THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE FEED ADDITIVE “DIARETIN – C” WHEN FEEDING LAMBS DURING FATTENING

Abstract

This article presents the results of scientific and economic experiment on the effective
use of a prebiotic feed additive for lambs from the age of 4 months during the transition to
grazing. In the course of the research, when raising young sheep in the pasture season (after
weaning) on the basis of the farm of the agricultural production co-operative “Collective
Farm Vtoraya Pyatiletka” in Ipatovsky District, Stavropol Territory, the botanical composi tion, chemical composition of grass, concentrate feed, actual feed consumption and feed additive feeding rate were determined. It was found that feeding with the feed additive “Diaretin –
C” at a dose of 25 and 45 g per head had a different effect on the liveweight gain of lambs of
the Russian meat merino breed. When feeding with a feed additive at a dose of 25 g per head,
the increase in live weight was 4.4% higher than the analogues of the control group, while at a
dose of 45 g per head, the increase exceeded the herdmates of the control group by 17.0%. It
should be noted that the animals of the 2nd and 3rd experimental groups had no signs of gastrointestinal problems, whereas in the 1st control group that rate was 20%. During the experiment, the feed additive “Diaretin – C” showed positive effect on the productivity of animals.
Thus, it can be affirmed that the use of prebiotic feed additives when feeding young sheep of
the meat-wool breed during the transition period plays an important role in the prevention of
gastrointestinal problems, as well as reduces the cost of feed.