Description

Urea treated wheat straw ensiled with CSL on an average increased two-fold wheat straw nitrogen. It has also increased feed intake, DM and NDF degradations and their ruminal disappearance rates. The concentrations of total ruminal VFA and acetate were also higher in animals fed CSL diets than those fed diets without CSL. Thus, the urea treatment of wheat straw ensiled with CSL not only improved its nutritional worth but its NPN is also more effectively utilized by animals than urea treated wheat straw ensiled in the absence of CSL. Feeding of urea treated wheat straw ensiled with 9% CSL had no adverse effect on the milk yield and its composition. However, digestibility and ruminal data from short term trials are considered reliable, but lactation performance should be tested in continuous lactation trial (s) for long enough time to determine actual effects of formulating diets using fairly high (65%) level of urea treated wheat straw ensiled with CSL on milk yield and its composition, body weight loss and feed efficiency. Therefore, more information is needed before these diets should be recommended for use by the dairy farming community.