Utilização de silagens de grão de milho reidratado para cordeiros em confinamento

Abstract

Corn is among the most produced cereals in the world, the availability of starch from this grain for animal digestion is limited by several factors, including vitreousness, which is characterized as an arrangement of corn reserve proteins protecting the starch granules and making them unavailable for animal metabolism. In order to remedy this nutritional characteristic, the adoption of grain silage rehydrated with water becomes a nutritional tool to reduce its vitreous content. Among the studies carried out, there are good results for the conservation of these grains in the form of silages and satisfactory advances in the inclusion of these silages on animal performance. Studies have shown that rehydrated corn grain silage had low dry matter loss, low proteolysis and good aerobic stability. Its use in the ruminant diet promoted greater consumption of DM, CP and NFC, with considerable rates of nutrient digestibility, in addition to increased starch, DM and CP digestibility. Despite these studies, there are unsatisfactory results such as fermentation problems and reduction in lactic acid concentration in silages. In animal metabolism, some studies point to lower consumption and digestibility of nutrients. Other parameters of the fermentative characteristics of these silages have not yet been elucidated, as well as their use in lamb nutrition. The addition of additives that aim to improve their fermentation parameters should be used in order to promote better quality of these silages. Therefore, the objective was to evaluate the fermentative profile, chemical composition and aerobic stability of corn grain silages rehydrated with water or forage cactus, as well as to evaluate the animal performance and physiological parameters of lambs in feedlot fed with these silages.The use of forage cactus as a source of hydration in rehydrated corn grain silage is a viable alternative, considering that it promoted better results for fermentative profile and aerobic stability than when rehydrated with water. In the nutrition of lambs, it presented better parameters of animal performance.