The Utilization Of Nitrogen In The Hind - Gut (Caecum And Colon) Of Sheep

Under certain dietary condition, a significant amount of organic matter was present in the caecum and colon of ruminants where it undergoes further digestion ( Armstrong and beever, 1969 and kay, 1969 ). Williams ( 1965 ) reported that fermentation in the caecum and colon resembles that in the rumen . It leads to the production of volatile fatty acids and ammonia. The role of the hind-gut in nitrogen utilization was belived to be significant. However, direct proof was not available.Some studies showed that the hind-gut can contributed to the disappearance of up to one-third of total apparently digested nitrogen of the ration, in sheep ( Kay, 1969 and Coelbo da Silva et al. 1970 a,b) . On the other hand , Thornton et al . (1970 ) presented data suggesting the absence of mechanism (s) necessary for the absorption of organic nitrogen compounds from the caecum and colon of sheep even though microbial protein synthesis might take place.The present study aimed to validate the utilization of nitrogen in the hind - gut (caecum and colon) of Sheep and to throw some light on the capacity of the hind - gut to utilize different nitrogen sources