Variation in haematological and serum biochemical indices of sheep fed Ziziphus mucronata and Parkia biglobosa (A comparative study)

An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of Ziziphus mucronata and Parkia biglobosa on haematological and biochemical indices of sheep. The experiment was carried out in a complete randomized block design. A total of 32 animals were used for the study with 16 animals per experiment. The animals were allotted to four dietary treatments with four animals per treatment. The results of the chemical composition shows that all the parameters observed were significantly different (P<0.05) among treatments. Crude protein (CP), crude fibre (CF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), cellulose, and hemicellulose were significantly (P<0.05) higher in diets containing Ziziphus mucronata than diets containing Parkia biglobosa. The haematological values shows that all parameters observed are significantly different (P<0.05) among treatments for each diet. All values for all parameters are comparable between forages except for mean corpuscular volume (MCV), where values tend to be higher in diets containing Parkia biglobosa than diets containing Ziziphus mucronata. The serum biochemical indices showed significant difference (P<0.05) among treatments for all the parameters observed. The results obtained for the two browse forages are comparable. It can be concluded that inclusion of Ziziphus mucronata or Parkia biglobosa in the diet of sheep has no negative effect on haematological and biochemical indices.