Effect of oat supplementation on the liveweight gain and carcase characteristics of yearling Friesian steers grazed on green pasture in western Victoria

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Abstract
Friesian steers aged nine months were set stocked on pasture from May 28 to November 29 at 2.5 and 5.0 steers ha-1 and were supplemented with oats at four levels-nil, 1.8, 3.6 kg steer-1 day-1 and ad libitum. Growth responses to oat supplementation were obtained at both stocking rates in winter but only at 5.0 steers ha-1 in spring. Average daily gains (kg day-1) during the entire six months of the experiment were, at the four oat feeding levels, respectively: 0.67, 0.72, 0.94 and 0.92 at 2.5 steers ha-1 and 0.1 8, 0.35, 0.56 and 0.79 at 5.0 steers ha-1. A mean conversion rate of 10.1 kg of additional liveweight gain per 100 kg of oats consumed was obtained when the spring values for steers stocked at 2.5 ha-l were omitted. Substitution in the intake of grain and pasture was apparent, as indicated by differences in herbage availability, in all treatments except in steers stocked at 5.0 ha-1and supplemented with oats at 1.8 and 3.6 kg day-1. Because of their 'lanky' conformation, the carcases were downgraded by the meatworks even though they all had high muscle contents and some had up to 7 mm of backfat at the 10th rib.