Intro to Livestock Nutrition

Animal Production and ProductsAdv Animal Science

Nutrition and Livestock

• Ruminants – animal with four-chambered stomachs– Cattle, sheep, goats, ungulates (deer, etc)

Nutrition and Livestock

• Non-ruminants– Monogastrics – single, simple stomach• Pigs, people

– Modified monogastrics – hindgut fermenters• Horses, rabbits

Nutritional Factors

• Nutrients– Six chemical types needed by organisms to survive

Nutritional Factors

• Nutrients– Carbohydrates• Chains of CHO’s• Sugars

– Plants store sugars as starches– Animals store sugars as glycogen

Nutritional Factors

• Nutrients• Monosaccharides = single sugars

Glucose, galactose, fructose

• Disaccharides = two-sugar sugarsLactose (glucose + galactose); Sucrose (glucose +

fructose)Maltose (glucose + glucose)

• Polysaccharides = many-sugar sugarsStarch, cellulose, glycogen (glucose chains)

Nutritional Factors

• Nutrients– Lipids• Fats and oils• Feeds

– Vegetable oils, oil seeds, animal fat

Nutritional Factors

• Nutrients– Protein• Needed for growth• Chains of amino acids

(essential vs nonessential)• Feeds

– Soybeans, soybean meal, legumes, animal protein

Nutritional Factors

• Nutrients– Vitamins• Organic compounds that facilitate body functions• Fat soluble

– A, D, E, K

• Water soluble– B (1-12), C

Nutritional Factors

• Nutrients– Minerals• Inorganic compounds needed

for bodily functions• Macro versus micro (trace

elements)• Toxicity vs Deficiency

– Copper toxicity in sheep– Selenium deficiency in sheep

Nutritional Factors

• Nutrients– Water• Sheep – up to 2 gallons/day• Cattle – 5-15 gallons/day (lactating Holsteins: 27

gallons a day)• Swine – market hogs require 2.5 gallons/day (sows can

need up to 6 gallons/day)• Horses – 8-15 gallons/day

Energies

• Gross Energy (GE)– Total energy in the feed

unit– Example: 500

kcal/pound– 1 calorie = energy to

heat 1 gram/ml of water 1 degree C

Energies

• Digestible Energy (DE)– DE = GE – Fecal Energy• Fecal energy is energy found in the fecal matter that

passed through the animal• Some feeds more digestible than others

– Example: if GE= 500 kcal, and fecal energy = 200 kcal, then DE = ?

Energies

• Metabolic Energy (ME)– ME = DE – Urinary energy – rumen gas energy• Rumen gas loss energy is usually in the form of

methane, by product of microbes

– Example: If DE = 300 kcal, and urinary energy = 18 kcal, and rumen gas energy is 36 kcal, then ME = ?

The metabolizability of DE is usually ~82%

Energies

• Net Energy (NE)– NE = ME – Heat loss/increment• Heat lost as part of the digestion process

– Example: If ME = 246 kcal, and heat loss is 32 kcal, then NE = ?

Energies

• Net Energy (NE)– NE is the energy available for 1) maintenance of

the animal and 2) production/growth

Energies

• The point?– The type of feed we feed, and the amount of

energy present in that feed, affects how much energy the animal has to use to carry out its functions!

Types of Feeds

• Roughages– Heavy cellulose forages (grasses, hays, silage)– Typically long-stemmed

• Concentrates– Grains high in starches (corn, oats, rye, etc)

Types of Feed

1) Alfalfa pellets2) Rice bran3) Beet pulp pellets4) Soybean meal5) Alfalfa cubes6) Cottonseed meal7) Chopped hay8) Wheat bran9) Whole oats10) Iodized salt11) Rolled oats12) Trace mineral salt13) Whole barley

14. Salt w/selenium15. Rolled barley16. Rye17. Whole corn18. Wheat19. Cracked corn20. COB (a=wet, b=dry)21. Rolled corn22. Molasses23. Linseed meal24. Flax25. Crimped oats