Short communication: Effect of canola meal use as a protein source in a starter mixture on feeding behavior and performance of calves during the weaning transition

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of canola meal use as a protein source in a starter mixture (SM) on feeding behavior and performance of calves during weaning transition. A total of 36 female Holstein calves of a mean age 14.9±1.6 d and body weight 40.1±4.2 kg (mean ± SD) were allocated to 1 of 3 treatments differing in the main source of protein for the SM (12 calves per treatment): (1) soybean meal (TSBM); (2) soybean meal and canola meal (TSBM/TCM); and (3) canola meal (TCM). The SM was offered for ad libitum consumption beginning on the first day of the study, whereas milk replacer (MR) was fed in amounts equal to 900 g (as fed) per day from d 1 to 35 and 450 g/d from d 36 to 42 of the study. Calves were completely weaned on d 43 of the study (57.9±1.6 d of age; mean ± SD), and their performance was monitored for an additional 2 wk. Calf body weight was recorded weekly, and MR and SM intake and fecal fluidity were recorded daily. Feeding behavior of calves during weaning transition, including frequency (no./d), time (min/d), and rate (g/min) of eating the SM as well as frequency and time of drinking water, was monitored on 6 calves per treatment for 2 consecutive days before MR step-down (d 34-35), at MR step-down (d 41-42), and after weaning (d 48-49 of study). Starter mixture intake tended to be higher for TSBM calves as compared with TSBM/TCM calves from d 1 to 35 of the study but was not different between TSBM and TCM calves and was not different between treatments in the whole study period. Calves from TCM treatment had reduced average daily gain (ADG) and feed efficiency (g of ADG/kg of dry matter intake) and a higher fecal score in the period from d 1 to 35 of the study and had lower feed efficiency and tended to have lower ADG in the whole study period as compared with TSBM calves. Average daily gain and feed efficiency did not differ between TSBM and TSBM/TCM calves. Frequency of eating the SM and drinking water as well as time and rate of eating the SM and time of drinking water did not differ between treatments. It is concluded that presence of canola meal in a SM does not affect feeding behavior and performance of calves during weaning transition but has a negative effect on ADG, feed efficiency, and number of days with diarrhea during the preweaning phase of rearing.

The importance of calf sensory and physical preferences for starter concentrates during pre- and postweaning periods

“…Khorasani et al (1990) fed a diet based on corn and either soybean meal or canola meal to 75-d-old calves, and they observed greater DM and CP digestibility with diets based on soybean than in diets based on canola. Similarly, when Hadam et al (2016) replaced all the soybean meal with canola meal in a starter concentrate, calves fed canola meal had similar concentrate intake to those fed soybean meal, but ADG and feed efficiency decreased, as observed in the present study.…”

Rapeseed and canola meal as protein sources in starter diets for calves: current knowledge and directions of future studies

“…in first 3-4 weeks of age) was often not presented (i.e. data for the whole rearing period was only reported), and there are studies suggesting that after weaning starter intake may be even increased when it contains RC meal (6,14). In consequence, a reduction of not only glucosinolates (or erucic acid), but also other antinutritional and unpalatable factors are necessary to increase value of RC meal for newborn calves.…”

“…It is worth emphasizing that in the majority of studies conducted, calves were fed very limited amounts of milk or milk replacer, and were oftentimes weaned relatively early (≈ 5 weeks of age). Taking into account that the negative impact of RC meal on performance of calves is expected predominantly in first 3-4 weeks of age (6,14) and that greater intake of liquid feed delays solid feed intake by calves (23), feeding more milk or milk replacer to calves can limit potential negative consequences of feeding starter containing RC meal. Furthermore, forage provision seems to increase when starter with RC meal is fed to calves, which may compensate, at least partially, for lower starter intake (9,39).…”

“…This is mostly due to the concerns over palatability (32) and digestibility (24, 37) of calf starters containing by-products arising from rapeseed and canola crushing. However, negative impacts of feeding rapeseed and canola meal to calves were shown in some (9,14) but not all studies (10,39), and this impact depended on many factors [e.g., content of glucosinolates in the meal or level of meal inclusion in the feed (9, 37)], indicating that by-products of rapeseed and canola processing have potential to be effectively used in diets for newborn calves.…”

A novel quantitative analysis method for idiopathic epiretinal membrane

“…Epiretinal membrane (ERM) is a fibrocellular proliferation at the vitreoretinal interface above the inner limiting membrane (ILM) [1]. The prevalence of ERM increases with age and is reported between 2,2% in a population from Beijing (China) without a significative difference in patients that underwent cataract surgery and 28,9% in a multiethnic United States population with higher rates in patients that underwent cataract surgery and in patients of Chinese ethnicity [2][3][4].…”