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บทคัดย่อ

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Abstract

The objective of the present study was to investigate the raising of beef cattle using a low-as-possible cost feed method under hot wet conditions. Fifteen Tak beef (62.5 % Charolais and 37.5 % American Brahman) steers, age and live weight of approximately 1.5-2.0 years old and 250 kg respectively were placed randomly into three treatment groups. Feeding trial was conducted under typical hot humid conditions of Thailand (N 12 36.652, E 101 33.017), where the average THI was 80.18±1.75 during September 2010 to March 2011. The feed consisted of fresh Pangola grass fed ad libitum and a commercial grade concentrate at 1.25, 1.75 and 2.25 (T1, T2 and T3) % body weight, respectively. The experiment was designed to test the animals’ feeding performance with respect to the cost of production. Due to the effect of heat increments under heat stress conditions, the results indicated that a feed mixture consisting of fresh Pangola grass with concentrate corresponding to 1.75% of the animal’s body weight would provide an optimum average daily weight of gain (ADG) and subsequent return on investment under the hot wet conditions of central Thailand.