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Title: PREDICTION OF ENDOGENOUS URINARY NITROGEN OF GOATS

Author
item LUO, J - NW SCI-TECH UNIV, CHINA
item GOETSCH, A - LANGSTON UNIVERSITY, OK
item MOORE, J - UNIV FLORIDA, GAINESVILLE
item JOHNSON, Z - UNIV. OF ARKANSAS
item TAHLU, T - LANGSTON UNIVERSITY, OK
item FERRELL, CALVIN
item GALYEAN, M - TEXAS TECH UNIV, LUBBOCK
item OWENS, F - PIONEER HI-BRED INTERNAT.

Submitted to: Small Ruminant Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/5/2004
Publication Date: 7/1/2004
Citation: Luo, J., Goetsch, A.L., Moore, J.E., Johnson, Z.B., Tahlu, T., Ferrell, C.L., Galyean, M.L., Owens 2004. Prediction of endogenous urinary nitrogen of goats. Small Ruminant Research. 53:293-308.

Interpretive Summary: Endogenous urinary nitrogen (EUN) estimates for goats were obtained by regressions with data gleaned from publications on goat feeding and nutrition research. Based on experiments with low-N diets, an appropriate power of body weight (BW) to express relationships between urinary nitrogen (UN) and N intakes was 0.75. The EUN by nonlactating goats with feed intake above maintenance was 0.092 g/kg BW0.75 when determined by regression of UN against total nitrogen intake (TNI) and 0.165 g/kg BW0.75 against digested N intake (DNI), with the latter value possibly most accurately predicting EUN for goats in zero or positive N balance. Because the database included a number of observations with low N intake and EUN may be lower with N intake less versus greater than needed for maintenance functions (EUN, metabolic fecal N and scurf), the lower estimate of EUN based on regression of UN against TNI could be most appropriate with N intake less than that for the sum of maintenance functions. Based on the regression of UN on DNI, EUN by lactating goats with feed intake above maintenance did not seem to differ markedly from that of nonlactating goats.

Technical Abstract: Three databases were constructed to estimate endogenous urinary N (EUN) in nonlactating and lactating goats. The first database consisted of 22 observations in which urinary N (UN) was measured with nonlactating goats fed diets very low in N concentration (0.032'0.33% of DM). A log-log weighted linear regression of EUN (g) on BW (kg) indicated that 0.75 was an appropriate power of BW for which UN, the estimate of EUN, could be expressed. The intercept, which represented an estimate of EUN, was 0.122 g/kg BW0.75. The second database for nonlactating goats, with means from 186 treatment-experiment combinations, was split into two groups, one for equation development (n = 121) and a second for evaluation of the equations (n = 65). With the development set, UN (g/kg BW0.75) was regressed on total N intake (TNI; g/kg BW0.75) or apparently digested N intake (DNI; g/kg BW0.75). After removing observations with relatively high residual S.D. from the development set, equations were: UN = 0.092 + (0.288 x TNI) (n = 79; R2 = 0.59) and UN = 0.165 + (0.340 x DNI) (n = 79; R2 = 0.59). The intercepts, 0.092 and 0.165 g/kg BW0.75, are estimates of EUN when TNI and DNI are zero, respectively. At zero DNI, truly digested N intake should equal metabolic fecal N; thus, the DNI estimate of EUN may be applicable to nonlactating goats in zero or positive N balance with feed intake above maintenance and appropriate to use in summation equations to predict N requirements without need for further adjustment factors. Prediction equations for lactating goats with feed intake above maintenance were: UN = 0.182 + (0.235 x TNI) (n = 33; R2 = 0.65) and UN = 0.160 + (0.354 x DNI) (n = 33; R2 = 0.72). In summary, based on databases from publications on goat feeding and nutrition, EUN of nonlactating goats with feed intake above maintenance was estimated at 0.165 g/kg BW0.75 by regressing UN against DNI; EUN of lactating goats based on DNI seemed similar to that for nonlactating goats.