FULVIC ACID EFFECT ON NUTRIENTS ABSORPTION IN YOUNG CATTLE DIET AND PRODUCTIVITY

Abstract

The aim of research is to study the effect of fulvic acid on the absorption of nutrients in the diet and the productivity of young cattle. Feed additives based on humic substances (humic and fulvic acids) with high biological activity may be promising. The studies were conducted on the farm of the agricultural cooperative Imeni Ilyicha in the Novgorod Region on young Holstein cattle aged 6–7 months. Three groups of animals were formed (n = 10): a control group consuming the basic diet (BD), the first experimental group – BD + 5 ml of fulvic acid, the second experimental group – BD + 10 ml of fulvic acid. It was found that the introduction of 5 ml of fulvic acid into the diet of young cattle had a positive effect on the digestibility of all the nutrients studied. Thus, the dry matter, crude protein and crude fiber values in the first experimental group exceeded the similar values in the control group by 1.9 %, 5.4 and 5.8 %, respectively. The digestibility coefficients of crude fat, NFE and organic matter in the animals of the first experimental group also exceeded the control values by 3.9 %, 2.4 and 3.6 %. The increase in the mass fraction of fulvic acid did not lead to a further increase in the digestibility coefficient values, on the contrary, in relation to the first experimental group, they decreased in all indicators. The average daily gain in the control group was 570 g, in the first experimental group – 887, in the second experimental group – 854 g, this also showed that an increase in the dosage of the feed additive is inappropriate and leads to a decrease in the payment for the feed in weight gain.