Bauhinia purpurea L. leaves meal as goat feed

Abstract

Legume tree forages are generally a source of better feed quality, as a supplement to increase the productivity of ruminant that fed low-quality feed, especially during the dry season. Butterfly leaves (Bauhinia purpurea L.) is a leguminous tree with potential as a fodder source in the dry season because its leaves contain more crude protein than white kabesak Acacia leucophoela Roxb. Legume trees may complement a grass-based diet by providing protein during the dry season. This research aimed to evaluate the effect of Bauhinia purpurea L. leaves meal in complete feed on daily dry matter intake, dry matter digestibility, and average daily body weight gain of goats. The experiment design was a completely randomized block design with 4-four treatments and 4-four groups, using 16 local male goats aged 1–1.5 years and weighed 12.5±0.8 kg. Treatments consisted of four complete feeds containing different levels of Bauhinia purpurea leaves meal (0%, 5%, 10%, and 15%, respectively) in concentrate. Feeds were set up to 9.90±0.5% CP and 69.76±0.5% TDN. Analysis of data utilizes an analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Duncan Multiple Range Test. The results showed that 5– 10% Bauhinia purpurea L. leaves meal in concentrate has no significant effect on daily dry matter intake but significantly decreased dry matter digestibility and increased average daily body weight gain. It can be concluded that Bauhinia purpurea L. leaves meal has the potential to be goat feed.