Broiler litter as an alternative feedstuff for Awassi ewes: Effect on nursing performance and their lambs’ performance

An 8 wk study was conducted to evaluate effects of feeding broiler litter (BL) on milk production and composition as well as nutrient intake and digestibility of nursing Awassi ewes. Thirty Awassi ewes (body weight (BW) = 50.3 ± 2.47 kg) and their single lambs (7.0 ± 0.85 kg BW) were randomly assigned to one of three dietary treatments (n = 10) being no BL (BL0), 200 (BL200) or 400 (BL400) g/kg BL (dry matter (DM) basis). The first week was used as an adaptation phase followed by 7 wk of data collection. Dry and organic matter (OM) intakes were lower (P≤0.02) for the BL400 diet than BL0 and BL200 during the study. Crude protein (CP) intake was lower (P=0.01) for BL400 fed ewes compared to those fed BL0, whilst that in BL200 fed ewes were similar to the other diets. Intakes of neutral detergent fiber (aNDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) were highest (P<0.001) for ewes fed the BL400 diet followed by the BL200 and BL0 fed ewes. Ether extract intake was lowest (P<0.0001) for the BL400 treatment ewes followed by BL200 and BL0. Copper intake was higher (P<0.01) for BL400 ewes compared to BL0 and BL200. The DM digestibility decreased (P=0.004) as the level of BL in the diet increased, but OM digestibility was lower (P=0.005) for the BL400 versus BL0 ewes, with no difference between these diets and BL200. Crude protein and aNDF digestibility were lower (P≤0.03) in diets containing BL compared to BL0. Ewes fed the BL400 diet lost more (P<0.05) BW than those fed the BL0 or BL200 diets. Lamb performance (i.e., final BW, total BW gain, and daily BW gain), did not differ among diets of their mother, and ewe milk production and component levels did not differ among diets. Broiler litter inclusion at up to 200 g/kg DM to diets such as used in this experiment is possible without negative effects on performance of Awassi ewes and their lambs.