Fodder beans (Vicia faba minor) and peas (Pisum sativum) in dairy cows feed rations
Abstract
Holstein-Friesian Black-and-White cows with analogous characteristics were selected and randomly allocated into 4 groups (control and trials), 5 animals each. In vitro digestibility tests of the legumes (peas and fodder beans) are high from 80.50 % to 84.20 %. The feed ration digestibility study results show, that on average higher dry matter digestibility was in the 2nd group – 69.42 %, in which the feed ration peas “Bruno” was included, and the 1st trial group – 69.29 %, in which the ration peas+beans was included. The highest protein digestibility is also presented by the 2nd trial group of cows – 65.97 % and the 1st trial group of cows – 65.82 %. The milk yield decreases for the experimental groups (1st and 2nd) were smaller – 0.8 kg, 1.3 kg, respectively, compared with the initial stage of the experiment (p < 0.05). The changes in productivity are mainly associated with the cows’ physiological processes during their lactation and pregnancy cycle.In contrast, group 4 (control) showed a significant decrease in the average daily energy corrected milk yield (4.9 kg), compared with the initial stage of the trial. Compared with the control group, none of the dietary interventions showed significant (p>0.05) deviations.