Table 3.

Growth performance of Nellore heifers offered free choice access to warm-season grass hay and receiving trace mineral supplement (TM), sugarcane molasses cooked block (LMB), pair-fed protein supplement (PSPF), and a commercial protein supplement (PS) from day 0 to 45 (n = 100 heifers; five heifers/pen; five pens/treatment)¹

	Treatment1					P-value
Item	TM	LMB	PSPF	PS	SEM	Treatment × day	Treatment
BW2,3, kg
Day 24	186	188	188	188	0.95	0.60	0.28
Day 45	194	196	195	196	0.95
ADG, kg/d
Day 0 to 45	0.18a	0.26b	0.25b	0.27b	0.029	-	0.10

^a,bWithin a row, means without a common superscript differed (P ≤ 0.05).

¹TM = a complete vitamin/trace mineral mix supplement offered in a loose meal form (66.6% of LMB supplement DMI); LMB = free choice access to a low-moisture, cooked sugarcane molasses-based block; PSPF = protein supplement offered in a loose meal form and pair-fed to achieve similar supplement intake of DM, TDN, and CP of LMB heifers; PS = a commercial protein supplement offered in a loose meal form at 0.2% of BW (DM basis).

²Average of full BW collected on day −1 e 0 was included as covariate (P < 0.0001).

³Full BW on day 24 and 45 represent the average of full BW collected on day 24 and 25, and 45 and 46, respectively.