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Effects Of A Proteolytic Feed Enzyme On Intake, Digestion, Ruminal Fermentation, And Milk Production, Jong-Su Eun, K. A. Beauchemin

Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Science Faculty Publications

The effects of exogenous proteolytic enzyme (EPE) on intake, digestibility, ruminal fermentation, and lactational performance were determined using 8 lactating Holstein cows in a double 4 ×4 Latin square experiment with a 2 ×2 factorial arrangement of treatments. Diets based on barley silage and alfalfa hay as the forage sources were formulated to maintain different forage to concentrate ratios [60:40 vs. 34:66, dry matter (DM) basis]. Four dietary treatments were tested: high forage (HF) without EPE (HF−EPE), HF with EPE (HF+EPE), low forage (LF) without EPE (LF–EPE), and LF with EPE (LF+EPE). The EPE, which contained proteolytic activity but negligible …