The experiment was conducted with the objective to evaluate the parameters of performance of feedlot calves, fed with three roughage sources: GSWI - Alexander grass (Brachiaria plantaginea) silage without inoculante, GSI - Alexander grass silage with inoculant and MCSS - mixture of corn silage (Zea mays) and sorghum silage (Sorghum bicolor). Thirty-six calves with an average initial live weight of 159kg and average age of seven months, were used. The animals were kept in feedlot during 105 days, divided in five periods of 21 days. The roughage:concentrate ratio was 65:35 for all diets. The use of inoculant in the Alexander grass silage did not affect (P<.05) the variables studied. No significant interaction was observed between roughage source and feedlot period for daily dry matter intake (DMI) and daily digestible energy intake (DEI), expressed per animal (DMID and DEID), per 100kg of live weight (DMIP and DEIP) and per unit of metabolic weight (DMIM and DEIM), for daily weight gain (ADG), for feed conversion (FC) and for energy efficiency (EE). The contrast analysis between the diets with Alexander grass silagem (GSWI+GSI) and MCSS showed that the animals fed with Alexander grass silage had lower DMID (4.99 versus 5.56kg day-1) without difference for DMIP and DMIM, ADG (0.800 versus 1.061kg day-1) and worse FC (6.26 versus 5.30).
bacterium inoculant; dry matter consumption; feed conversion; feedlot; weight gain
