Musk Deer Farming Techniques: Rearing Methods and Nutritional Requirements for Young Musk Deer
The goal in rearing young musk deer is to ensure that all newborn fawns survive without disease and to develop in them excellent production performance. So how should they be reared? Let us take a look together.
During growth and development, young musk deer steadily gain body weight and body measurements, and their metabolism is very vigorous. As tissues and cells proliferate extensively, each organ system grows at a different rate while mutually constraining one another. This complex regularity depends on various environmental conditions, and is especially closely related to good feeding and management conditions. Good nutritional adjustment can accelerate the growth of young musk deer, increase body weight, bring about earlier sexual maturity and yield higher production performance.
Nutritional Requirements of Young Musk Deer
During the young stage, because of their relatively fast growth rate, musk deer have relatively strong protein metabolism and deposit more protein in the body. With increasing age, protein metabolism declines and the protein deposited in the body gradually decreases. The thermal energy needed for the growth of young musk deer is mainly used for basal metabolism, growth, various activities, and digestion and absorption. Under normal rearing conditions, as the musk deer grows, most of the body fat accumulates in the subcutaneous tissue, muscle connective tissue and abdominal cavity.
Normal bone growth is related to the supply of calcium, phosphorus and vitamin D. In the early growth stage of young musk deer, the reasonable ratio of calcium to phosphorus is about 1.5-2:1, and in the late growth stage it is 1-1.2:1. An insufficient supply of calcium and phosphorus can make the bones become brittle and not solid, and in severe cases can develop into rickets or osteomalacia. The metabolism of calcium and phosphorus in the body of young musk deer also follows a certain pattern at different growth stages: more calcium and phosphorus are deposited in metabolism in the early growth stage, and less in the late growth stage. Light plays an important role in bone growth; young musk deer that regularly bask in the sun generally rarely develop rickets. The daily ration of young musk deer not only needs to provide sufficient calcium and phosphorus, but also needs to have an appropriate ratio of calcium to phosphorus, in order to ensure normal bone growth.