Abstract
Straw-based diets supplemented with different levels of distillers’ dried grain with solubles (DDGS) were assessed in growing sheep through a growth trial. In a completely randomized design, twenty-four growing ram lambs (16.07±1.78 kg; 4 m old) received either a basal diet (sorghum stover) supplemented with a concentrate mix (18% crude protein) at 2% body weight (D1) or a basal diet supplemented with DDGS at 1% (D2), 1.5% (D3), or 2% (D4) of their body weight for 90 days. While the total feed intake was comparable (P>0.05) among the lambs fed different experimental diets, the D3 and D4 diets significantly improved the average daily gain by 36.20% and 49.33%, respectively, and reduced the feed conversion ratio by 30.10% and 32.90%, respectively, compared to the D1 diet. Although the D3 and D4 groups showed statistically similar growth performance, the D3-fed lambs had a lower cost-effective gain at ₹76.30/kg than did the D4 group at ₹89.79/kg. The D4 group displayed significantly greater pre-slaughter, empty body, and carcass weights (P<0.05). Nonetheless, the dressing percentage, wholesale cut yield, and meat composition were not significantly different (P>0.05) among the different dietary groups. Similarly, there were no significant differences (P>0.05) in the wholesale cut yield, body wall thickness, loin eye area, visceral organ yield, meat-to-bone ratio, or meat chemical composition among the four dietary treatments. It was concluded from the present study that supplementing DDGS at 1.5% of body weight to a stover-based diet in growing ram lambs seems to be a viable and economical option.