Zebu cattle grazing guinea grass received supplements of molasses-urea or molases-poultry litter during the dry season in a cattle ranch in Mexico.
Thirty male Zebu cattle with an average liveweight of 175 kg were used. The experimental treatments were as follows: grazing of guinea grass without supplements (T1); grazing of guinea grass plus 2 kg/head/day of molasses-urea (3% urea) (T2) and grazing of guinea grass plus 2 kg molasses mixed with 1 kg poultry litter /head/ day (T3). Supplements were offered to the cattle only during the dry season. During the rainy season the three experimental groups were only grazing guinea grass.
Liveweight gains during the dry season for the T1, T2 and T3 groups were 235, 433 and 503 g/head/day, respectively. Liveweight gains during the rainy season for the T1, T2 and T3 groups were 687, 685 and 632 g/head/day, respectively. The combined liveweight gains during the dry and rainy seasons were 523, 594 and 586 g/head/ day for the T1, T2 and T3 groups, respectively.
There were differences in the liveweight gain during the dry season between the groups of cattle which received or did not receive supplements. However these differences disappeared during the rainy season when the group of cattle which did not receive supplements compensated the liveweight gain.