Different Sources Of Fat In Supplements For Beef Cattle At Pasture
Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the consequences of the fat supplementation source (free oil and rumen-protected fat) on the nutrient intake and digestion of beef cattle at pasture. Five rumen-cannulated Nelore bulls, with an average 467.8±32.8 kg of body weight (BW) and age of 26 months, were distributed in a Latin square design (5 x 5). The treatments were as follows: WF: without fat, PS: rumen-protected fat soybean oil, PA: rumen-protected fat palm oil, SO: soybean free oil, and CO: corn free oil. Nutrient intake and digestibility, ruminal pH and ammonia (NH3-N), serum urea, and nitrogen balance were analyzed. The supplements with different fat sources did not alter (P>0.05) the intake and digestibility of dry matter (DM), forage, organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), neutral digestibility fiber (NDF), neutral digestibility corrected ash and protein (NDFap), nonfiber carbohydrates (NFC) or total digestible nutrients (TDN), except ether extract (EE). An increase (P<0.05) in the intake and digestibility was observed with the inclusion of a fat supply, independent of the fat source. Differences were observed between the WF and other supplements with regard to ruminal parameters (pH and NH3-N) (P>0.05) and serum urea (P>0.05). The nitrogen balance was not affected by the fat source (P>0.05). Supplementation of grazing beef cattle with 2 g/kg BW low-level free oil (130 g/kg DM supplement) or rumen protection (160 g/kg DM supplement) did not interfere with the characteristic nutrient intake and digestibility.