Effect of modified practice of urea supplementation on nutrient utilization from wheat straw based diet in buffaloes.

Twelve mature male buffaloes (3 yrs; 420 kg) divided into 4 equal groups were fed 750g deoiled groundnut meal (DOGNM), 1 kg molasses and 120 g urea dissolved in 500 ml water, then mixed together with wheat straw given once daily (T1) or as such without mixing in wheat straw at2h before giving DOGNM in the morning (T2) or T1 diet divided into 2 parts at 8h interval (T3) or T2 diet divided into two parts at 8h interval (T4) for 45d. The DM and OM digestibilities significantly (P<0.05) improved in T2 and T4 than in T1 but comparable to T3. The CF digestibility also improved significantly (P<0.01) in T2, T3 and T4 as compared to T1 Similarly, the N retention was significantly (P<0.01) higher in T4 than in T1 and T2. Urinary N excretion as percent absorbed N also decreased significantly in T4, indicating thereby its better utilization. The results indicated that the feeding of dietary protein and urea molasses separately twice a day improved the nutrient digestibility as well as N retention in buffaloes.