Parâmetros comportamentais de cordeiros submetidos a dietas com glicerol

Abstract

The objective was to study the behavioral parameters of lambs submitted to diets with glycerol. Were used 25 animals, castrated, with an average initial weight of 23,8 ± 2,0 kg. The animals were housed in individual stalls and randomly assigned to five diets consisting of roughage (hay tifton) and five concentrates from corn, soybeans and glycerol levels (0, 3, 6, 9 and 12% glycerol instead of corn dry matter), supplied in a 60:40 ratio (FCR). The record of the activities was conducted during three periods of 24 hours, recording the time spent eating, rumination and making up the discretization of these series in number of feeding period, ruminating and resting, the average of feeding periods, idling time, the efficiencies of feeding and rumination of dry matter and neutral detergent fiber. The treatments were: 0, 3, 6, 9 and 12% glycerol instead of dry matter in corn diet, and observations intervals of 5, 10, 15, 20 and 30 minutes and 1, 2 and 3 day trial of ingestive behavior. The time spent eating, ruminating and resting did not differ in any level of glycerol used nor the intervals studied. The eating and ruminating efficiencies of dry matter and neutral detergent fiber, did not differ in any level of glycerol in the diet, nor the intervals studied. For the number of days of observation, none of the variables showed a difference. We conclude that the addition of glycerol in diets for feedlot lambs in partial substitution of corn, did not affect the time spent eating, ruminating and resting, the number of rumination period, and that the study of ingestive behavior of lambs can be done with intervals up to 30 minutes unless otherwise assessing the number of period and time spent per period. Concerning the number of days of observation is recommended that the evaluation can be performed one day of observation.