Palm kernel cake in high-concentrate diets for feedlot goat kids: nutrient intake, digestibility, feeding behavior, nitrogen balance, blood metabolites, and performance

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of including palm kernel cake (PKC) in high-concentrate diets for feedlot goat kids on nutrient intake, digestibility, feeding behavior, nitrogen balance, blood metabolites, and performance. Thirty-two castrated crossbred Boer × mixed breed goat kids with an average age of 4 months and an initial body weight of 19.65 ± 3.00 kg were distributed in a completely randomized design. The diets included one of four levels (0, 12, 24, and 36%) of PKC on a total dry matter basis. The PKC inclusion in the diets promoted quadratic effects in the nutrient intakes ( P ≤ 0.05). The digestibility of ether extract increased ( P = 0.010), whereas the digestibility of non-fibrous carbohydrates decreased ( P = 0.017) with the inclusion of PKC. Palm kernel cake inclusion promoted a quadratic effect on the time spent per episode feeding and decreased the times spent idling and ruminated bolus per day ( P ≤ 0.05). The ingested and retained nitrogen decreased with the inclusion of PKC ( P ≤ 0.05). The inclusion of PKC in the diets had quadratic effects in the cholesterol concentrations, albumin (A), globulin (G), A:G ratio, and gamma-glutamyltransferase enzyme activity ( P ≤ 0.05). The PKC inclusion promoted a quadratic increase in total weight gain ( P = 0.026), with the highest value achieved at the inclusion level of 11.68%. The inclusion of up to 12% PKC in high-concentrate diets increases the intake and growth performance without compromising the digestibility of nutrients and feed efficiency.