Studies on the Feeding Value of Soybran Flakes for Ruminants4

Abstract

Two digestion trials with sheep and one feeding trial with heifers were performed to test the feeding value of soybran flakes. When fed on a limited feeding basis, the digestibility of soybran flakes appeared to be increased but the increase was not significant. Feeding four times per day had no effect. When soybran flakes were mixed with poor quality timothy hay, the digestibilities of organic matter, cellulose and crude fiber were greater than predicted from digestibilities obtained when either ingredient was fed alone. The calculated TDN value for the ration containing 60.0% soybran flakes, 33.5% timothy and 5.0% soybean meal was 71.43. No difference in rate of passage of stained soybran flakes could be detected by the technique used. The number of stained particles excreted from a standard test dose was considerably higher from sheep fed soybran flakes than from sheep fed the soybran flake-timothy mixture. When soybran flakes replaced either corn or roughage in a corn-meadowcrop silage-hay wintering ration for heifers, they appeared to have an energy value equal to ground ear corn. Copyright © . .