GROWTH PERFORMANCE AND OXIDATIVE STATUS OF WEST AFRICAN DWARF RAMS FED DIET CONTAINING VARYING LEVELS OF BIOCHARCOAL
Abstract
This study investigated the growth performance and oxidative status of West African Dwarf (WAD) rams fed diets containing varying levels of biocharcoal. The experiment was conducted using fifteen (15) clinically healthy WAD rams with initial weight 20.20±0.2kg in a completely randomized design. The animals were allotted to five dietary treatments containing 0%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5%, and 2.0% biocharcoal inclusion, with Megathyrsus maximus as basal diet and concentrate diets formulated to contain 15.20% crude protein and 12.50 MJ/kg metabolizable energy. The trial lasted for twelve weeks after one week of acclimatization. Parameters measured included feed intake, weight gain, feed conversion ratio, and oxidative stress biomarkers [superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), malondialdehyde (MDA), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx). Results showed significant improvements (p
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