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Responses of Young Calves to a Diet Containing Salts of Volatile Fatty Acids^{1, 2,}

Animal Nutrition Section, Department of Animal Industry, North Carolina State College, Raleigh

ABSTRACT

Nine calves, starting at five days of age, were fed the following diets 12 wk.: Diet I, casein, fat, glucose, starch, and chopped hay; Diet II, casein, fat, glucose, and salts of acetic, propionic, and butyric acids, and Diet III, whole milk. For these diets, the average daily gains during the terminal 9 wk. were 0.82, 0.99, and 1.38 lb., respectively. After feeding, blood glucose increased sharply for Diet III but decreased slightly for Diets I and II. Conversely, blood volatile fatty acids (VFA) increased markedly for Diets I and II, but did not change for III. Increases of blood ketone bodies after feeding were somewhat more pronounced for Diets I and II than for III. Only small differences among diets were noted for any of the blood constituents immediately before feeding. At 0-hour, glucose tended to decrease with increasing age, whereas VFA and ketone bodies exhibited no marked change. The quantities of urinary ketones and VFA were largest for calves fed Diet II, whereas the quantities of urinary glucose were greatest for calves receiving Diet III. In general, the total urinary excretion of all these constituents tended to increase with advancing age. The responses indicate that calves at 3 wk. of age definitely are able to absorb VFA.

¹ Approved by the Director of Research for publication as Paper No. 984 in the Journal Series.

² The data in this paper are from a thesis submitted by the senior author in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science.

³ Present address: Department of Poultry Husbandry, West Virginia University, Morgantown.