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Effect of Dietary Fat and Minerals on the Incidence of Diarrhea and Rate of Passage of Diets in the Digestive Tract of Dairy Calves¹

Department of Dairy, Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Station, Stillwater

ABSTRACT

Effects of adding minerals simulating whey ash, animal tallow, or both to a basal nonfat milk solids diet for calves were determined. Highly significant differences (P < 0.01) in the over-all incidence of diarrhea were observed among groups of calves fed the different diets in one trial extending for 21 days, but not in another trial of shorter duration. The added minerals increased the over-all incidence of diarrhea in the calves, whereas the animal tallow decreased its incidence in comparison to diets without added fat. The rather severe, apparently noninfectious diarrhea subsided after several days, even though the same amount of the respective diets was fed each day throughout the experiment, indicating a marked adaptation of the calves to diarrheic diets.

Addition of minerals to the diet appeared to accelerate, whereas added fat tended to delay, the rate of abomasal evacuation, as determined by radiography of 16 calves at four and 11 days of age. There was little evidence that the rate of abomasal evacuation was definitely related to the severity of diarrhea on the days the radiographs were made. The average weight, pH, and chemical composition of digestive tract contents in calves at 17 days of age were not related to fecal consistency at the time of slaughter.

¹ Taken from a thesis presented to the Graduate School, Oklahoma State University, by J. D. Schuh, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Ph.D. degree.

² Present address: Dairy Extension Specialist, University of Nevada, Reno.