Table 6.
Effect of 0, 1, or 2% EPA- and DHA-enriched diet supplementation during the last 50 d of gestation on milk production and milk composition from a 3 hour period on day 15 post-lambing in ewes
| Item | Treatment1 | P-value2 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | 1% | 2% | SEM | Linear | Quadratic | |
| Pens | 8 | 8 | 8 | |||
| Ewes | 24 | 24 | 24 | |||
| Milk yield, mL in 3 h | 294.9 | 299.1 | 307.8 | 24.93 | 0.75 | 0.94 |
| Fat, % | 8.1 | 7.8 | 7.8 | 0.38 | 0.66 | 0.74 |
| Protein, % | 4.1 | 3.9 | 4.1 | 0.10 | 0.88 | 0.20 |
| Lactose, % | 4.87 | 5.02 | 5.05 | 0.047 | 0.01 | 0.27 |
| Total solids, % | 5.776 | 5.96 | 6.00 | 0.059 | 0.02 | 0.29 |
| MUN, % | 14.75 | 13.75 | 13.32 | 1.341 | 0.51 | 0.87 |
| Milk energy, Mcal/kg3 | 4.862 | 4.756 | 4.803 | 0.151 | 0.79 | 0.66 |
| Milk energy, Mcal in 3 h3 | 0.343 | 0.340 | 0.353 | 0.035 | 0.85 | 0.86 |
Diets containing 1 or 2% of EPA+DHA are more energy dense diets (NEm, 0.54 or 1.07%, respectively) than the diet 0% EPA+DHA.
1Treatments on ewes supplemented with 0, 1, or 2% EPA- and DHA-enriched diet during the last 50 d of gestation.
2L = linear effect of treatment; Q = quadratic effect of treatment.
3Milk net energy of lactation was calculated using the gross energy of the milk composition as described on the equation for dairy cattle (NRC, 2001).