# Effect of Addition of a Mixture of Ethyl Esters of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid of Linseed Oil to Liquid Feed on Performance and Health of Dairy Calves

## TL;DR

Adding a specific fatty acid mixture to calf feed improved their growth and reduced diarrhea, suggesting potential benefits for dairy calf health.

## Contribution

The study introduces a novel application of ethyl esters of polyunsaturated fatty acids from linseed oil in improving dairy calf performance and health.

## Key findings

- Calves supplemented with EEPUFA had higher dry matter and starter feed intake compared to controls.
- EEPUFA supplementation was associated with increased daily body weight gain and fewer days with diarrhea.
- Final body weight did not differ significantly between groups, despite improved growth metrics.

## Abstract

Although there has been significant progress in management practices for the rearing of dairy calves in many countries in the last two decades, still the mortality and morbidity rates are unacceptably high. This study aimed to determine the effect of supplementing liquid feeds with a mixture of ethyl esters of polyunsaturated fatty acid of linseed oil (EEPUFA) on feed intake, body weight gain, feed efficiency, and health of dairy calves. We found better starter intake, dry matter intake, daily body weight gain, and a lower percentage of days with diarrhea relative to the number of days receiving treatment in the EEPUFA group than the control group. Overall, there is quite promising impact of EEPUFA on the growth performance and health of dairy calves.

This study aimed to determine the effect of supplementing liquid feeds with a mixture of ethyl esters of polyunsaturated fatty acid of linseed oil (EEPUFA; α-linolenic acid—64.5%, linoleic acid—16.1%, and oleic acid—19.4%) on feed intake, body weight gain, feed efficiency, and health of dairy calves. Thirty-six healthy female Holstein–Friesian calves (7 d of age, 41.2 ± 4.0 kg) were assigned to one of two treatment groups (18 calves per group), i.e., control or EEPUFA, and fed liquid feed (whole milk (WM) or milk replacer (MR)) either without or with 10 mL/d of EEPUFA supplementation, respectively, for 56 days (till 63 d of age). Average daily intake of WM and MR was similar between treatments (p = 0.94). Average daily total DM intake and average daily starter feed DM intake were higher for the EEPUFA group (p = 0.05 and p = 0.01, respectively). The average daily body weight gain was also higher for the EEPUFA group (55 g/d; p = 0.03), although final body weight turned out not to be significantly different between groups (75.6 kg vs. 79.0 kg, control vs. EEPUFA, respectively; p = 0.20). Supplementation of liquid feeds with EEPUFA did not affect feed efficiency (p = 0.37) and most of investigated health parameters. However, the percentage of days with diarrhea relative to the number of days receiving treatment was higher in the control group than the EEPUFA group (76 vs. 42, respectively; p = 0.04). Although the results of this preliminary study are promising, further research is needed to establish the dose effect of EEPUFA on the performance and health of calves.