Open Jou nal o Ve e ina y Medicine, 2015, 5, 73-79
Published Online Ap il 2015 in SciRes. h p://www.sci p.o g/jou nal/oj m
h p://dx.doi.o g/10.4236/oj m.2015.54010
How o ci e his pape : Ko honen, H.T. and Huuki, H. (2015) E ec o Ca o enoid Supplemen on P oduc ion Pe o mance
in Mink (Neo ison ison). Open Jou nal o Ve e ina y Medicine, 5, 73-79. h p://dx.doi.o g/10.4236/oj m.2015.54010
E ec o Ca o enoid Supplemen on
P oduc ion Pe o mance in Mink (Neo ison
ison)
Hannu T. Ko honen, Hanna Huuki
Na u al Resou ces Ins i u e Finland (Luke), Kannus, Finland
Email: hannu. .ko honen@luke. i
Recei ed 5 Ma ch 2015; accep ed 24 Ma ch 2015; published 26 Ma ch 2015
Copy igh © 2015 by au ho s and Scien i ic Resea ch Publishing Inc.
This wo k is licensed unde he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion In e na ional License (CC BY).
h p://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/4.0/
Abs ac
The p esen s udy sough o ind ou how ca o enoid supplemen in luences on body weigh s, eed
consump ion and ep oduc i e success in s anda d a m mink (Neo ison ison). Ca o enoids we e
om mic oalgae Haema ococcus plu ialis. A dose o ca o enoid supplemen o 0.20, 0.25, 0.20, 0.20,
and 0.10 g/animal was added daily in eed in Feb ua y, Ma ch, Ap il, May and June, espec i ely.
Expe imen al g oups we e: 1) con ol g oup, and 2) ca o enoid g oup. Each g oup comp ised 100
emales and 25 males. The esul s showed ha appe i e o animals in all g oups was good. Signi i-
can di e ences we e no ound in body weigh s be o e b eeding. Howe e , weigh s o con ol e-
males we e signi ican ly (P < 0.05) lowe compa ed wi h hose o ca o enoid ed animals when
ki s aged 21 days. A he age o 21 and 42 days, body weigh s o ki s we e simila in bo h g oups.
Howe e , ki s om ca o enoid g oup ended o g ow be e (P < 0.1) han hose om con ol
g oup. Numbe o whelped emales was lowe in con ol g oup (81 s 85 emales). Numbe o ba -
en emales was highe in con ol han in ca o enoid g oup (16 s 13 emales). Signi ican di e -
ences we e no ound in numbe o ki s pe ma ed and whelped emale. Numbe o los ki s was
highe in he con ol g oup a he age o 21 days (24 s 20 ki s) and he age o 42 days (40 s 26
ki s). The p esen s udy showed ha ca o enoid supplemen could be used in mink die . The e-
sul s a e p omising, bu equi e u he s udies be o e inal implemen a ion.
Keywo ds
Mic oalgae, Fa med Mink, Ca o enoids, Weigh Gain, Rep oduc i e Success
1. In oduc ion
Ca o enoids a e molecules ha ypically consis o ca bon, hyd ogen and in some cases oxygen. They can be
H. T. Ko honen, H. Huuki
74
ound commonly in na u e. Mammals canno o m hei own ca o enoids and a e dependen on he ca o enoids
ecei ed om ood. Mammals ypically ha e a good abili y o me abolize inges ed ca o enoids, and e en e o m
species-speci ic ca o enoids [1]-[3].
Ca o enoids a e known o ha e bo h an ioxida i e and immunological e ec s [4]-[6]. Hence, hey a e ex-
pec ed o ha e posi i e in luence on heal h and wellbeing in gene al [3] [7]. Ca o enoids ha e been ound o
ha e an e ec on e ili y o animals in se e al species. This is due o he ac ha all animals deposi ca o eno-
ids in hei egg cells. Ca o enoid supplemen seems o inc ease he equency o success ul insemina ion [7]. I
o en also leads o la ge o sp ing. A end has been ound ha pigs wi h ca o enoid supplemen in eed ha e
mo e pigle s bo n ali e. In addi ion, mo ali y pe li e among he pigle s has been documen ed o be lowe
[8]-[10]. In mink, he numbe o co po a lu ea, implan a ion si es and e uses ended o be sligh ly highe in an-
imals gi en ca o enoid an ioxidan and as axan hin du ing b eeding season [7].
The mink (Neo ison ison) is a small-sized mus elid species (Family Mus elidae) housed comme cially o i s
excellen u [11] [12]. The mink ypically has an elonga ed body shape. Due o a high su ace- o-mass a io, i
has o sus ain highe basal me abolic a e han o he mammals o he same body weigh [13] [14]. This may se
special demands o i s ene gy me abolism and eeding [15]. Me abolic e ec s o ca o enoids a e p omising [3].
B eeding esul o a med mink has declined du ing he pas decade [16]. Reasons o his a e pa ly unknown.
Good b eeding pe o mance, howe e , is essen ial o p o i able u p oduc ion. The e o e, all means o imp o e
b eeding success should be es ed and cla i ied. While ca o enoid supplemen in eed seems o imp o e b eeding
esul in se e al species, i is easonable o cla i y his impo an issue also in a med mink.
The aim o he p esen s udy was o ind ou how ca o enoid supplemen in adi ional a m eed a ec s ma -
ing and whelping pe o mance and ki mo ali y o a m- aised mink. E ec s on body weigh s we e also e a-
lua ed in adul s and ki s o bo h sexes.
2. Ma e ial and Me hods
2.1. Expe imen al Se -Up and Animals
The p esen s udy was ca ied ou a he Fu Fa ming Resea ch S a ion o MTT, in Kannus, wes e n Finland
(63.54˚N, 23.54˚E). The use o expe imen al animals was e alua ed and app o ed by he Animal Ca e Commi -
ee o MTT Ag i ood Resea ch Finland. Heal h o animals was isually checked daily. Heal h e alua ion was
based on gene al appea ance o animals, including consis ence o aeces. Solid aeces we e conside ed no mal,
loose aeces indica ed dia hea.
Expe imen al animals employed we e da k colo ed s anda d mink bo n a he esea ch s a ion. Two expe i-
men al g oups we e o med: 1) con ol g oup; and 2) ca o enoid g oup. Each g oup comp ised 100 emales and
25 males. Only heal hy animals ee om plasmacy osis we e used. Animals we e i s ma ing season ju eniles.
They we e kep in adi ional wo- ow sheds. Animals we e singly housed in wi e-mesh cages measu ing 70 cm
long × 30 cm wide × 38 cm high. Males we e placed in e e y ou h cage be ween he emales. A e ma ing,
males and unma ed emales we e emo ed om he expe imen al shed.
2.2. Expe imen al Feeds
F esh eed was manu ac u ed a he eed ki chen o he MTT esea ch s a ion. Same ing edien s we e used
h oughou he s udy. Ing edien s we e g inded by using S ephan Uni e sal machine g inde , ype UM 44. Feed
analyses we e made h ee imes du ing he s udy. Samples o analyses we e collec ed o he ollowing pe iods:
Feb ua y 9 - 14, Ap il 3 - 11, and May 28 - 31, espec i ely. Animals we e ed once a day by hand. The amoun
o gi en eed and le o e s we e measu ed on a g oup basis wi h a Me le SM 15 balance, accu acy ±1 g.
The base o he eed was he same o bo h g oups (Table 1 and Table 2). Ca o enoid supplemen eed was
added as ex a amoun o ca o enoids om mic oalgae Haema ococcus plu ialis. In Feb ua y, Ma ch, Ap il-
May and June he amoun ca o enoid supplemen in esh eed was 0.20, 0.25, 0.20 and 0.10 g/animal daily, e-
spec i ely. Du ing Feb ua y he amoun o eed gi en was sligh ly es ic ed o a oid ex a obesi y o b eeding
animals (Table 3). In Ma ch, eed supply was hen sligh ly inc eased o achie e p ope lushing e ec [17] [18].
Feed composi ion was based on he ecommenda ions o he Finnish Fu B eede s’ Associa ion [19].
Vi amins pe kg o ood we e: e inol 1.05 mg; cholecalci e ol 0.009 mg; alpha- ocophe ol 40 mg; hiamine
15 mg; ibo la in 6 mg; cyanocobalamine 0.02 mg; pan o henic acid 5 mg; nico ine acid 10 mg; py idoxine 3
H. T. Ko honen, H. Huuki
75
Table 1. Composi ion o expe imen al die (%) du ing s udy pe iods.
Ing edien (%) Feb ua y-Ma ch Ap il-May June
Slaugh e house o al 11.5 12.0 12.0
Poul y o al 11.5 12.0 12.0
Bal ic he ing 30.0 29.0 29.0
Fishmeal 6.0 7.0 8.0
Ce eals1 12.5 11.0 10.0
Vi amins2 1.5 1.5 1.5
Soybean oil - - 0.5
Wa e 26.0 27.5 26.9
1Cooked ba ley and whea ; 2See ma e ial and me hods.
Table 2. Chemical composi ion and calcula ed con en s o me abolizable ene gy (ME) in he die du ing s udy pe iods.
Va iable Feb ua y-Ma ch Ap il-May June
D y ma e (DM), % 34.3 34.1 34.6
In DM%, Ash 7.8 9.5 10.0
C ude p o ein 37.1 39.2 38.9
C ude a 19.2 20.5 23.4
C ude ca bohyd . 36.0 30.8 27.7
ME (MJ/kg DM) 17.2 17.4 18.0
F om ME, %: P o ein 34.4 36.0 34.5
Fa 40.0 42.2 46.6
Ca bohyd . 25.7 21.8 18.9
Table 3. The amoun o gi en and ea en eed (kg/g oup) du ing he s udy. Signi ican di e ences we e no ound be ween
he g oups.
Mon h Con ol Ca o enoid supplemen
Gi en Ea en Gi en Ea en
Feb ua y 582.0 582.0 582.0 582.0
Ma ch 630.0 625.1 630.0 625.2
Ap il 562.0 555.0 562.0 556.3
May 530.0 494.3 530.0 499.1
June 444.0 394.8 444.0 417.8
To al 2748.0 2651.2 2748.0 2680.4
mg; olic acid 0.3 mg; bio in 0.04 mg. Fu he mo e, 1 kg mix u e ood con ains: calcium 16.0%; phospho us
11.0%; magnesium 4.0%; cobal 40 mg; coppe 150 mg; i on 6500 mg; manganese 3000 mg; zinc 6000 mg.
F esh wa e was eely a ailable om au oma ic wa e de ice sys em.
2.3. Ma ings and Weighings
Ini ial body weigh s o b eeding emales we e measu ed on Feb ua y 10 wi h a Me le SM 15 balance, accu acy
±1 g [12]. In addi ion, animals we e weigh be o e ma ing season on Ma ch 3.
Ma ings we e s a ed on Ma ch 9. Each o he b eeding emales was ma ed acco ding o he no mal ma ing
H. T. Ko honen, H. Huuki
76
ou ines. Be o e he b eeding season, he es icles o b eeding males we e palpa ed o check no mali y. Mink
emales we e ma ed acco ding o he 1 + 8 sys em [17] [20].
A whelping, he da e o pa u i ion and he numbe o li e-bo n and s illbo n ki s we e eco ded. The whelp-
ing esul was calcula ed a he age o 2 and 42 days. Females and ki s we e weighed a he age o 21 and 24
days.
2.4. S a is ics
S a is ical analyses we e pe o med by he Gene al Linea Models (GLM) p ocedu e o he S a is ical Analysis
Sys em [21] using Tukey’s S uden ized Range (HSD) es and analysis o a iance. The assump ion o a no mal
dis ibu ion was checked by g aphical me hods [22] [23]. Da a a e p esen ed as mean ± S anda d De ia ion (SD).
3. Resul s
3.1. Feed Consump ion
Feed consump ion was measu ed on a g oup basis (Table 3). Signi ican di e ences we e no ound in eed
consump ion be ween he s udy g oups. Appe i e o animals in bo h expe imen al g oups was good in gene al. In
Feb ua y, all eed gi en daily was ea en. In o he mon hs, he amoun o eed in ake was lowe han he amoun
o eed gi en. Feed consump ion was highes in Ma ch.
3.2. Body Weigh s
Body weigh s o b eeding animals a e shown in Table 4. Signi ican di e ences in body weigh s o nei he e-
males no males we e ound in Feb ua y o Ma ch. Howe e , body weigh s o con ol emales was signi ican ly
(P < 0.05) lowe han ha o ca o enoid g oup 21 days pos pa um. A 42 days pos pa um, he e we e no any
signi ican di e ences in weigh s be ween whelped emales. Weighing o ki s 21 and 42 days pos pa um did
no e eal any signi ican di e ences be ween s udy g oups. Howe e , a endency (P < 0.1) was seen ha ki s in
ca o enoid g oup g ew be e han hose in he con ol g oup.
3.3. Rep oduc ion Success
Males in bo h expe imen al g oups we e e y willing o ma e. Any abno mal ma ing beha io was no obse ed.
Rep oduc i e esul o emales is summa ized in Table 5. Heal h o animals was p incipally good. Howe e ,
one emale om bo h g oups died be o e ac ual ma ing season. Causes o bo h dea hs we e no disco e ed. One
emale could no be ma ed in con ol g oup whe eas all emales we e ma ed in ca o enoid g oup. Numbe o
Table 4. The body weigh s (g) o b eeding emales and males in Feb ua y and May be o e whelping, and emales 21 and 42
days pos pa um. Body weigh s (g) o ki s a age 21 and 42 days. S a is ical signi icance: *P < 0.05. Da a a e gi en as mean
± SD.
Va iable Con ol Ca o enoid supplemen
B eeding emales, Feb ua y 10 979.2 ± 132.1 991.0 ± 138.6
B eeding males, Feb ua y 10 2235.2 ± 227.0 2326.4 ± 195.0
B eeding emales, May 3 993.0 ± 106.8 972.6 ± 102.7
B eeding males, May 3 2365.6 ± 237.0 2399.2 ± 227.6
Whelped emales a 21 days 1074.1 ± 120.5 1109.8 ± 131.1*
Whelped emales a 42 days 978.5 ± 120.0 985.7 ± 151.3
Female ki s a 21 days 109.3 ± 20.2 114.2 ± 19.5
Male ki s a 21 days 121.9 ± 23.6 125.1 ± 24.6
Female ki s a 42 days 254.9 ± 55.0 265.0 ± 53.7
Male ki s a 42 days 280.3 ± 66.8 291.2 ± 64.5
H. T. Ko honen, H. Huuki
77
Table 5. Rep oduc i e pe o mance in con ol and ca o enoid supplemen g oups (N = numbe o animals).
Va iable Con ol Ca o enoid supplemen
B eeding emales, N 100 100
Ma ed emales, N 98 99
Died be o e whelping, N 1 1
Whelped emales, N 81 85
Ba en emales, N 16 13
Ki s los a 21 days, N 24 20
Ki s los a 42 days, N 40 26
Ki s pe ma ed emale, N 4.5 4.4
Ki s pe whelped emale, N 5.5 5.3
whelped emales was lowe in he con ol g oup. Fu he mo e, numbe o ba en emales was highe in con ol
han in ca o enoid g oup. Signi ican di e ences we e no ound in numbe o ki s pe ma ed o whelped emales.
Numbe o ki s los pos pa um was highe in he con ol g oup.
4. Discussion
An in ensi e e o was made he e o cla i y possible e ec s o die a y ca o enoid supplemen on ep oduc i e
ou come and body weigh s in a m- aised mink o bo h sexes. Numbe o emales pe g oup was 100. Bo h
g oups included 25 males in addi ion. Such la ge g oups ha e been seldom employed o b eeding expe imen s
in mink [7] [20] [24]. I was expec ed ha i ca o enoid supplemen ha e an in luence on ep oduc i e success
and body weigh , he p esen expe imen al se -up would b ing ou di e ences be ween he wo g oups.
Mink die s a e ypically high in ish and ish p oduc s esul ing in a high die a y le el o long chain polyun-
sa u a ed a y acids. This may cause a kind o oxida i e s ess o mink [25] [26]. In he p esen s udy, ca o eno-
ids gi en we e om mic oalgae called Haema ococcus plu ialis. They con ained ca o enoid as axan hin, which
is known o ha e a high an ioxida i e ac i i y. The dose o ca o enoid supplemen in he die was selec ed based
on expe ience om o he animal species and on p e ious s udies on mink [3] [7]-[9]. The e o e, i was assumed
ha he amoun added in o he eed should be high enough o p o ide signi ican in luence, i such could be
achie ed.
Da a om eed consump ion measu emen s e ealed ha animals in bo h s udy g oups consumed he o e ed
eed well. While animals’ appe i e was good, i emp s us o conclude ha he pala abíli y o ood con aining
ca o enoid supplemen was as good as ha o a adi ional con ol eed. Ra he simila body weigh s o animals
in bo h s udy g oups also sugges ha eed e iciency was good in bo h die s. This coincides wi h p e ious ob-
se a ions in he mink [7].
One p e ious s udy has examined he e ec s o algae meal, wi h high as axan hin con en , on o ula ion a e
and ep oduc i e ou come in emale mink [7]. Algae meal in ha s udy con ained abou he same le el o ca o-
enoids han he eed in he p esen s udy. Acco ding o hei esul s he numbe o co po a lu ea, implan a ion
si es and e uses appea ed o be highe in animals ed wi h algae meal, al hough he di e ences we e no s a is-
ically signi ican .
In o he animals, such as cows and ho ses, ca o enoid supplemen has been ound o inc ease he equency o
success ul insemina ion. Fu he mo e, in abbi s ex a ca o enoids seem o lead o la ge o sp ing [8]-[10]. In
he p esen s udy, numbe o ba en emales was highe and numbe o whelped emales lowe in he con ol
g oup. This esul is in a o o ca o enoid supplemen , and hus suppo s p e ious indings in o he animal spe-
cies. Ou esul he e can be ega ded eliable because o he ela i ely la ge animal numbe s used in p esen
s udy compa ed o he p e ious s udy. We used as much as 100 emales pe g oup, while numbe o emales in
p e ious s udy [7] was only 10 and 20 in con ol and ea men s g oups, espec i ely.
The pe cen age o s illbo n ki s was educed signi ican ly wi h algae meal in p e ious s udy [7]. Ou esul s
a e in acco dance wi h his inding, as he ki mo ali y in p esen s udy was lowe in animals ed supplemen a-

H. T. Ko honen, H. Huuki
78
ion wi h ca o enoids. This also coincides wi h p e ious indings in pigle s, showing ha pigs wi h ca o enoid
supplemen in eed ended o ha e mo e pigle s bo n ali e. Also lowe mo ali y pe li e among he pigle s has
been desc ibed [8]-[10].
P e ious s udy also compa ed milk in ake be ween con ol and algae meal g oups [7]. No di e ences, howe -
e , we e ound be ween he s udy g oups. Tha is p obably one explana ion o why ki s’ weigh gain was no
d ama ically a ec ed by he expe imen al ea men in hei s udy. In he p esen s udy, he weigh s o ki s did
no signi ican ly di e be ween ea men g oups ei he . No we e he e any di e ences in body weigh s o
b eeding emale o males be ween he wo s udy g oups. Only di e ence ound be ween he g oups was he di -
e ence in weigh o emales 21 days pos pa um, when emales in ca o enoid g oup we e hea ie han emales
in con ol g oup. This, howe e , did no a ec he b eeding esul and hus p obably has no essen ial alue.
The p esen esul s oge he wi h p e ious indings [7] a e p omising. They sugges ha algae- ype die s wi h
a ious ca o enoid con en s could ha e a posi i e e ec on b eeding esul . Howe e , u he s udies on he e -
ec a e needed be o e he ca o enoid supplemen s can be included as a pa o he s anda d eeding ecommen-
da ions. Highe doses a e ecommended o be es ed in he u u e.
5. Conclusion
The p esen s udy e ealed some di e ences be ween s udy g oups. Numbe o ba en emales was lowe in ca-
o enoid g oup. Fu he mo e, numbe o whelped emales was highe in ca o enoid die . The ki mo ali y ended
o be lowe and ki g ow h be e in animals om ca o enoid g oup. The esul s a e p omising bu equi e u he
cla i ica ions be o e s udied ca o enoid supplemen can be implemen ed.
Acknowledgemen s
This s udy was inancially suppo ed by MTT Ag i ood Resea ch Finland. The s a o MTT esea ch s a ion is
kindly acknowledged o hei aluable help in ca ying ou his expe imen . Special hanks o Pekka Toikkanen,
Te ho Lindq is , Jaakko Huuki and Aimo Joki-Huuki o good co-ope a ion and echnical help. Many hanks a e
also ex ended o Juhani Sepponen o s a is ical analyses.
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