Abstract:
Effects of form of olive cake (OC) on growth performances and carcass quality were studied
on forty-eight Awassi lambs. All lambs were male with an average body weight of 29.5 kg
(S.D. = 2.3 kg) at the beginning of the experiment. Animals were randomly divided into
four groups of 12 lambs each. Lambs in each group received individually corn–soybean
meal (SBM) total mixed rations (TMRs). Rations were incorporated with a fixed amount
(149 g/kg DM) of OC of different forms: crude OC, a product of the three centrifugation
extraction procedure (control group), alkali treated, ensiled and pelleted. All rations were
isonitrogenous and isocaloric. The growth experiment lasted 10 weeks. In the following
week, all lambs were slaughtered. At termination of the experiment, lambs fed crude, alkali
treated or ensiled OC rations consumed more feed and gained more weight (P<0.05) than
those fed the pelleted OC. This same trend was found for the feed conversion (FC), carcass
and empty body weights (EBWs). However, external (hide, head and feet, HHF) and thoracic
organs (heart and lungs, HL), gut and liver weights proportional to EBW (g/kg) were not
affected by the form of OC. The form of OC had no effects on muscle (P=0.4) and bone
(P=0.21) tissues. Carcass, pelvic, kidney fats and total carcass fats weights when expressed
as g/kg EBW and the percent of carcass fat of total body fat (TBF) were lower in lambs fed the
pelleted OC compared to those offered the other forms of OC. However, the subcutaneous,
inter muscular and TBF fats weights (g/kg) were comparable among lambs in different
OC form rations. Results from this work suggest that the treated OC had no advantages
compared to crude in regard to parameters investigated in this research.
