Behavior of confined alpine goats fed with silage or hay

Authors

  • Luís Fernando Dias Medeiros Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Zootecnia, Departamento de Reprodução e Avaliação Animal, Seropédica, RJ
  • Debora Helena Vieira Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Zootecnia, Departamento de Reprodução e Avaliação Animal, Seropédica, RJ
  • Carlos Augusto de Oliveira Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Zootecnia, Departamento de Reprodução e Avaliação Animal, Seropédica, RJ
  • Victor Cruz Rodrigues Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Zootecnia, Departamento de Reprodução e Avaliação Animal, Seropédica, RJ
  • João Barreto Pinto Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Zootecnia, Departamento de Produção Animal, Seropédica, RJ
  • José Renato Monteiro Quintanilha Secretaria Municipal de Desenvolvimento Social do Rio de Janeiro, Unidade Fazenda Modelo, Setor de Produção Animal, Rio de Janeiro, RJ
  • Paulo Roberto Bernardes Lopes Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Biologia, Departamento de Anatomia Animal, Seropédica, RJ
  • Diogo Fraga Guerson Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, Seropédica, RJ

Keywords:

confined goats, feed intake, resting, rumination

Abstract

For six periods of 24 hours, twelve Alpine goats were confined to permit the study of their behavior, concerning feeding, rumination, work and resting. The two feeding systems consisted of corn silage and coast-cross hay. Both were fed “ad libitum” in three daily portions. The roughage type did not interfere in the food ingestion, rumination, and resting time of animals. Under trial conditions, ingestion time was almost the same for both roughages (6 hours for silage and 6 hours and 22 minutes for hay), the same occured for rumination act (8 hours and 27 minutes for silage and 8 hours and 37 minutes for hay). The average time of working (ingestation + rumination) was 14 hours and 58 minutes for hay and 14 hours and 26 minutes for silage, in a 24 hour period. The animals remained a longer time in resting (9 hours and 18 minutes), followed by rumination activity (8 hours and 32 minutes) and food ingestion (6 hours and 11 minutes). The period of greater food ingestion activity was from 8:00 am to 11:00 am , and in the afternoon the period was 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm. The period with greater rumination activity and resting occured from 8:00 pm to 2:00 am and at 2:00 am to 8:00 am, respectively. Animals presented different rhythm of feeding, rumination, and resting along the different day periods, with higher ingestation time (4 hours and 58 minutes), during daytime periods.

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Published

2007-02-22

Issue

Section

FORAGE CROPS AND PASTURES

How to Cite

Behavior of confined alpine goats fed with silage or hay. (2007). Bulletin of Animal Husbandry, 64(2), 131-141. http://35.198.24.243/index.php/bia/article/view/1245

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