EFFECT OF THIAMIN SUPPLEMENTATION IN RATION ON MILK YIELD, COMPOSITION AND SOME BLOOD COMPONENTS OF SOHAGI SHEEP.

EFFECT OF THIAMIN SUPPLEMENTATION IN RATION ON MILK YIELD, COMPOSITION AND SOME BLOOD COMPONENTS OF SOHAGI SHEEP.  

G.M.A. Solouma¹ , H.A. Hamdon¹ and A.M. Kholif²

¹Animal Production Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt.

²Dairy Science Department, National Research Center, Dokki, Giza, Egypt.

(Received 30/11/2012, Accepted 28/1/2013)

SUMMARY

     This study aimed to evaluate the effect of addition vitamin B1 (thiamin) to  the rations of  Sohagi ewes  on milk yield and its composition as will as some blood components.

    Twenty four ewes were used in 84-day randomized complete blocks design for feeding trial. Ewes were divided into three similar groups (8 for each).  All animals of the experimental groups were fed on ration consisted of concentrate feed mixture (CFM), berseem hay (BH) and wheat straw (WS) at the ratio of 2 : 1 : 1 on DM basis, respectively. Control (T1) and tested treatments (T2) and (T3) were respectively supplemented by 0 , 20 or 40 mg/day/head vitamins B1 (thiamin). Animals were received their requirements according to NRC for sheep (1985) . Blood sample were taken before lambing and monthly after lambing to determined blood components. The diets of ewes were start to supplemented by thiamin two weeks before lambing till the end of the trial (84-d).

         Results indicated that feeding lactating ewes on either 20 or 40 mg/h/d of thiamin significantly increased (P<0.01) milk yield and total fat yield comparing with control that have nil thiamin. Based on control, the increases of milk yield in treatment T3 at the first till the sixth week were 28-40%, while on the seventh till ninth week were 54-51 %  then 75-105% at the  tenth till twelfth week, respectively. The low level of thiamin in treatment T2 had the same trend of (T3), but its increases in milk yield along the experiment  seemed to be in  lower rates. Regarding milk composition, the difference among treatments were significant (P<0.01) in respect of fat, proteins, total solids and solids not fat percentages. There was no significant difference among treatments with lactose content. Milk energy concentration was significant decreased with the two tested treatment  in comparison with control (T1) . Evidently adding thiamin in tested rations were significantly declined the somatic cell count more than 50% based on the value of control. Results of blood constituents indicated that protein, albumin, globulin and glucose concentrations were increased (P<0.01) due to thiamin addition particularly with the higher level (T3) compared with control. No significant difference between treatments in GOT, GPT, cholesterol, triglycerides and thyroid hormones (T3 and T4) concentration with  slightly increases in its values in the thiamin  treatments.

        It could be concluded that thiamin supplementation to the diet of ewes led to an increases productive performances, milk yield and total fat yield as will as physiological responses as blood composition. The rate of 40 mg/h/d of thiamin supplements could be performed the best concerning the productive performance for ewes.

Keywords: thiamin, Sohagi sheep, milk yield, milk composition, blood parameters