Animal Nutrition
5 Basic Classes of Nutrients
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Water
Energy Nutrients
Proteins
Minerals
Vitamins
Water
• Most Important Nutrient
• Needed in largest amounts of all nutrients
– 65%-85% of body weight at birth
– 45% to 60% of body weight at maturity
– 90%-95% of blood is water
Functions of Water
• Transportation of other
nutrients and waste
products
• Temperature regulation
• Maintains shape of cells
• Lubricates joints and
organs in the body
Sources of Water
1. Drinking Water
2. Water within the feed
3. Metabolic water
1. Drinking Water
Things That Affect Drinking Water Consumption
• Heat
• Dry Matter Consumption
• Dietary Factors
– Feeds high in water reduces drinking
– Feeds high in fiber, salt, and proteins increase drinking
• Access to water
– Location, length of water trough, competition with
other animals
1. Drinking Water
Things That Affect Drinking Water Consumption
• Function of the animal (lactating cow vs. dry cow)
– Dairy Cow 4-5 lbs of water= 1 lb of milk
– Dairy Cows allowed water twice a day milk production
reduced by 15%
1. Drinking Water
How much water do mature, non-stressed animals
need?
Swine= 2-5 gal/hd/day
Sheep= 1-4 gal/hd/day
Cattle= 8-16 gal/hd/day
Horses= 10-14 gal/hd/day
2. Water Within The Feed
• Grains can range from 8% to 30% water
• Forages can range from 5% in a dry hay to
more than 90% water in lush young grass
3. Metabolic Water
• Water produced by the body during chemical
reactions
• 5-10% of total water intake
Water Loss
How is water lost from the animals body?
1. Urine
2. Feces
3. Sweat
4. Milk production
Water Deficiencies
What happens if animals are deprived of water?
1. Reduced feed consumption
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Reduces amount of feed eaten by 27%
Reduces feed efficiency by 33%
Reduces weight gain by 50%
2. Weight Loss
3. Water Intoxication
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4-5 days without water animal will drink up to 50% of body
weight in ½ hour
4. Death
All of these lead to a loss of what?___________________
5 Basic Classes of Nutrients
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•
•
•
•
Water
Energy Nutrients
Proteins
Minerals
Vitamins
Energy Nutrients
There are 3 types of energy nutrients, what are
they?
1. Carbohydrates
2. Fats
3. Oils
Energy Nutrients
Where do animals get energy nutrients?
• Grains
– Corn, Oats, Wheat, Barley, Rye
• Forages
– Corn Silage, Straw, Pasture Grasses
• Animal Fats
• Molasses
Energy Nutrients
What are the functions of energy nutrients?
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5.
Provide Energy
Maintain body temperature
Muscle development
Growth
Development of fetus
Energy Nutrients
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What happens if animals don’t get enough
energy nutrients?
Slow growth
Delayed puberty
Decreased milk production
Weight Loss
Less resistance to diseases and parasites
Energy Nutrients
Animals need more energy nutrients when they are doing
what?
1. Producing Milk
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Energy needs double
2. Pregnant
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Energy needed for baby
3. Working
Energy Nutrients
What is the most important energy nutrient?
Carbohydrates
Energy Nutrients -Carbs
What are the 4 things carbohydrates are made up
of?
1. Sugars
2. Starches
3. Cellulose
4. Lignin
Energy Nutrients- Carbs
What are the functions of carbohydrates?
1. Provide energy for the cells
– Chemical reaction very much like burning
2. Provides energy for muscle movement
– Heartbeat, Walking, Breathing
3. Produce heat to keep animal warm
4. Extra carbs are stored as fats
Energy Nutrients- Carbs
There are 2 types of carbohydrates, what are
they?
1. Simple Carbs
– Nitrogen Free Extract (NFE’s)
– Consist of sugars and starches
– Supply immediate energy
– Come from cereal grains
Energy Nutrients- Carbs
There are 2 types of carbohydrates, what are they?
2. Complex Carbs
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Known as fiber
Consist of cellulose and lignin
More difficult to digest than simple CHO’s
Fiber is found primarily and roughages such as hay
and pasture plants.
– Examples are alfalfa, brome grass, orchard grass, and
bluegrass.
Energy Nutrients- Carbs
Fiber Content
• Dry weight- weight of a feed with the moisture
content removed
• The dry weight of most grains and roughages
ranges from 65-80% CHO
• Mature roughages contain more fiber when
harvested than those that are less mature
• The mature plant is not easily digested
• Ruminants can digest large amounts of fiber
Energy Nutrients
Carbohydrates are the most important energy
nutrient what are the other 2 energy
nutrients?
Fats and Oils
Energy Nutrients- Fats and Oils
• Contain more carbon and hydrogen than do
CHO’s
• Fats have 2.25 times the energy value of CHO’s
• Fats are solid at room temperature, oils are liquid
• Easily digested by animals
Energy Nutrients
How do we measure the amount of energy
nutrients in a animal feed?
Calories
Energy Nutrients
What is a calorie?
• Unit of energy required to raise the
temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree
centigrade
– From 14.5 to 15.5 degrees centigrade
• Energy in feeds is expressed in the unit of
measurement of the calorie.
• Kilocalorie (1,000 cal) states the heat content
of feed.
Energy Nutrients Review
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What are the three types of energy nutrients?
Name 2 sources of energy nutrients
Name 2 functions of energy nutrients
What are 3 things that can happen if an animal
doesn’t get enough energy nutrients?
5. What is the difference between complex carbs
and simple carbs?
6. Why can cows digest fiber better than pigs?
7. Explain what a calorie measures
5 Basic Classes of Nutrients
•
•
•
•
•
Water
Energy Nutrients
Proteins
Minerals
Vitamins
Proteins
What are proteins?
• Organic compounds that
are made up of amino
acids
• Amino acids are the
building blocks of proteins
• Most expensive part of
animal ration
Proteins
What are the functions of proteins?
1. Build and repair body organs and tissues
– Ligaments, Hair, Hooves, Horns, Skin, Muscles
2. Production of milk, eggs, and wool
3. Fetus development
Proteins
When do animals need the greatest amounts of
protein?
1. Young and Growing
2. Pregnant
3. Lactating (producing milk)
Proteins
What are the 2 types of amino acids?
1. Non-Essential Amino Acids
– Needed by animals
– Are synthesized by the body from other A.A.’s and
do not have to be provided
Proteins
What are the 2 types of amino acids?
2. Essential Amino Acids
– Cannot be made from other A.A.’s
– Must be provided in the diet
– Nonruminants need most of their A.A.’s provided
Proteins
What are the 2 sources of proteins?
1. Animal Proteins
– Meat and Bone Scraps
– Blood Meal
– Fish Meal
2. Vegetable Proteins
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Soybeans
Peanut Meal
Hay
Pastures
Proteins
Animal Proteins Source vs. Vegetable/Plant
Protein Source
Which is a better source?
Animal Proteins
Why?
They contain a good balance of the essential
amino acids
Proteins
• Simple stomached animals need a balance of
the essential A.A.’s
• Cereal grains combined in the right amounts,
can provide a balanced ration
• Urea- synthetic nitrogen source that is mixed in
a ration to provide nitrogen for making AA’s in
the ruminants body
Proteins
What is crude protein?
• The amount of ammonical nitrogen in the
feed (ammonia) multiplied by 6.25
• It may contain materials that are not true
protein
Proteins
What is digestible protein?
• The true protein in a feed
• Not all protein is digestible
• 60% of the crude protein(CP) in a roughage diet is
digestible
• 75% of the CP in a high concentrate ration is
digestible
Protein Review
1. What are proteins and what are the functions of
proteins?
2. Explain what crude protein is.
3. Name two sources of proteins and an example
of each.
4. Why do young animal require more protein that
older animals?
5. What is the difference between essential and
nonessential amino acids?
6. What is digestible protein?
5 Basic Classes of Nutrients
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Water
Energy Nutrients
Proteins
Minerals
Vitamins
Minerals
What are minerals?
• Inorganic substances that animals need in
small amounts
• Minerals contain no carbon
Minerals
What are some functions of minerals?
1. Provide material for growth of:
– Bones, Teeth, and Tissue
2. Help with muscular activities
3. Reproduction
4. Digestion of feed
Minerals
Minerals are divided into 2 groups, what are
they?
1. Major (macro) Minerals
2. Trace (micro) Minerals
Minerals- Major
• Needed in large amounts
• 7 Macro Minerals
– Calcium
– Phosphorus
– Sodium
– Chlorine
– Potassium
– Sulfur
– Magnesium
Minerals- Major
What are the most common major minerals
animal rations lack?
• Sodium
• Calcium
• Phosphorous
Minerals- Major
Sodium
• Functions:
– Maintain osmotic pressure in cells
– Muscle and nerve activity
• Deficiencies:
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Reduced appetite
Rough hair coat
Cannibalism in chickens
Dirt eating
Minerals- Major
Calcium
• Functions:
– Bone development
– Nerve and muscle function
• Deficiencies:
– Rickets- in young animals bones are soft, bend
easily, and are malformed
Minerals- Major
Phosphorus
• Functions:
– Bone and Teeth Development
– Appetite
• Deficiencies:
– Rickets
– Stiffness in joints
– Loss of appetite
Minerals- Trace
• Needed in small amounts
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Sulfur
Magnesium
Iron
Iodine
Copper
Cobalt
Zinc
Manganese
Boron
Molybdenum
Fluorine
Selenium
Mineral Review
1. What are minerals?
2. What are minerals important?
3. What are 3 major minerals that animal feeds
commonly lack? Name one deficiency of
each.
4. What is the difference between major
minerals and trace minerals.
5 Basic Classes of Nutrients
•
•
•
•
•
Water
Energy Nutrients
Proteins
Minerals
Vitamins
Vitamins
What are vitamins?
• Trace organic compounds needed in small
amounts by animals
• Needed for development of normal tissues
and for health, growth and maintenance
Vitamins
Vitamins are divided into 2 groups, what are they?
• Fat-Soluble Vitamins (A,D,E,K)
– Dissolved in fat
• Water-Soluble Vitamins (C, B-Complex)
– Dissolved in water
Vitamin A
• Function:
– Vision
– Conception Rates
– Disease Resistance
• Deficiencies:
– Night Blindness
– Blindness in calves
– Reproductive problems
Vitamin D
• Function:
– Bone Development
– Growth
• Deficiencies:
– Rickets (young animals)
– Osteomalacia (older animals)
Vitamin E
• Function:
– Reproduction
– Muscle Development
– E and Selenium together help immune system
• Deficiencies:
– Reproduction failure
– Muscular dystrophy
Vitamin K
• Function:
– Blood Clotting
• Deficiencies:
– Blood doesn’t clot fast
Vitamins
What are some sources of Vitamin A,D,E,K?
• Green Leafy Hay
• Yellow Corn
• Cod Liver
• Fish Oils
Vitamin C
• Function:
– Formation of teeth and bones
– Prevents infections
B- Complex
• Function:
– Appetite
– Growth
– Reproduction
Vitamins
What are some sources of water-soluble
vitamins?
• Green Pastures and Hay
• Cereal Grains
• Milk
Vitamin Review
1. What are vitamins and why are they needed?
2. List the fat-soluble vitamins and their functions
as well as deficiencies.
3. What are the sources of fat-soluble vitamins?
4. What is the function of Vitamin C?
5. What the sources of the water-soluble
vitamins?