Effect of Dietary Supplementation ofMoringa olifera and Prosopis chilensis on performance and carcass characteristics of camel calves reared on Natural pasture- North Kordofan state - Sudan.

Abstract

The present study was conducted in the Camels Farm in University of Kordofan, Elobeid town, Sudan during the period from January to July 2017. The objective of theresearch was to study the effect ofMoringa olifera and Prosopis chilensis as additive feeds on the performance and carcass characteristics of Sudanese Arabi camel. Twenty four male of camel calves of Sudanese Arabi breed with age range from 2 to 3 years old andwith initial body weight range from 216.67± 29.61 to 215.33 ± 48.30 kg were selected for the study. Complete Randomized Design (CRD) was usedwhere the calves were divided into four groups each with 6 animals and each group was fed individually under semi-intensive feeding system. The first group was fed withMoringa olifera (M) ration, the second group was fed withProsopis chilens (P),the third group was fed with mixed diet composed ofMoringa olifera and Prosopis chilensis1:1(M+P) while the fourth group was left dependent on natural pasture as control. The data were statistically analyzedusing Duncan's Multiple Range Test to compare between means.The results showed that, the highest daily body gain of 356.9±0.14 gram / day was achieved when animals fed with M diet, followed by 351.9±0.25 gram / day for animals that fed with P diet and 339.3±0.17 gram / day for animals which were fed with a mixture of M+P. The lowest body gain of 183.3±0.16 gram/daywas recorded when animals left on natural pasture. The daily body gain for camel calves fed on M, P and a mixed diet ofM+P was rising up gradually during the first three months of the experiment and then declining at the last two months. On the other hand, the daily body gain for camel calves grazed on natural pastures reached its peak in the second month and then declined in the last three months of the experiment. Regarding the carcass characteristics, no significant differences at p≥0.05 were detected on carcass cut weights among the three rations M, P and M+P. The highest values of hotand cold back legs were 58.00±6.08kg and 57.00±6.08 kg and hotand cold hump cut weights were5.50±3.04kg and 5.17±2.93 kgrespectively and they were obtained by camels fed with M meal.The highest V values of hot and coldfore legs cut weightswere 44.00±11.53 kg and 42.67±11.06 kg respectively and they were achieved when the camels were fed with P diet.The highestvalue of hot and cold ribs were 35.00± 6.08 kg and highest values of hot and cold neck cuts were 17.17±1.26 kg and 16.17±1.71kg respectively and they were reported when animals were fed with mixture of M+P ration. In contrast, the lowest values for previous cutsof hot and cold carcass weights were obtained in animals that relied on natural grazing. It was concluded that feedingSudanese Arabi camel calves withMoringa olifera or Prosopis chilensis or with their mixture increases their weight and carcass characteristics significantly as compared to calves relied only on natural pasture. The study recommends using Moringa olifera or Prosopis chilensis or with their mixture in feeding of camel calves.