Effects of diets with different non-fibrous carbohydrate/neutral detergent fiber ratios on growth performance, meat quality, and organs development of Ganxi goats

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of diets with different non-fibrous carbohydrate (NFC)/neutral detergent fiber (NDF) ratios on the growth performance, meat quality, and organ development of Ganxi goats. Thirty-nine healthy Ganxi goats with similar age and body weight were selected and randomly divided into three groups with 13 goats per group (7 male and 6 female). Goats in the three groups were fed complete pellet feed with NFC/NDF of 0.9 (L), 1.2 (M), and 1.5 (H), respectively for 70 days. The results were as follow: 1) The body height of goats in group L was significantly lower than that in group M on day 40 and 70 of the experiment (P < 0.05). 2) The average daily feed intake and feed/gain of goats in group H were significantly higher than those in group M on day 1 to 40 of the experiment (P < 0.05). The average daily feed intake of goats in group H was significantly higher than that in group L on day 1 to 70 of the experiment (P < 0.05). 3) The shear force of goat meat in group L was significantly higher than that in group M (P < 0.05). The yellowness of goat meat in group M was significantly higher than that in group H (P < 0.05). 4) The rumen weight of goats in group L was significantly higher than that in group H (P < 0.05). The weight and index of reticulum and abomasum in group H were significantly lower than those in the other two groups (P < 0.01). In conclusion, diet with low NFC/NDF can promote stomach development and improve the growth performance of Ganxi goat. In addition, the result of this study showed that diet with NFC/NDF of 0.9 has a superior fattening effect on Ganxi goat.