Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-m6dg7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-08T12:26:13.323Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Deuterium oxide dilution accurately predicts water intake in sheep and goats

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 April 2010

D. Al-Ramamneh ,
A. Riek  and
M. Gerken
D. Al-Ramamneh
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, Albrecht-Thaer-Weg 3, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
A. Riek*
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, Albrecht-Thaer-Weg 3, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
M. Gerken
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Sciences, University of Göttingen, Albrecht-Thaer-Weg 3, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
*
†E-mail: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

The aim of this study was to test whether the deuterium oxide dilution technique accurately predicts water intake in sheep and goats. Two other issues were also studied: (i) a comparison of water intake in sheep and goats and (ii) an assessment of whether observations of drinking behaviour can accurately measure the water intake. In this study, eight dry Boer goats and eight dry German Black Head Mutton ewes were kept under controlled stable conditions. Animals had access to hay and water ad libitum. Diurnal drinking behaviour was recorded by video. Individual daily water intake was measured and estimated for 2 weeks by re-weighing water buckets and from water kinetics using the deuterium oxide dilution technique, respectively. In addition, dry matter intakes were directly measured and were significantly higher in sheep than in goats. The average daily water consumption by drinking differed significantly between the two species, with higher intakes in sheep than in goats. Total body water expressed as a percentage of body mass did not differ between species. Measurement methods of total water intake (TWI) using deuterium oxide dilution and re-weighing water buckets did not differ significantly in both species (P = 0.926). Results obtained for measured and estimated TWI confirm that the isotope dilution technique gives reliable results for estimates of water intake in sheep and goats. The higher amount of water intake in sheep was also reflected by their drinking behaviour. Sheep spent approximately 0.3% per 24-h drinking, while Boer goats spent only 0.1%. However, measured and estimated TWIs were only moderately correlated to the daily time spent drinking. The lower water intake found in Boer goats confirms a superior water management capacity compared with Black Head Mutton sheep even under temperate conditions.

Keywords

sheepgoatswater intakeisotope dilutiontotal body waterbehaviour
Type
Full Paper
Information
animal , Volume 4 , Issue 9 , September 2010 , pp. 1606 - 1612
Copyright
Copyright © The Animal Consortium 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Aganga, AA, Umunna, NN, Okoh, PN, Oyedipe, EO 1989. Breed difference in water metabolism and body composition of sheep and goats. Journal of Agricultural Science 113, 255–258.Google Scholar
Aggrey, EK 1982. Seasonal changes in water content and turnover in cattle, sheep and goats grazing under humid tropical conditions in Ghana. In Use of tritiated water in studies of production and adaptation in ruminants (ed. IAE Agency), pp. 133–142. International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, Austria.Google Scholar
Aregheore, M 1996. Voluntary intake and nutrient digestibility of crop-residue based rations by goats and sheep. Small Ruminant Research 22, 7–12.Google Scholar
Atti, N, Bocquier, F, Thériez, M, Khaldi, G, Kayouli, C 2000. In vivo estimation of body composition from the dilution space of deuterium oxide in fat-tailed Barbary ewes. Livestock Production Science 65, 39–45.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cameron, E 1998. Is suckling a useful predictor of milk intake? A review. Animal Behaviour 56, 521–532.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Casey, NH, Van Niekerk, WA 1988. The Boer goat. I. Origin, adaptability, performance testing, reproduction and milk production. Small Ruminant Research 1, 291–302.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Das, N, Maitra, DN, Bisht, GS 1999. Genetic and non-genetic factors influencing ingestive behavior of sheep under stall-feeding conditions. Small Ruminant Research 32, 129–136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Degen, AA, Pinshow, B, Alkon, PU, Arnon, H 1981. Tritiated water for estimating total body water and water turnover rate in birds. Journal of Applied Physiology 51, 1183–1188.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Devendra, C 1990. Comparative aspects of digestive physiology and nutrition in goats and sheep. In Ruminant nutrition and physiology in Asia (ed. C Devendra and E Imazumi), pp. 45–60. Japan Society of Zootechnical Science, Tokyo, Japan.Google Scholar
Fairall, N, Klein, DR 1984. Protein intake and water turnover: a comparison of two equivalently sized African antelope the Blesbok (Damaliscus dorcas) and Impala (Aepyceros melampus). Canadian Journal of Animal Science 64 (suppl.), 212–214.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferreira, AV, Hoffman, LC, Schoeman, SJ, Sheridan, R 2002. Water intake of Boer goats and Mutton merinos receiving either a low or high energy feedlot diet. Small Ruminant Research 43, 245–248.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Freer, M, Dove, H, Nolan, JV 2007. Water intake. In Nutrient requirements of domesticated ruminants (ed. CSIRO), pp. 187–194. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, Australia.Google Scholar
Garland, T, Adolph, S 1994. Why not to do two-species comparative studies: limitations on inferring adaptation. Physiological Zoology 67, 797–828.Google Scholar
Gehre, M, Geilmann, H, Richter, J, Werner, RA, Brand, WA 2004. Continuous flow 2H/1H and 18O/16O analysis of water samples with dual inlet precision. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry 18, 2650–2660.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Higgins, LV, Costa, DP, Huntley, AC, Le Boeuf, BJ 1988. Behavioural and physiological measurements of maternal investment in the Stellar sea lion Eumetopias jubatus. Marine Mammal Science 4, 44–58.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holleman, DF, White, RG, Luick, JR 1982. Application of the isotopic water method for measuring total body water, body composition and body water turnover. In Use of tritiated water in studies of production and adaptation in ruminants (ed. IAE Agency), pp. 9–32. International Atomic Energy Agency, Nairobi, Kenya.Google Scholar
Keskin, M, Sahin, A, Bicer, O, Gül, S, Kaya, S, Sari, A, Duru, M 2005. Feeding behaviour of Awassi sheep and Shami (Damascus) goats. Turkish Journal of Veterinary and Animal Science 29, 435–439.Google Scholar
King, JM 1983. Livestock water needs in pastoral Africa in relation to climate and forage. ILCA Research Report 7. International Livestock Centre for Africa (ILCA), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.Google Scholar
Larvor, P 1983. The pools of cellular nutrients: minerals. In Dynamic biochemistry of animal production. World Animal Science (ed. PM Riis), pp. 281–317. Elsevier, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.Google Scholar
Lifson, N, McClintock, R 1966. Theory of use of the turnover rates of body water for measuring energy and material balance. Journal of Theoretical Biology 12, 46–74.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lynch, JJ, Brown, GD, May, PF, Donnelly, JB 1972. The effect of withholding drinking water on wool growth and lamb production of grazing Merino sheep in a temperate climate. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 23, 659–668.Google Scholar
Macfarlane, WV, Howard, B 1972. Comparative water and energy economy of wild and domestic mammals. Symposia of the Zoological Society of London 31, 261–296.Google Scholar
Maynard, LA, Loosli, JK, Hintz, HF, Warner, RG 1981. Animal nutrition, 7th edition. Tata McGrawl-Hill Publishing, New Delhi, India.Google Scholar
Nagy, KA, Costa, DP 1980. Water flux in animals: analysis of potential errors in the tritiated water method. American Journal of Physiology 238, R454–R465.Google ScholarPubMed
Nocek, JE, Braun, DG 1985. Effect of feeding frequency on diurnal dry matter and water consumption, liquid dilution rate, and milk yield in first lactation. Journal of Dairy Science 68, 2238–2247.Google Scholar
Oftedal, OT, Hintz, HF, Schryver, HF 1983. Lactation in the horse: milk composition and intake by foals. Journal of Nutrition 113, 2196–2206.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Panaretto, BA 1963. Body composition in vivo. III. The composition of living ruminants and its relation to the tritiated water spaces. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 14, 944–952.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Panaretto, BA, Till, AR 1963. Body composition in vivo. II. The composition of mature goats and its relationship to the antipyrine, tritiated water, and N-acetyl-4-aminoantipyrine spaces. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 14, 926–943.Google Scholar
Penman, AD, Wright, IA 1987. Determination of deuterium level in biological fluids by isotope ratio mass spectrometry. Biomedical and Environmental Mass Spectrometry 14, 339–342.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ranjhan, SK, Kalanidhi, AP, Gosh, TK, Singh, UB, Saxena, KK 1982. Body composition and water metabolism in tropical ruminants using tritiated water. In Use of tritiated water in studies of production and adaptation in ruminants (ed. IAE Agency), pp. 117–132. International Atomic Energy Agency, Nairobi, Kenya.Google Scholar
Riek, A, Gerken, M, Moors, E 2007. Measurement of milk intake in suckling llamas (Lama glama) using deuterium oxide dilution. Journal of Dairy Science 90, 867–875.Google Scholar
Salem, AZM, Salem, MZM, El-Adawy, MM, Robinson, PH 2006. Nutritive evaluations of some browse tree foliages during the dry season: secondary compounds, feed intake and in vivo digestibility in sheep and goats. Animal Feed Science and Technology 127, 251–276.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Statistical Analysis Systems Institute 2001. SAS user’s Guide, release 9.01. SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA.Google Scholar
Schoeller, DA 1983. Energy-expenditure from doubly labeled water – some fundamental considerations in humans. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 38, 999–1005.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schoeller, DA, Ravussin, E, Schutz, Y, Acheson, KJ, Baertschi, P, Jequier, E 1986. Energy-expenditure by doubly labeled water-validation in humans and proposed calculation. American Journal of Physiology 250, R823–R830.Google Scholar
Silanikove, N 1989. Inter-relationship between water, food and digestible energy intake in desert and temperate goats. Appetite 12, 163–170.Google Scholar
Silanikove, N 2000. The physiological basis of adaptation in goats to harsh environments. Small Ruminant Research 35, 181–193.Google Scholar
Sirohi, SK, Karim, SA, Misra, AK 1997. Nutrient intake and utilization in sheep fed with prickly pear cactus. Journal of Arid Environments 36, 161–166.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Squires, VR 1993. Water and its functions, regulation and comparative use by ruminant livestock. In The ruminant animal: digestive physiology and nutrition (ed. DC Church), pp. 217–226. Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ.Google Scholar
Van, DTT, Mui, NT, Ledin, I 2007. Effect of group size on feed intake, aggressive behaviour and growth rate in goat kids and lambs. Small Ruminant Research 72, 187–196.Google Scholar