scholarly journals 337 Effect of adding urea to finishing diets containing two different inclusions of distillers grains on steer performance and carcass characteristics

2019 ◽  
Vol 97 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 134-135
Author(s):  
Bradley M Boyd ◽  
James C MacDonald ◽  
Matthew Luebbe ◽  
Galen E Erickson

Abstract Crossbred beef steers (n = 384) were utilized to evaluate the effects of adding urea to a dry rolled corn based finishing diet containing low inclusions of wet distillers grains plus solubles (WDGS). Treatments were set up as a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement with factors consisting of WDGS inclusion at either 12 or 20% of diet dry matter (DM) and urea inclusion at either 0, 0.4, 0.8, 1.2% of diet DM. Cattle were blocked and stratified by initial body weight (BW) and assigned randomly to treatment. The heavy block of cattle were harvested after 160 d on feed (DOF) and the middle and light blocks of cattle were harvested after 179 DOF. The model include the fixed effects of weight block, WDGS inclusion, urea inclusion, and their interactions. There were no significant interactions (P > 0.12) observed between WDGS inclusion and urea inclusion in the diet; therefore, only main effects are discussed. Increasing inclusion of WDGS improved (P < 0.04) carcass adjusted ADG and G:F. Dry matter intake was reduced (P = 0.04) with increasing WDGS inclusions. Fat thickness was increased (P = 0.04) with increased WDGS inclusion; however, no other carcass characteristics were significantly affected by WDGS inclusion. Cubic effects of urea inclusion were observed (P < 0.05) for HCW, final BW, ADG, and DMI on a carcass adjusted and live BW basis; however, cubic effects with increasing urea inclusion are of minimal biological relevance. There were no linear or quadratic responses (P > 0.11) for increasing urea inclusion in the diet for performance measurements or carcass characteristics. Increasing WDGS inclusion in the diet improved performance. Added urea in the diet had minimal impact on performance, regardless of wet distillers grains plus solubles inclusion.

2019 ◽  
Vol 97 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 224-225
Author(s):  
Bradley M Boyd ◽  
Kristin E Hales ◽  
Galen E Erickson

Abstract Crossbred heifers (n = 96) were utilized to study the effects of increasing wet distillers grains plus solubles (WDGS) and urea inclusion in a dry rolled corn (DRC) based finishing diet on performance and carcass characteristics. Heifers were individually fed using a calan gate system with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments. Orts were collected once a week and analyzed for dry matter (DM) content and used to correct DM intake (DMI). Factors included WDGS inclusion at either 10 or 20% of diet DM and urea inclusion at either 0 or 1.2% of diet DM. Cattle were stratified by body weight (BW) and assigned randomly to treatment. Blood samples were taken at 3 points during the feeding period and analyzed for blood urea nitrogen content. The model included urea and WDGS inclusions and their interactions as fixed effects. There were no interactions (P > 0.08) between WDGS and urea inclusion for any performance or carcass characteristics so only main effects are discussed. There was no difference for initial BW, final BW, ADG, and G:F on a live or carcass adjusted basis (P > 0.26) for either urea or distillers inclusion in the diet. Dry matter intake was reduced (P = 0.03) with increased urea inclusion; however, WDGS inclusion did not influence DMI (P = 0.29). No difference (P > 0.10) was detected for urea or WDGS inclusion for any carcass characteristics. Blood urea nitrogen was greater (P < 0.01) for cattle fed increasing levels of both urea and WDGS. Added distillers and urea in the diet had minimal impact on performance or carcass characteristic suggesting supplemental urea in a DRC-based finishing diets is of minimal benefit when feeding at least 10% WDGS.


Author(s):  
T J Spore ◽  
Z E Carlson ◽  
K H Wilke ◽  
G E Erickson ◽  
T J Klopfenstein ◽  
...  

Abstract One hundred twenty individually fed steers (initial BW 283 kg ± 32) were utilized in an 84-d growing trial to evaluate effects of increased metabolizable lysine from non-enzymatically browned soybean meal (SoyPass) in grass hay-based diets containing wet distillers grains plus solubles (WDGS). The treatments were arranged as a 2 × 3 factorial with two levels of protein supplement as 20% (low; DL20) or 35% (high; DL35) of dietary DM using WDGS as the basal protein source, and three increments of SoyPass (SP) replacing 0%, 30%, or 60% of the WDGS DM in the protein supplement yielding six dietary treatments. Average daily gain (ADG), dry matter intake (DMI), gain:feed (G:F), and plasma urea N (PUN) data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS as a 2 × 3 factorial. Animal was the experimental unit and fixed effects included body weight block, dietary inclusion of distillers grains (DL20, DL35), dietary inclusion of SoyPass (SP) (3 levels), and DL × SP inclusion interactions. Linear and quadratic interactions between DL and SP inclusion were analyzed using covariate regression . No interactions were detected for ADG between SP and DL (P = 0.76). Additionally, SP had no effect on ADG (P = 0.49). However, ADG was increased for steers consuming the DL35 diet compared to DL20 (1.13 vs. 0.86 kg/d, respectively; P &lt; 0.01). A DL × SP interaction was detected for dry-matter intake (DMI; P = 0.01). As SP replaced WDGS in the DL35 diet, DMI increased linearly from 8.10 to 8.93 kg/d (P = 0.02). In the DL20 diet, DMI was not different as SP replaced WDGS (P ≥ 0.11). Therefore, G:F tended to decrease linearly (P = 0.06) as SP replaced WDGS in the DL35 diet, while no difference (P ≥ 0.11) was detected in the DL20 diet, suggesting SP contained less energy than WDGS but did improve dietary lysine balance. Furthermore, plasma urea nitrogen (PUN) increased linearly as SP replaced WDGS in the DL20 diet (P &lt; 0.01) but was not affected by SP substitution in the DL35 diet (P ≥ 0.19). When WDGS is fed at a low (20% DM) or high (35% DM) inclusion rate in a forage based diet, replacing the distillers with a source of protected amino acids supplied through heat-treated soybean meal, did not improve performance. A more concentrated or energy dense form of amino acids may be beneficial in forage-based growing cattle diets containing 20% distillers grains, but is not needed in diets with 35% distillers grains.


Author(s):  
P J Rincker ◽  
J B Allen ◽  
M Edmonds ◽  
M S Brown ◽  
J C Kube

Abstract There is a lack of consistency across the globe in how countries establish tissue ractopamine residue limits and which residue limits are applied to various tissues, particularly for edible noncarcass tissues. Therefore, some US beef slaughter organizations have recommended a 48-h voluntary removal of ractopamine before slaughter in order to meet residue requirements of specific export countries and maintain international trade. Our objective was to assess the impact of voluntary removal of ractopamine hydrochloride (Optaflexx®; Elanco, Greenfield, IN) up to 8 d before slaughter on growth performance and carcass characteristics. Crossbred beef steers (60 pens of 10 animals/pen) with an initial shrunk body weight (BW) of 611.8 ± 10 kg SEM were fed one of six treatments over 42 d. Treatments included a control that did not receive ractopamine, on-label use of ractopamine (0-d withdrawal), and 2, 4, 6, or 8 d of voluntary removal of ractopamine from feed before slaughter. The start of ractopamine feeding (30.1 mg/kg of diet dry matter for 32 d) was staggered so that blocks could be slaughtered on the same day. Dry matter intake was decreased by 0.5 kg/d when ractopamine was fed with a 0-d withdrawal (P = 0.04) compared to the control, but was not altered (P = 0.56) as the duration of ractopamine removal increased from 0 to 8 d. Final BW, total BW gain, and average daily BW gain were increased by feeding ractopamine with a 0-d withdrawal (P = 0.09) compared to the control, but these variables decreased in a linear manner (P = 0.10) as the duration of removal increased from 0 to 8 d. Gain efficiency was improved by 15% (P &lt; 0.01) by feeding ractopamine with a 0-d withdrawal compared to the control, and gain efficiency decreased linearly (P = 0.06) as the duration of ractopamine removal increased. Approximately 2/3 of the increase in gain efficiency remained after 8 d of removal. Hot carcass weight was increased by 6 kg (P = 0.02) by feeding ractopamine with a 0-d withdrawal compared to the control. Measured carcass characteristics were not altered by ractopamine feeding or by removal before slaughter (P ≥ 0.24). The consequences of voluntary removal of ractopamine up to 8 d before slaughter were a linear decrease in live BW gain (0.64 kg/d), poorer gain efficiency, and numerically lighter carcass weight.


2019 ◽  
Vol 97 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 130-131
Author(s):  
Leslie Lekatz ◽  
Bryan Neville

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate the impacts of bunk management on animal performance, carcass characteristic, and hydrogen sulfide gas concentrations in beef steers fed modified distillers grains with solubles (MDGS; DM basis). One hundred and thirty-nine steers (initial BW = 240 ± 5.17 kg) were allocated into 16 pens and assigned to one of two treatments: 1) Control-managed bunks: bunks devoid of feed prior to feeding; and 2) Long-managed bunks: bunks with approximately 2.54cm of feed remaining at the time feeding. Treatments were applied during a 28-d adaptation period, during which time, steers were adapted to a common finishing ration containing 25% MDGS (DM basis). Ruminal hydrogen sulfide gas was collected by rumenocentesis from two steers from each of three pens per treatment on d 0, 7, 14, and 28, which correspond to days of diet transition. Animal performance data were collected throughout the study and carcass characteristic data were collected when steers reached market weight. There were no differences (P < 0.13) in BW, ADG, or F:G between treatments during the adaptation period or throughout the entire study. Steers managed with long bunks had greater (P = 0.001) intake during adaptation; however, overall DMI was not different (P = 0.14) between treatments. Hydrogen sulfide gas concentrations were not affected by the day x treatment interaction (P = 0.30) but were affected by day (P = 0.003) with hydrogen sulfide concentrations increasing throughout adaptation. Hydrogen sulfide concentrations tended (P = 0.07) to be greater in steers with long-managed bunks vs. control-managed bunks. There were no differences (P > 0.53) in carcass characteristics. In summary, bunk management had no effect on performance or carcass characteristics and only tended to impact hydrogen sulfide gas concentrations.


1997 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
pp. 645-653 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. A. Beauchemin ◽  
S. D. M. Jones ◽  
L. M. Rode ◽  
V. J. H. Sewalt

A study was conducted to establish whether fibrolytic enzyme feed additives influence performance of feedlot cattle fed high grain diets, and to compare the effects of feeding diets of barley or corn on performance and carcass characteristics. Crossbred beef steers (408 kg) were offered high concentrate diets (95.1%, dry matter basis), consisting mainly of barley and barley silage or corn and corn silage. Concentrates were treated with either no enzyme or one of two enzyme mixtures. Calves were slaughtered after a 103- to 145-d feeding period at an average weight of 570 kg and 10.8 mm of backfat. Barley-fed calves grew faster (1.45 vs. 1.29 kg d−1), ate more dry matter (DM; 9.79 vs. 9.31 kg d−1), and converted DM to gain (6.85 vs. 7.35 kg DM kg−1gain) more efficiently compared with corn-fed calves (P < 0.001). Meat from barley-fed calves tended to be more highly marbled and was brighter in colour than meat from corn-fed calves, but diet had no effect on muscle score, rib eye area, or carcass leanness. Effect of enzymes differed for corn and barley diets; Enzyme 1, a preparation with higher xylanase activity than Enzyme 2, improved (P < 0.05) feed conversion ratio of barley diets by 11% over the finishing period, but enzyme treatments had no such effect for corn diets. Fibrolytic enzymes can be used to improve the digestibility of barley-based diets, but are not advantageous for corn diets. Further work is necessary to determine optimum formulation and level of application of enzyme preparations for use in barley diets. Further study of the differences in carcass characteristics of cattle fed barley or corn diets is warranted to substantiate the trends observed on this limited group of animals. Key words: Feedlot cattle, barley, corn, enzymes, cellulase, xylanase


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