Browsing by Author "Samuel Oyewale Olawoye, Moji Bolanle Adeniran,*, Abiodun Emmanuel Adeleye1, Jimoh Olalekan Aremu"

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    Tithonia diversifolia Leaf Meal as a Supplement for West African Dwarf Goats
    (Nexus Academic Publishers (NAP), Lahore, Pakistan, 2026-09-23) Samuel Oyewale Olawoye, Moji Bolanle Adeniran,*, Abiodun Emmanuel Adeleye1, Jimoh Olalekan Aremu
    The study examined the nutritional response and performance of West African Dwarf (WAD) goats fed diets consisting primarily of cassava peel, supplemented with graded levels of Tithonia diversifolia leaf meal (TDLM) for 70 days in a feeding trial conducted at the Teaching and Research Farm of Landmark University, Omu Aran, Kwara State, Nigeria. Twenty-four growing WAD goats were randomly assigned to four treatment groups, with six animals in each group. Each treatment was replicated three times, with two animals per replicate. The four experimental diets contained graded amounts of TDLM at 0.00%, 5.00%, 10.00%, and 15.00% levels and were fed at 3% of body weight. The 15% group showed the highest numerical weight gain; however, the differences among treatments were not statistically significant (p > 0.05). Nutrient digestibility values for NDF, ADF, and ASH were similar (p>0.05) across dietary treatments. Goats fed diets containing 15% TDLM inclusion levels had significantly (p<0.05) higher crude protein digestibility (73.08%). The feed conversion ratio (FCR) across dietary treatments was similar (p>0.05). However, the lowest FCR (5.32) and the highest weight gain (3.55 kg) were recorded in goats fed 15% TDLM inclusion levels, indicating more efficient utilization of the diets by the goats. The study showed that Tithonia diversifolia leaf can be used as a fodder supplement for growing WAD goats up to 15% inclusion in the diet without harmful effects.