Nitrogen retention and water balance in animals fed medium protein diet amidst limited water supply

Abstract

Nitrogen metabolism of animals fed a medium protein diet (10.5% cp) adlibitum with restricted water consumption was studied. During the 8-daydigestibility trial, 3 groups of five animals each were subjected to 30%,50% and 100% water supply, with concomitant jugular blood samplestaken daily to monitor their hydration status. Water loss via the urinereflects the animals water intake, thus control animals voided more urine(P < 0.05) than 50% and 30% groups. Treatment groups retain highamount of nitrogen, in contrast to control animals that lost 2.4% nitrogenvia the faeces. Inadequate drinking caused decreased excretion of urea.The improved nitrogen retention coupled with high rates of urea recyclingenhances nutrients digestion and consequently the animals’ absorptivecapabilities.. (Afr. J. Biomed. Res. 9: 225 – 229, September 2006)Keywords: nitrogen, water restriction, digestion, urea, absorption, animals