Applied Animal Nutrition-I

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENT FOR WORK

• Increased muscular activity results in nutrients being oxidised in the system. All the organic constituents of feed are capable of being oxidised and utilised as energy sources.
• As long as supply is adequate, the working animal is to draw sources of carbohydrates and fat to meet the energy need.
• If the supply is inadequate, body fat will be drawn upon first and in the last stage, the protein tissues may be broken down to furnish energy for work as it is now accepted that the protein is not the normal fuel of muscular work and that no protein catabolism or extra wear and tear of tissues occurs during work.
• Therefore, theoretically no extra protein is required to be supplied as long as the ration provides sufficient carbohydrate and fat for extra energy required for work.
• From the stand point of an efficient ration for work, however, other considerations appear more important than the question as to whether the protein requirement is actually increased during work or not.
• During hard work, the need for energy may be almost doubled and unless the protein content of the ration is simultaneously increased, nutritive ratio becomes wide.
• As a result efficiency of energy utilization will be poorer since digestibility will be depressed by wide ratio and metabolic heat losses will also be increased.
• Naturally, therefore an efficient ration in all respects will demand inclusion of additional protein along with energy for maintaining the proper nutritive ratio (as in lactating animals having different fat content mentioned earlier) for increased muscular activity although the additional protein may not be specifically required for muscular activity.