Publications by authors named "E S Dierenfeld"
Amino acids are essential for the growth, development, and reproduction of carnivores. This literature review summarizes the amino acid patterns of different raw diets including whole prey, body tissue and muscle for felids under human care. In general, natural prey (and its parts) meet the minimum essential amino acid requirements outlined by the National Research Council for adult cats.
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- The eastern indigo snake, once widespread in the southeastern US, is now primarily found in southeastern Georgia and Florida and is considered federally threatened.
- Concerns exist about how diet and nutrition affect the reproductive health of these snakes, particularly regarding issues like dystocia in females that have never bred.
- A year-long study compared the health and nutrient levels of snakes on different diets, finding that while some nutrients were adequate, others—particularly vitamin D—were lower than those found in wild counterparts, suggesting further research on juvenile diets is needed to better understand nutrition's impact on reproduction.
Natural mineral spring water () and surrounding soils in southwestern Ethiopia: farmers' feeding practices and their perception about its nutritional roles on animal performance.
Heliyon
June 2024
Natural mineral water (termed hora in Afan Oromo) and surrounding soils are the most important source of mineral supplement traditionally used for livestock in many parts of Ethiopia. However, limited information exists on feeding practices and the impact of hora on animal performance. Thus, the present study aimed to assess farmers' feeding practices and perceptions about the role of hora and surrounding soils on animal performance.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study evaluated the protein quality of small mammalian prey and its body organs by analyzing amino acid (AA) composition and digestibility of wild adult rats and their body organs (skin/fur, bone, muscle, intestine, liver, kidney, spleen, brain, heart, and lung) utilizing an in vitro digestion method. The average dry matter (DM) digestibility of whole rats was 89.9%.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAppropriate diets for ex situ wildlife are essential for animal health and welfare and yet ex situ facilities are often constrained by feed ingredient availability when attempting to replicate natural diets. In obligate carnivores such as vultures, digestive strategies are likely to have evolved alongside feeding behaviors, which may differ between even sympatric species. To begin to understand the digestive strategies of two Old World vulture species (lappet-faced vulture , = 3, and griffon vulture , = 4) of similar body size but divergent feeding habits, their feeding and digestion strategies on a diet of whole rats were compared.
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