Snaplage residue as a fiber source for finishing beef cattle under grazing: effects on residue characteristics, cattle behavior and performance, and carcass traits

• Published in: Translational animal science 2024, Vol.8, p.txae173
• Main Authors: de Lima, Italo B G, Cruz, Priscila J R, Borges, Lucas P C, Gionbelli, Mateus P, Ladeira, Marcio M, Shike, Daniel W, Casagrande, Daniel R, Bernardes, Thiago F
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2573-2102; 2573-2102
• DOI: 10.1093/tas/txae173

The snaplage residue presents itself as a potential alternative roughage source in finishing systems, owing to its high fiber concentration which aids in maintaining rumen health. Nevertheless, the performance of animals will hinge on both the allowance and the nutritive value it offers. This study aimed to evaluate different stocking rates of heifers grazing snaplage residue as an exclusive source of fiber on finishing phase performance. The treatments included two stocking rates (SR): i) low stocking rate (LS; 3.5 AU/ha) and ii) high stocking rate (HS; 7.0 AU/ha), which were obtained by modifying the size of the paddocks. Crossbred beef heifers (  = 48; initial body weight = 276 ± 23 kg) were assigned to 16 paddocks (3 heifers/paddock). The concentrate (87% of corn, 3.5% of soybean meal, 3.9% of cottonseed meal, 1.2% of urea, and 4% of mineral; DM basis) was fed ad libitum daily at 0600 hours. Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS. There was no SR × time effect (  = 0.88) on residue mass. There was less (