Altai scientists proved: thanks to cranberries, calves become more cheerful and cheerful

Taking a preparation from wild berries makes them healthy and stress-resistant

Experts from the Altai State Agrarian University came to a rather interesting conclusion. By adding a preparation made from cranberries to the feed, they ensured that the experimental calves became more resistant to stress and began to grow faster.

As it became known to MK, the researchers used cranberry meal to feed the calves, a product obtained by squeezing a maximum of liquids from berries, crushing it and then drying it. Heifers and bulls were added to the daily diet of only 10-40 grams of biologically active additives for 20 days, and the result amazed the experimenters.

In ordinary life, young cattle are often stressed. Vaccination, the formation of new groups, changing diets and staff – all this affects the psyche of horned youth. From experiences, calves lose their appetite, grow more slowly. The behavioral stereotype is also changing: nervous calves can spend 30% more time on defensive or aggressive behavior than their calm peers, but, on the contrary, they spend 20% less time on eating and resting. In industrial animal husbandry, it is almost impossible to minimize the impact of stress factors. The use of tranquilizers and sedatives practiced today is not a panacea: their action is short-lived, it is quite difficult to administer them, they cost a lot, and most importantly, these substances or their decay products accumulate in the body of animals.

Quite another matter is a berry bioadditive. Its main active ingredient is ursolic acid. It is an anti-inflammatory agent, an excellent antioxidant, cardio and neuroprotective and much more. It is also found in Schisandra chinensis and eucalyptus, but these plants are not very common in our latitudes. It is also found in sage, marjoram, lavender and some other plants, however, they also contain substances that can harm young animals. But the extract of cranberry meal is not only useful, but also non-toxic.

Practice has shown that due to the enrichment of the diet with a cranberry preparation, calves are less nervous, they have practically no problems with the gastrointestinal tract, their hormonal levels are evened out. As a result, they gain muscle and fat mass faster, and generally grow faster.