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Amino Acid Absorption by Portal-Jugular Venous Differences in Sheep Fed Two Maturities of Alfalfa Hay^{1, 2,}

University of Kentucky, Lexington 40506

Abstract

Alfalfa from the same plot harvested during the bud stage of maturity (early-cut) and again 2 weeks later (late-cut) during bloom stage was fed to three mature crossbred wethers. Net absorption of amino acids was determined by portal minus jugular concentration times the portal plasma flow adjusted to metabolic size. The animals were fed every 2 hr and received 90% of their ad libitum intake. Animals receiving early-cut alfalfa absorbed 7,440 mg/kg^.75/day of amino acids as compared with 2,640 mg/kg^.75/day in animals receiving late-cut alfalfa hay. The absorption of essential amino acids in mg/kg^.75/day was 6,072 and 2,136, respectively, for animals fed early and late-cut alfalfa. The dry matter intakes and nitrogen retention of animals receiving early-cut alfalfa were greater (P<.05) than those receiving late-cut alfalfa.

¹ The data in this paper are from the dissertation of the senior author, submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Kentucky in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Ph.D. degree.

² The investigation reported in this paper (No. 74-5-59) is in connection with a project of the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station and is published with approval of the Director.

³ Present address: Department of Dairy Science, Michigan State University, East Lansing, 48824.

⁴ The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Dr. Dal Kratzer for help with the statistical analysis of these data, Dr. Ray Tucker and his staff for assistance with the laboratory analysis and the use of the University of Kentucky experimental surgery laboratory in the surgical preparation of experimental animals.