ABSTRACT
Two feeding trials were conducted to investigate the growth and
physiological response of sheep fed forage with and without supplementary
bambara nut waste or brewers spent grain. First trial (Experiment I) assesed
the effects of dry season supplementation of bambara nut waste or dry
brewers spent grain on growth performance and blood metabolites (blood
plasma ammonia and blood plasma urea) of West African dwarf sheep,
while the Experiment 2 investigated the digestibility coefficients of
bambara nut waste and dry brewers spent grain. In experiment 1, nine sheep
(six females and three males) were randomly divided into three treatment
groups at three sheep per treatment with one sheep serving as a replicate.
The first group (control) was allowed to graze only. They were herded out at
08:00hours and brought back at 5:00hours. The second and third groups
were given 500g of dry brewers spent grain or bambara nut waste at
8;00hours and at 11:00 hours,, thereafter they grazed for the rest of the day.
Feed intake and body weights of the animals were recorded. The animals
were allowed a pre-experimental period of 3weeks while the feeding trial
itself lasted for ten weeks (December – February).

At 3 weeks blood was
collected from the animals for 4 days to determine the blood metabolites. In
experiment 2, six sheep (four females and two males) were allowed a
preliminary period of 14days, followed by7days faecal collection. They were
randomly divided into two groups (treatments) of three sheep per treatment
with one sheep serving as a replicate. One group was fed dry Brewers spent
grain and the other group fed bambara nut waste. Experiment 1 was carried
out using a completely randomized design (CRD). The supplement intake
for the first experiment, the cost implication of using the two supplements,
the proximate composition, nutrient intake for the second experiment and the
digestibility coefficients were compared using t-test. In experiment 1 there
were no significant (P>0.05) differences between the two supplements in dry
matter, ash, ether extract and nitrogen- free extract while significant
(P<0.05) differences existed between the two supplements in crude protein,
crude fibre and gross energy contents. Sheep on treatments 2 and 3 had
similar (P > 0.05) average final body weight, average daily weight gain,
average body weight change, blood plasma ammonia concentration, blood
plasma urea concentration and cost implication of feeding the two
supplements, which were significantly P < 0.05) higher than those of
treatment 1while sheep on treatment 3 had higher (P<0.05), feed intake