Fish Flour as a Protein Source in Calf Milk Replacers

J. T. HUBEW and L. M. SLADE "~ Department of Dairy Science

Virginia Polytechnic Institute, Blacksburg

Abstract

Substitution of varying levels of fish flour protein for skimmilk protein in calf milk replacers was studied in growth and balance trials, using 108 Holstein calves. The effect of dietary fat on growth re- sponses to fish flour also was investigated. Milk replacers (diluted to 15% dry matter) furnished the only source of nu- trients to calves in growth and balance trials.

Average daily gains and feed efficiencies were not significantly depressed when fish flour furnished up to 40% of the dietary protein. However, at 60 to 67% nmrked decreases (P < .01) were observed; and at 100%, death occurred. The animals which succumbed at the 100% level ap- peared normal to about 3 weeks, but be- came listless, emaciated, and refused their rations during the fourth week of treat- ment, and died shortly thereafter. A linear increase (P < .05) in gains was noted as fat content of replacers increased from 10 to 20% (on a dry basis). How- ever, no interaction between fat level and protein source was detected.

Digestibilities of dry matter, crude pro- tein, ether extract, and ash decreased as amount of fish flour in milk replacers in- creased. Digestibility of crude protein in fish flour averaged about 80% compared to 90% for skimmilk protein. The per cent of digested nitrogen retained was sig- nificantly depressed (P < .05) only when fish flour furnished 100% of the dietary protein.

Poor growth and low protein digestibilities have resulted from incorporation of vegetable proteins into milk replacers for young' calves (6, 16, 17). Studies have also shown poor

Received for publication March 1, 1967. 1 Present address: Dairy Department, Michigan

State University, East Lansing. " Present address: Animal Science Department,

University of California, Davis.

utilization of animal proteins other than milk and milk products (2, 10).

Favorable responses in growth have been reported for fish protein fed to simple-stomach animals (7, 8, 12). However, little information is available on its use in milk replacers for calves. This study was designed to investigate replacement of skimmilk protein with fish pro- tein in milk replacers for young calves. The source of fish protein was defatted fish meal and will be designated as fish flour.

Experimental Procedure

In four trials, 108 male and female Holstein calves were fed milk replacers containing vary- ing levels of fish flour, for evaluation of effects on growth and nutrient utilization.

Trial 1 was a growth study in which fish flour furnished 0, 20, 40, and 60% of the protein in the milk replacer. An ingredient composition of replacers is listed in Table 1. Thirty-two Holstein calves (12 males and 20 females) were allotted to four treatments on the basis of time of birth. Calves received colostrum from 0 to 3 days and nfilk replacer as the only food from 3 to 45 days. Replacers were diluted to 15% solids and fed by nipple pail at 8% of body weight from 3 to 16 days, 10% from 17 to 45 days, and 5% from 46 to 52 days.

From 45 to 87 days, heifer calves were of- fered alfalfa-orehardgrass hay ad libitum and a commercial calf starter (up to 1.82 kg/day). l~[ale calves were sold at 45 days. Calves were weighed weekly and measured for heart girth circumference and wither height at 3 and 45 days.

Trial 2 was also a growth study using a 3 × 3 factorial design. Fish flour content of the replacers was varied so that it furnished 0, 33, and 67% of the protein. Three levels of fat (10, 15, and 20% of the dry matter) comprised the other variable. Fifty-four female Holstein calves (six per group) were used. Feeding, weighing, and measuring schedules were similar to those for Trial 1. I t was orig- inally intended to include diets in which fish flour furnished 100% of the protein; but, after

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F I S H F L O U R F O R C A L V E S

TABLE 1 Ingredient and proxinmte composition of diets used in fish flour trials"

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Protein from fish flour (%) Ingredient (%) 0 20 33 40 60 67 1O0

Dried skimniilk 63.9 50.4 42.8 37.9 25.2 21.1 Lactose b 26.0 33.6 37.5 40.3 47.0 49.2 6ii0 Fish flour ° 5.9 9.6 11.7 17.7 19.6 28.9 Emulsified lard oil a 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0

Proxiniate component (%)

Crude protein 21.8 23.4 22.4 23.2 23.7 22.6 21.4 NFE 63.3 61.5 62.5 62.0 61.2 62.0 62.4 Ether extract 10.1 10.4 10.3 10.2 10.4 10.5 10.4 Ash 4.7 4.8 4.7 4.6 4.6 4.8 5.7

" All diets contained 2,200 IU /kg of vitamins A m~d D3 (furnished courtesy Dawes Labora- tories, Inc., Chicago, IlL) and 248 mg of ehlortetraeyeline/kg (furnished courtesy American Cyanamid Company, Princeton, N. J . ) .

Furnished courtesy Foremost Dairies, Inc., San Francisco, Calif. Furnished courtesy ¥ioBin Corp., Monticello, Ill. Extraction of fat from fish meal was by

the azeotropie method, using ethylene dichloride as the organic solvent. Fish flour was ana.- lyzed to contain the following on a dry basis: crude protein, 73.4% ; ether extract, 1.5% ; ash, 19.8%; NFE, 4.7%.

a Furnished courtesy Milk Specialties, Ink., Dundee, Ill. In Trial 2, three levels of emulsified lard oil (10, 15, and 20% on a dry basis) were fed at each level of fish flour.

the first two calves had succumbed on this diet, this t reatment was dropped.

Trials 3 and 4 were balance studies using male Holstein calves. Calves in Trial 3 were 12 weeks old when started. F ish flour furnished 0, 33, and 67% of the dietary protein in a 3 × 3 Lat in-square design. Per iods were 14 days, including 9 days for adjus tment (the last 3 days in metabolism stalls) and 5 days for collection. Fecal and urine samples were col- lected twice daily and frozen fo r subsequent analyses. The chemical composition of feces and urine was determined according to A O A C (1). As in Trial 2, it was planned to include a t reatment in which fish flour furnished 100% of the dietary protein, but the calf on this diet died during the first period and was not replaced.

I n Trial 4, 16 calves ( four per group) were randomly allotted at three days of age to re- placers in which fish flour furnished 0, 33, 67, and 100% of the dietary protein. Fecal and ur ine collections were made at one and six weeks for the 0, 33, and 67% diets and only at one week fo r the 100% diet, because of death loss of calves on this t reatment . I n both balance trials, the diluted replacer comprised the only source of nutrients and was fed at rates similar to those described in the growth studies.

Results and Discussion

In Trial 1, gains from 3 to 45 days were

s imilar fo r the control, 20, and 40% treatments, but significantly depressed (P < .01) at 60% (Table 2). A f t e r weaning, rates of gain were similar for all t reatments and are not listed in tabular form. Hea r t gir th circumference and wither height measurements were highly variable and not significantly affected by treat- ment. Because of the slower gains, feed con- version was lowest (P < .01) for calves receiving the highest level of fish flour.

Texas workers (18) also repor ted decreased calf gains on a milk replacer in which defat ted fish meal furnished about 78% of the dietary protein, while no difference f rom controls was noted at 40%. Data f rom the present study are in apparen t contradiction with those of Harshba rge r and Gelwiehs (3), in which no decrease in gain was noted when fish flour fm'nished about 67% of the protein in the milk replacers. However , calves in the Il l inois study also received hay and calf starter. Cal- culations based on reported intakes indicate that s tar ter and hay furnished about one-third of the total rat ion protein. Thus, about 45% of the dietal T protein would have come f rom fish flour. This was sinfilar to the highest level that did not induce growth depression in the present study. I t is also possible that rumen funct ion of calves in the Il l inois work (3) may have mediated the effect of the fish flour.

As fish flour in the diet increased in Trial 2, gains and feed efiiciencies were decreased (P < .01). However , differences between 0 and 33% were nmeh smaller than those between

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1 2 9 8 ~ U B E ~ AND SLADE

TABLE 2 Effect of fish flour and l a t i n milk replacers on body weight gains, feed efficiency, and body

measurements

Trial 1 Interval Protein from fish flour (%)

Item (days) 0 20 40 60

Weight gain (kg) 3-24 ~ 4.09 4.86 4.95 2.48 3-45 ~ 16.19 16.00 16.00 11.81

Feed/gain (l~g) 3-45" 1.73 1.69 1.82 2.28

Trial 2 Protein from fish flour (%)

0 33 67

Dietary fat (%)

10 15 20 Weight gain (kg) 3-24 b 5.77 5.00 3.47 4.57

3-45 "°'~ 16.67 15.10 11.47 13.00 Feed/gain (leg) 3-45 b'd 1.79 1.99 2.69 2.37 Increase in heart

girth circumference (cm) b 3-45 10.39 8.71 7.72 9.09

Increase in wither height (cm) 3-45 5.79 6.05 4.67 5.64

4.67 5.03 14.53 15.63 2.05 2.04

8.71 8.99

6.05 5.61

0, 20, and 40% significantly higher than 60% (P < .01). b Linear effect for protein source significant (P < .01).

Linear effect for fat level significant (P < .05). For fat level, 10% significantly higher than 15 and 20% (P < .05).

33 and 67%. Increased fat also resulted in increased growth and feed conversion, but treatment effects were not as large as for fish flour. No interactions between protein source and fat content of replacers were noted. There- fore, only the major effects of treatment are listed in Table 2. There was a linear decrease (P < .01) in heart girth circumference and a trend (P < .10) towards decreased wither heights as levels of fish flour increased. Dietary fat had no effect on these body measurements.

Results of Trial 2 support those of Trial 1, in demonstrating a marked depression in growth at the higher levels of fish flour. The decreased growth was not overcome by added fat ; thus, it seems unlikely that energy was the main factor limiting gains when fish flour furnished 60% or more of the protein in milk replacers. The amino acid composition of skimmilk and fish flour protein is similar, except that fish flour is slightly lower in tyrosine, phenylala- nine, leucine, isoleueine, and valine, but higher in arginine and lysine (17). However, Morri- son and Sabry (33) demonstrated marked dif- ferences in availability of certain amino acids between different samples of fish flour. Mor- rison (11) suggested that alteration in avail- ability of methionine and histidine in a specific sample occurred during the extraction process. Steaming of this sample rendered the methionine more available. In studies by Waterworth (21), isoleueine was the main amino acid limiting

growth of Streptococcus zymogens from several fish meals. More research is needed to deter- mine availability to c~lves of essential amino acids from fish flour and other protein sources. Another possible cause for the depressed growth when fish flour furnished over 60% of the dietary protein to calves was an imbalance of amino acids. Huston and Scott (5) demon- strated thst under certain conditions, excesses of both lysine and arginine were detrimental to chick growth.

In Trials 3 and 4, fish flour exerted a depress- ing effect on digestibilities of dry matter, crude protein, ether extract, and ash (Table 3). The crude protein digestion coefficient for fish flour, calculated by difference and averaged for all treatments, was 81.3%. This was very close to the value (79.9%) obtained for one-week-old calves on the 100% diet. Protein digestibilities determined for fish flour were higher than those observed for replacers containing relatively large amounts of fish meal and cereal grains (17), soybean meal (16), or distillers dried solubles (6). Digestibility of skimmilk protein (calculated by averaging control groups) was 91.1%, and similar to that obtained for milk protein in other studies (6, 17). Despite the decreased protein digestibility with increasing levels of fish flour, the per cent of the dietary nitrogen retained was significantly decreased only when fish flour supplied 100% of the dietary protein. Nitrogen retention values ob-

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FISH FLOUR FOR CALVES 1 2 9 9

TABLE3 Effectoffish f louronut i l iza t ionofnutr ients inmilkreplacersfedyoungcalvesatvarying ages

Digestion coefficients (%)

Protein from Dry Crude Ether fish flour matter protein extract Ash NFE Nitrogen retention

(%) Trial 3"

0 90.2 90.3 95.7 86.5 89.5 33 88.7 84.3 93.0 71.9 91.3 67 89.0 85.4 85.7 61.8 94.3

Trial 4 0 (1 wk) 95.5 b'~ 89.0 ¢'~ 93.6 b 77.8 b'a 98.7

(6 wk) 96.5 93.4 95.1 79.9 98.7 33 (1 wk) 93.4 85.5 89.9 65.4 98.4

(6 wk) 95.4 90.9 95.1 68.7 98.4 67(1 wk) 92.2 83.7 87.5 66.4 98.4

(6 wk) 93.7 89.8 87.1 64.3 98.1 100 (1 wk) 89.8 79.9 77.9 72.1 97.5

(g/day) (% of intal~e)

21.5 49.0 25.4 49.3 20.6 42.1

7.7~,~ 44.5~.g 15.9 52.5 7.6 38.0

15.8 49.9 7.4 40.7

15.9 53.7 3.7 23.6

None of the differences in Trial 3 is significant (P ~ .05). b Linear effect for proteln source significant (P ~ .01).

Linear effect for protein source significant (P ~ .10). Quadratic effect in 1 wk calves for protein source, significant (P ~ .01). Age difference significant (P ~.01). Age difference significant (P ~ .10).

g For protein source, 100% vs. 0, 33, 67 in 1 wk calves significant (P ~ .05).

served in all but the 100% diet were similar to those reported for milk protein (6, 17), but higher than for replacers containing cereal grains and fish meal (10) or high levels of distillers dried solubles (6). All measures of protein utilization were higher at six weeks than one week. Similar increases with age have been reported elsewhere (6, 16).

The reason for decreased ether extract di- gestibilities with increasing levels of fish flour is not obvious and merits further research. Fat digestibilities were markedly depressed in rats fed rations containing 1,500 ppm sodium fluoride (19). Fluorine levels were much lower in this study and were calculated to be 25, 50, and 75 ppm for the 33, 67, and 100% diets, respectively.

Digestibility of ash was lower in the 33 and 66% rations, where part of the mineral came from both dried skimmilk and fish flour, than in the 0 and 100% rations, where mineral was supplied by a single source. Even though there was a slight increase in ash content of the ration with increasing levels of fish flour, it is doubtful that this was sufficient to affect ash digestibilities. The high nitrogen free extract digestibilities re- flect the efficient utilization of lactose in the young calf as reported previously (4).

Throughout the entire study, five calves suc- cumbed when fish flour furnished 100% of the protein in milk replacers and four recovered when they were switched to whole milk after showing loss of appetite and listlessness at the

100% level. The reason for death on this ration is not apparent. For the first three to four weeks on the diet, calves appeared healthy, readily consumed the replacers, and exhibited normal growth patterns. However, emaciation and death occurred shortly thereafter. Even though nutrient digestibilities were somewhat depressed with increasing levels of fish flour, they were relatively high even on the 100% diet, and it is doubtful that poor nutrient ab- sorption caused death on this ration.

Fish flour used in these studies contained approximately 250 ppm of fluorine (9). Es- timated fluorine intake on the 100% diet was about 1.0 mg/kg body weight, slightly lower than the level of marginal toxicity of 1.4 mg/kg body weight reported by the National Research Council (13). However, autopsy of calves did not reveal any of the gross symptoms of fluorine toxicity.

Morrison et al. (14) showed that fish flour extracted with ethylene dichloride was not toxic to rats, even though organic chloride content was higher than that in chloroform-extracted fish flour which was toxic. The ethylene di- chloride content of the fish flour used in these studies was approximately 180 ppm (9). The opinion of the examining pathologist after autopsy of calves and histopathologieal exami- nations of calf tissues was that death was due primarily to pneumonia and enteritis from secondary invaders which probably entered the calves' bodies after they had been weakened

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1300 gUBER AND SLADE

by inanit ion or a low-grade toxicity. F u r t h e r studies are in progress to elucidate the cause of death on the diet in which fish flour suppl ied 100% of the protein.

Acknowledgments

The authors are indebted to Dr. Keith Libke for autopsy and histopatho]ogica] examinations of calves and tissues, and to Walter Shepherd and J. M. Sowers for care and feeding of animals.

References

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(3) Harshbarger, t(. E., and Gelwiehs, T. J. 1965. Fish Flour as a Protein Source in Milk Replacers for Dairy Calves. J. Dairy Sci., 48: 788.

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