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The phosphorus requirements for growth and maintenance of sheep

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

A. C. Field ,
R. L. Coop ,
R. A. Dingwall  and
C. S. Munro
A. C. Field
Affiliation:
Moredun Research Institute, Edinburgh, EH 17 7JH
R. L. Coop
Affiliation:
Moredun Research Institute, Edinburgh, EH 17 7JH
R. A. Dingwall
Affiliation:
Moredun Research Institute, Edinburgh, EH 17 7JH
C. S. Munro
Affiliation:
Moredun Research Institute, Edinburgh, EH 17 7JH
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Summary

Phosphorus requirements for maintenance and growth were assessed by giving to growing lambs and non-pregnant ewes diets low in P and to growing lambs a diet containing the quantity of P recommended by the Agricultural Research Council (1980).

Seven 14-week-old lambs were given ad libitum a pelleted diet containing 1·88 (LP) or 2·75 (NP) g P/kg D. M. for 13 weeks. There was no effect of P intake on feed intake or growth during the first 8 weeks when the P intake of the LP groups was 1·07 of Agricultural Research Council (1980) requirements. During the last 5 weeks the P intake of the LP group was only 0·87 of Agricultural Research Council (1980) requirements and growth and feed intake were higher in the male but not female lambs in the NP group. From the 3rd week the plasma concentration of P was significantly lower (P <0·001) in the LP group. Mineralization of selected bones was less in the LP group.

After 14 weeks on the diet, balance trials with 32 P were carried out on the lambs from each dietary group. P intakes ranged from 1 to 3 g/day. An additional balance trial was undertaken with eight 2-year-old female sheep consuming a hay diet (1·5 g P/day).

The endogenous faecal excretion of P by the growing lambs on the LP diet and ewes was 12·2 ± 0·8 and 12·7 ± 1·00 mg/kg live weight/day respectively, very close to the value (12 mg/kg live weight/day) adopted by the Agricultural Research Council (1980). The absorbability of the P in the concentrate and hay diets was 0.71 ±0·267 and 0·74 ± 0·0218 respectively, the former agreeing with and the latter higher than the corresponding value for Agricultural Research Council (1980).

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 99 , Issue 2 , October 1982 , pp. 311 - 317
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1982

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