PERFORMANCE OF NEllORE CATTLE SUBJECTED TO DIFFERENT ADAPTATION PROTOCOLS TO INTENSIVE PASTURE FINISHING DIETS (TIP)

Abstract

The aim of this project is to evaluate different adaptation protocols for intensive pasture finishing (TIP) diets on the performance, ruminal, cecal, and carcass characteristics of Nelore cattle. The experiment will be carried out at the Beef Cattle Sector at UNESP, Jaboticabal campus. Twenty-eightNellore bulls will be used, with an initial weight of approximately 400 kg,randomly distributed in 4 paddocks of Urochloa brizantha cv. Marandu (n=7per paddock). The animals will be fed in a Calan Gates System, to control the feed ingested, and blocked by paddocks and by live weight (BW) ifnecessary. Each animal will be randomly assigned to receive one of three treatments: T1 - adaptation in 21 days, with an initial offer of concentrateat 0.5% of BW and equal daily increments until reaching 2.0% of BW at the end of adaptation; T2 - adaptation in 14 days, with initial supply ofconcentrate at 0.5% of PV and equal daily increments until reaching 2.0% of PV at the end of adaptation and; T3 - adaptation in 14 days, with initialsupply of concentrate at 1.0% of PV and equal daily increments until reaching 2.0% of PV at the end of adaptation. Each treatment will have 9or 10 replicates. The study will last 127 days, with 112 days of experiment and 15 days to adapt the animals to the Calan Gates. Two indigestible markers will be used, one in the feed [titanium dioxide (TiO2)] and the other in the pasture [indigestible NDF (iNDF)] to determine the consumption of dry matter from the pasture. General performance,carcass characteristics, rumen and cecum morphometry, as well as rumen microbiota will also be evaluated. The data will be analyzed by SAS.