This study aims to evaluate the ingestive behavior parameters of primiparous cows Sindi and Guzerá breeds under diet of different levels of urea inclusion replacing the soybean bran and the sugar cane replacing the elephant grass. It has been used eight primiparous cows, being four Guzerá breed and four Sindi lactating, distributed into two Latin squares 4x4. The experimental treatments consisted of: T1 (0.0 sugar cane + 0.0% urea), T2 (13.0% sugar cane + 0.6% urea), T3 (26.2% sugar cane + 1.2% urea) and T4 (39.4% sugar cane + 1.8% urea), in the dry matter. The animals have been observed each five minutes, during 24 hours, to determine the time spent in feeding, rumination and leisure. There was no significant difference, for the medium time spent with the behavioral variables feeding, rumination and leisure, as it has been increased the levels of urea and sugar cane inclusion in the diets. The total chewing time has been higher for the Sindi cattle when compared with Guzerá. The different levels of sugar cane and urea inclusion have not influenced in the time spent in feeding, rumination and leisure. Animals of the Guzerá breed have shown higher efficiency of feeding in (g Ms/h) and rumination, when expressed in (g Ms h-1) and (g FDN h-1), when compared with Sindi breed. As the sugar cane and urea levels increase in the diet, there is a decrease of the rumination efficiency expressed in (g FDN h-1).
feeding efficiency; leisure; rumination; sugarcane
