Salivary Contamination of Forage Selected by Esophageal Fistulated Steers Grazing Sandhill Grassland

The effect of saliva contamination on chemical composition of forage collected from esophageal fistulated steers grazing sandhill grassland was studied over four different seasons. Salivary contamination of grazed forage significantly increased the ash component but did not change other chemical constituents calculated on an organic matter basis. The increase in ash attributed to saliva varied with species of plants and season of grazing.