Das A, Smith M L, Saini M, Katole Shrikant, Kullu S S, Gupta B K, Sharma A K, Swarup D
Centre for Wildlife Conservation, Management and Disease Surveillance, Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Zoo Biol. 2015 Jan-Feb;34(1):60-70. doi: 10.1002/zoo.21194. Epub 2014 Dec 16.
In order to study the effect of concentrates restriction on feed consumption, diet digestibility, and utilization of nitrogen in captive Asian elephants (Elephas maximus), two feeding trials were conducted on three juveniles, four sub-adults, and three adults. During trial I, the conventional zoo diets of juveniles, sub-adults, and adult contained 22, 17, and 16% of concentrates on dry matter (DM) basis, respectively. During trial II, the amount of concentrate was reduced by 50%. A digestion trial of five days collection period was conducted during each period. The animals ate more roughages when concentrates were restricted. Intake of DM (g/kg BW(0.75) /day) was highest in sub-adults, followed by juveniles and adults. Apparent digestibility of crude protein (CP), neutral detergent soluble (NDS), and supply of digestible energy (DE) was highest in juveniles, followed by sub-adults and adults. Based upon the estimated metabolic fecal nitrogen (MFN) and calculated endogenous urinary nitrogen (EUN) and dermal losses, minimum dietary CP required to meet maintenance requirement was estimated to be 6.12, 6.05, and 5.97% in juveniles, sub-adults, and adults, respectively. Restriction of concentrates resulted in decreased (P < 0.05) digestibility of DM and GE, but the diet still supplied adequate amounts of DE and CP to fulfill estimated requirements of energy and protein during the period of experimentation. Thus, the concentrates portion of the diets of captive Asian elephants should be fed in a restricted way so as to reduce the intake of excessive calories and the potential risk of obesity.
为研究精饲料限制对圈养亚洲象（印度象）采食量、日粮消化率和氮利用率的影响，对3头幼象、4头亚成体象和3头成年象进行了两项饲养试验。在试验I期间，幼象、亚成体象和成年象的常规动物园日粮中干物质（DM）基础上的精饲料含量分别为22%、17%和16%。在试验II期间，精饲料量减少50%。在每个阶段进行了为期5天的消化试验。当精饲料受到限制时，动物采食了更多的粗饲料。亚成体象的干物质摄入量（克/千克体重（0.75）/天）最高，其次是幼象和成年象。幼象的粗蛋白（CP）、中性洗涤剂可溶物（NDS）表观消化率和可消化能量（DE）供应最高，其次是亚成体象和成年象。根据估计的代谢粪氮（MFN）、计算的内源性尿氮（EUN）和皮肤损失，估计幼象、亚成体象和成年象满足维持需要所需的最低日粮CP分别为6.12%、6.05%和5.97%。精饲料限制导致干物质和总能消化率降低（P < 0.05），但日粮在试验期间仍提供了足够的DE和CP以满足估计的能量和蛋白质需求。因此，圈养亚洲象日粮中的精饲料部分应以限制方式投喂，以减少过多热量的摄入和肥胖的潜在风险。
