Crop-residue supplementation of pregnant does influences birth weight and weight gain of kids, daily milk yield but not the progesterone profile of Red Sokoto goats

The parameters investigated in this study with the objective of evaluating growth, lactation and reproductive performances, included birth weight, litter size, 0-90 days gain and average daily gain of kids as well as the milk yield and progesterone profile of Red Sokoto does supplemented with crop-residue based rations during the long-dry period of the subhumid zone in Nigeria. A total of 7 treatments of 4 goats each was utilised. All treatment groups had a basal diet of Digitaria smutsii hay and natural pasture ad libitum. Ration A supplemented with the conventional concentrate was used as the positive control; rations B and C were supplemented with crop residues; and ration D without supplement was used as the negative control. Supplementation with concentrate and crop residues significantly increased (P < 0.05) the birth weight and liveweight gains of kids, but littersize was unaffected. The heaviest kids at birth (1.3-1.4 kg) were from does in treatments 1A, 2A and 2C, while does in treatments 1B, 2B, 1C and D had the lightest kids (1.07-1.18 kg). The highest gains of 53.9 g x day(-1) were recorded in treatment 2A and the least (32.4 g x day(-1)) in treatment 1B. Supplementation also significantly influenced (P < 0.01) the daily milk yield of dams over the 90-day period of the dry season. All the does had similar progesterone profiles from late gestation through parturition to early lactation irrespective of their treatment group. It was concluded that ration C fed at the 2% level is a good and affordable supplementary feed package for increased birth weight and preweaning gains in kids for meat production.