Efeito da suplementação de metionina sobre o desempenho de novilhos de corte em pastejo no período da seca

Abstract

Brazilian beef cattle farming, based mainly on pasture systems, faces protein deficiency during the off-season. While traditional supplementation focuses on crude protein, precision nutrition with specific amino acids emerges as an advanced strategy for the sector. Therefore, the objective of this study was to identify and evaluate the effect of protected methionine supplementation on the productive responses of beef steers grazing in the dry season of the year. Two treatments were tested with twelve animals in each, with an average initial body weight of 265 kg and an average age of approximately 11 months. The animals kept on pasture received a multiple mixture of medium intake (0.3% of live weight), with the difference between the treatments being that one contained protected methionine and the other did not. Total weight gain and average daily gain were evaluated. The experiment was conducted following a completely randomized design with 5% significance. It was observed that the inclusion of protected methionine in the multiple mixture did not result in an effect on the weight gain of the animals, that is, there was no variation (P<0.05) between treatments. This applies to average daily gain as well as total weight gain. It is concluded that under the conditions evaluated, supplementation of the multiple mixture with the addition of protected methionine did not result in greater average daily gain or total weight gain.