Some basic considerations in evaluating mineral nutrition

Citation

Herd DB. 1997. Some basic considerations in evaluating mineral nutrition. In Proceedings of the Second Conference on Zoo and Wildlife Nutrition, AZA Nutrition Advisory Group, Fort Worth, TX.

Abstract

Diets which are balanced in their nutrient content is key to good nutrition. While reasonable balance is important with all nutrients, proportion or balance is critically sensitive for certain minerals. When feeding diets where dietary mineral composition is unknown, utilizing mineral supplements which contain minerals in proportion to the needs of the species involved will draw the total diet toward balance. Where one can’t find any information about the mineral content of foods being fed or where great variation exists, paying for some commercial mineral analyses, which allows one to better balance diets, can prevent unexpected problems. Nutrient requirements for many species are published by the National Research Council and other sources.

Evaluating Mineral Nutrition_D.B. Herd.pdf     100 KB