameters, blood parameters, microbial protein production, dry matter intake, methane emission, energy maintenance, digestibility in live at diets of experiment 1. For experiment 3 will contemplated the same variables in Experiment 2, but the diet is based on co-products (5% BIN, 50% Golden Mill, 43.5% soybean hulls, 1.5% mineral mixture). This work will be developed in containment facilities of the Department ofAnimal Science ESALQ / USP, located in Piracicaba, beginning in January 2013 and lasting 120 days. The animals will be kept in containment facility and experimental allotted in a randomized complete block in experiment 1 and 4 × 4 Latin squares in experiment 2 and 3. Through data Dry Matter Intake and Weight Gain Diary obtained in the experiments, are calculated net energy values of the diets, which are comparedwith the values obtained from the digestibility trials. Estimates of energy for maintenance and methane production will be related performance to infer about the productive efficiency afforded by each treatment (conventional x additives and functional oils x monensin).