ABSTRACT
This study was undertaken to improve the fattening performance of beef cattle grazed on colonial grass in the Republic of Paraguay by using cheap substitutes for concentrate feeds. Five feeding regimes were applied to 5 groups of steers each as follows: colonial grass alone, colonial grass plus liquid mixture (molasses, urea and minerals), colonial grass plus mineral blocks, colonial grass plus concentrate mixture, and colonial grass hay plus concentrate mixture. The study was conducted for 92 days.
The results showed that the 4 supplemented groups had significantly heavier body weights and their daily gains were on average 28–75% higher than animals without supplementation. The liquid mixture was the best followed by feeding on concentrate mixture. However, feeding animals on the liquid mixture and the mineral blocks proved to be profitable. The results show clearly the need for providing grazed beef cattle with feed sources rich in energy, protein and minerals. These sources are not likely to be concentrates.
