Performance, Ingestive Behavior and Gastrointestinal Helminths Control of Suckling Lambs Supplemented in Creep-Fed and Not Supplemented in Tropical Pastures

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance, ingestive behavior and gastrointestinal helminths control of suckling lambs raised on pastures of Brachiaria ssp. supplemented in creep-fed and not supplemented. Thirty-one lambs being 15 lambs in the control treatment (without supplementation) and 16 lambs in the creep feeding treatment (with protein-energetic supplementation) were evaluated. Performance of lambs supplemented was superior to lambs no-supplemented. Lambs without supplemented had weaning age of 81 days and an average gain of 194 grams. Lambs supplemented showed weaning age of 58 days and average daily gain of 268 grams. eggs per gram of stool (EPG) count in the control treatment was 4553, while in the creep feeding treatment the mean was 763. The morbidity rate caused by gastrointestinal helminths in the control treatment was 6.6% and there was no morbidity due to helminths in the treatment creep feeding. The morbidity rate due to hepatogenic intoxication was 46.6% in control and 12.5% in the lambs supplemented. The ingestion of protein-energy supplementation in creep feeding promoted an increase in productive performance of lambs, as well as increased resistance and tolerance to gastrointestinal infections and decreased cases of hepatogenic intoxication by ingestion of Brachiaria spp.