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Department of Animal Sciences, University of Wyoming, Laramie 82071
3 Correspondence:
AS/MB Rm. 123B (phone: 307-766-4213; fax: 307-766-2355; E-mail:
ludden{at}uwyo.edu).
Twenty-four wether lambs (BW = 37.5 ± 0.8 kg) were used in a 64-d randomized complete block design experiment to evaluate the effect of oscillating dietary CP with undegradable intake protein (UIP) on diet digestibility, N retention, and gastrointestinal (GI) organ mass. Four treatments consisted of a 13, 15, or 17% CP diet fed daily or a regimen in which dietary CP was oscillated between 13 and 17% on a 48-h basis (ACP). All diets consisted of 65% bromegrass hay (10.5% CP, 61.9% NDF, 37.2% ADF) and 35% corn-based supplement, and were formulated to contain the same amount of degradable intake protein (9.6% of dry matter), plus additional UIP (from SoyPLUS) to accomplish CP levels above 13%. Beginning on d 52, N balance collections were conducted for 8 d, after which lambs were killed on d 62 and 64 of the trial for measurement of GI organ mass. Because intake was restricted to 3.0% of initial body weight (dry matter basis), dry matter intake did not differ (P 
0.67) and no treatment effects (P 0.36) on ADG, feed efficiency, or total tract DM digestibility were observed. Increasing dietary CP from 13 to 17% linearly increased (P = 0.0001) N digestibility, but lambs fed ACP had lower (P = 0.07) total tract N digestibility than those fed 15% CP daily. Although urinary N excretion increased linearly (P = 0.0001) with increasing CP, a linear increase (P = 0.07) was observed in N retention (g/d) with increasing dietary CP. Although the quantity of N retained by lambs fed ACP was not statistically different (g/d, P = 0.19; % of digested N, P = 0.23) from those fed 15% CP daily, N retention in lambs fed ACP was 42% lower than in those fed 15% CP daily (1.8 vs 3.1 g/d, respectively). Increasing CP linearly decreased (P 
0.09) weights of the reticulorumen, abomasum, and small intestine, but did not affect (P 0.16) liver or omasum weights. Length of the small intestine was not affected (P 0.45) by treatment, but lambs fed ACP had greater (P = 0.03) small intestine weights than those fed 15% CP daily. Increasing dietary CP linearly decreased (P = 0.03) total GI organ mass, and lambs fed ACP had a greater (P = 0.03) total GI organ mass than those fed 15% CP daily. Oscillating dietary CP may increase the weights of the GI organs, which may subsequently have negative effects on N and energy metabolism in the animal. Likewise, the potential for decreased GI organ mass in response to increased supply of CP with UIP deserves further investigation.
Key Words: Nitrogen Retention • Oscillation • Protein • Sheep
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