Abstract
Unwilted and slightly wilted grass silage added with formic acid, a bacterial inoculant, and a mixture of bacterial inoculant and enzyme were fed to sheep, and the nutritive value and nutrient intake were investigated. The fermentation quality of unwilted silage was higher in the formic acid-added and bacterial inoculant+enzyme-added silage than in the untreated silage. In slightly wilted silage, the fermentation quality was improved in all additive groups. Regarding the nutritive value of silage, the DCP, TDN, and DE contents in the formic acid-added unwilted silage and the TDN content in the formic acid-added slightly wilted silage were significantly higher than those in the untreated silage. As for the nutrient intake, the DCP, TDN and DE intakes in the formic acid-added unwilted silage were significantly higher than in the untreated silage. Based on the above findings, a higher fermentation quality, nutritive value, and nutrient intake than those in the untreated silage were obtained only in the formic acid-added unwilted silage.
