EFFECT OF DIETS CONTAINING PYRIDOXINE AND ASCORBIC ACID AT GRADED LEVELS ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE OF WEST AFRICAN DWARF GOATS

Abstract

Vitamin C and B6 play crucial roles in enhancing appetite and promoting feed intake of ruminant animals. These vitamins are involved in the regulation of various biological processes, including the synthesis of neurotransmitters that control hunger and satiety. By providing an adequate amount of Vitamin C and B6 in the diet, West African Dwarf goats are likely to exhibit improved feed intake, resulting in a greater nutrient intake and better growth performance. A study was conducted to investigate the effect of diets containing ascorbic acid and pyridoxine at graded levels on the growth
performance of WAD goats. A total of twenty (20) West African Dwarf (WAD) goats aged less than a year old were used for a feeding trial that lasted for 12 weeks. This study was carried out at the Small Ruminant Unit of the College of Animal Science and Livestock Production (COLANIM), Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Nigeria. The goats were randomly allotted on weight equalization into four (4) dietary treatments consisting of five (5) goats per treatments which were: basal concentrate diet (control), basal concentrate diet (100kg) + 50g of ascorbic acid, basal concentrate diet (100kg) + 50g of pyridoxine, basal concentrate diet (100kg) + 25g of ascorbic acid + 25g of pyridoxine. Data were collected on feed intake, weight gain, and feed conversion ratio. Data obtained were subjected to one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) at 5% probability level. Results obtained also showed that the treatments had no significant (P<0.05) effect on all the growth performance parameters under consideration. Goats fed diets containing 50g of pyridoxine had highest value for total feed intake (248.29g/day) and total protein intake (22.18g/day) while goats fed diets containing 50g ascorbic acid had higher mean values for majority of growth performance parameters which were final weight (8.20kg), metabolic weight gain (4.45g/day/W0.75), metabolic final weight (4.84g/day/W0.75), daily weight gain (20.40g/day). The results of this study indicated that the inclusion of Ascorbic Acid at 50g inclusion rate (T2) is best in supplementing concentrate
diets for a better growth performance.