Supplemental barley and charcoal increase intake of sagebrush by lambs

Abstract

We evaluated the influence of supplemental barley and activated charcoal on the intake of sagebrush by lambs in individual pens. In 3 experiments, lambs were fed sagebrush (harvested and chopped to 2-3 cm) during the morning; they were fed a basal diet of alfalfa pellets in the afternoon. In the first experiment, lambs supplemented with activated charcoal + barley ate more A. tridentata ssp. vaseyana than lambs supplemented with barley (304 vs. 248 g; P = .071). A second set of experiments, which consisted of 3 trials, determined the effects of activated charcoal, barley, and subspecies of sagebrush on intake of sagebrush. Lambs supplemented with activated charcoal + barley ate more A. tridentata ssp. vaseyana (Trial 1; 292 vs. 225 g; P = .086), and more A. tridentata ssp. tridentata (Trial 2; 371 vs. 255 g; P = .031) than lambs supplemented with barley. In Trial 3, lambs supplemented with barley ate more sagebrush than lambs that were not supplemented (480 vs. 318 g; P = .0002). A third set of experiments compared activated charcoal + barley, barley, and no supplement in 2 trials. In Trial 1, lambs supplemented with activated charcoal + barley or barley generally ate more A. tridentata ssp. vaseyana than lambs not supplemented (P = .017). In Trial 2, lambs supplemented with activated charcoal + barley ate slightly more A. tridentata ssp. vaseyana than lambs supplemented with barley, and they ate substantially more than lambs not supplemented (P = .032). Collectively, the results suggest that energy from supplemental barley increased intake of sagebrush by lambs fed a basal ration of alfalfa pellets which are high in protein, and that activated charcoal played a minor role in further increasing intake of sagebrush.