Volatile fatty acid content in cecum is very much influenced by types and levels of crude fiber in ration. Broiler chickens aged 22 days old that are given controlling ration with added beetfiber of 46 g/kg showed the reduction of plasma triglyceride level. This showed the gastrointestinal adaptation process against the high level of crude fiber in feed. Therefore, on day 25 there is an increased concentration of short chain fatty acid (SCFA) in cecum when fermentation of feed elements occurs.
“This makes it interesting to research on the role of high crude fiber in duck’s fermentative digestive system,†said Ir. Rudi Sutrisna, M.S., in Auditorium of Faculty of Animal Science.
The lecturer of Agricultural Faculty of University of Lampung said these things while sitting in an open examination of doctoral dissertation in Animal Science of Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM). He worked on his dissertation “The Role of High Level of Crude Fiber Ration in Duck’s Fermentative Digestive System.†Acting as promoter was Prof. Dr. Ir. Tri Yuwanta, S.U., D.E.A., and co-promoter Prof. Dr. Ir. Zuprizal, D.E.A., and Prof. Dr. Ir. Endang Sutrisnawati Rahayu.
Rudy explained that degrading bacteria in crude fiber are able to survive in digestive system and effectively degrades crude fibers due to the produced cellulase enzymes. In general, cellulotic bacteria in digestive tracts are natural bacteria from outside the body coming in through feed and water that are able to interact in physiological condition in proventriculus, gizzard, intestinum, ekum and colon. The crude fiber process in the poultry’s digestive tract especially believed to take place in the cecum and colon. “Ducks are therefore more able to use crude fiber than chickens. What pattern this digestion is has not been much reported,†said the man born in Klaten on 6 May 1958.
Observations on four genotypes of ducks — Mallard, Peking, Muscovy and bred of Muscovy and Peking — showed that the organ growth of crossbred ducks is faster than the growth rate of body weight. The weight of heart and ventriculus are influenced by the content of crude fiber ration. The higher crude fiber in ration, the heavier is the ventriculus weight of Tegal duck while the length of colon and proventriculus does not much differ from the scale of crude fiber ration at 5, 9, 13 or 17%.
Rudy’s research showed that the application of crude fiber ration at 15% will produce an average male chicken’s weight aged ten weeks old to reach 1,030.00 g/each. In the fermentative digestive system in male ducks given crude fiber of 15% of ileum, cecum and colon contents, VFA is detected with a concentration of 295.80 umol/ml potential as source of energy.
“Male ducks with a 15% tolerance of crude fiber will produce best performance and crude fiber serves as bacteria substrate in fermentative digestive system and the highest cellulotic bacteria population amounting to 5.01 Log10 CFU/g in cecum can degrade crude fiberâ€, he ended.