Two trials were conducted to assess the acceptance, safety and digestibility of diets containing various inclusion levels of partially defatted black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae (BSFL) meal and BSFL oil by dogs. In Trial 1, five extruded diets were evaluated for acceptance in adult Beagle dogs (n=20; 10 male, 10 female) during a 48-hour period. Diets contained graded levels of BSFL meal (5.0, 10.0, and 20.0%), or graded levels of BSFL oil (2.5 and 5.0%), and all diets were well-accepted. Thus, a digestibility trial (Trial 2) was run with 56 adult dogs (16 male, 40 female) allocated into seven dietary treatments; dogs were offered an extruded control diet containing no BSFL meal or oil, or extruded diets where BSFL meal partially replaced poultry by-product meal and corn meal at dietary levels of 5, 10, or 20% inclusion, or diets with BSFL oil partially replacing poultry fat at a 1:1 ratio at levels of 1, 2.5, or 5% inclusion. The treatment diets were fed for 28 days, during which time dogs were monitored for health (via physical examinations, clinical observations, and blood chemistry and hematology) and ingredient evaluation (via body weight, feed consumption, stool observation, and fecal nutrient apparent total tract digestibility). There were no significant differences in body weight or food consumption between treatment groups (P > 0.05) and daily observations indicated that the general health of the animals was maintained throughout the study. Stool quality was maintained at 3.2 to 3.4 (on a five-point scale with a score of one being watery diarrhea and a score of five being hard, dry and crumbly) per treatment group over the fecal observation period (days 22-27), indicating a well-formed, sticky stool. All group mean hematology and blood chemistry parameters remained within normal limits for dogs. Apparent total tract digestibility of dry matter, protein, fat, and calories was not affected by treatment (P > 0.05). In general, amino acid digestibility was not impacted by treatment although some minor changes were observed. Apparent total tract digestibility was high for all nutrients examined. Overall, it was concluded that BSFL meal and BSFL oil are well-tolerated by dogs and their consumption results in no impact to physiology that would be concerning. Based on these data, BSFL meal and oil did not affect general health and could be included safely in dog diets.
Insect-derived ingredients, including whole larvae, protein-rich meal, and oil, have been extensively studied in recent years and shown to be a sustainable source of quality nutrition for virtually all animal species and life stages. In addition to the ability to use these ingredients as a source of essential nutrition, more recent research has demonstrated the potential for the immunomodulatory activity of various components of insect-derived ingredients. For all insects studied, antimicrobial peptides make up a critical part of the insects’ innate immune system and these peptides have antimicrobial efficacy when purified from hemolymph and tested in vitro. From black soldier fly larvae, in particular, lauric acid is a predominant fatty acid deposited into the insect, and lauric acid also has potential antimicrobial activity in vitro and in vivo. Finally, the chitin and chitosan components of the insect exoskeleton may modulate microbial activity in a variety of ways. In companion animals, poultry, and livestock species, insect-derived ingredients have shown the potential to reduce the impact of actual or simulated disease challenge on several parameters of animal health and well-being. This review describes the current state of knowledge of the immunomodulatory potential of insect-derived ingredients.
Many amphibian species are threatened with extinction. Understanding their vitamin A (retinol), E (alpha-tocopherol), and carotenoid requirements is vital, as normal levels of these nutrients have a known connection to breeding success with abnormal levels leading to disease. This research examined vitamins A, E, and carotenoids (apocarotenoid, beta-carotene; beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein, zeaxanthin, and esters) concentration kinetics in the liver and plasma of 65 (57.8) cane toads (Rhinella marina) over 4 months supplemented with commercially available invertebrates in human care. Cane toads were opportunistically collected as part of a population control program for use as an amphibian model species. Toads were randomly assigned to one of two diets: treatment 1 was brown house crickets (Acheta domesticus) consuming Mazuri ® Hi Calcium Gut Loading Diet without vitamin A or E supplement, plus fresh raw vegetables (carrot/sweet potato); Treatment 2 was the same diet except no vegetables. Ten toads were euthanized on Day 0 to analyze baseline free-ranging liver and plasma metabolites. Six toads consuming each treatment were euthanized on Days 22, 50, and 81, and n = 7 on Day 119 for analysis. Regardless of dietary treatment, most liver and blood metabolites were substantially higher at time 0 than all time points thereafter (p < .05); Ex: liver vitamin A at time 0 was 87.7 ± 16.12 µg/g while Day 119 for treatments 1 and 2 were 11.6 ± 1.19 and 8.2 ± 0.74, respectively. Few statistically significant differences between diets at the same time point were noted (p < .05). The results from this study indicate that additional or alternative diet supplementation may be needed for cane toads (and potentially other amphibians) to mimic their free-ranging diets.
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