GB2334443A

GB2334443A - Feedstuffs for livestock incorporating a therapeutic substance

Info

Publication number: GB2334443A
Application number: GB9803689A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David Haythornthwaite
Original assignee: TANGERINE HOLDINGS Ltd
Current assignee: TANGERINE HOLDINGS Ltd
Priority date: 1998-02-21
Filing date: 1998-02-21
Publication date: 1999-08-25
Also published as: GB9803689D0

Abstract

A dietary supplement or 'treat' for livestock, such as horses, dogs or cats, is used as a carrier for a probiotic agent, such as the bacterial species Enterococcus faecium M74. A biscuit-like product made from ingredients which include ground cereal grains and oil seed extract is sprayed with a liquid, preferably an oil, in which the probiotic agent is suspended in a dosed amount.

Description

FEEDSTUPPS FOR LIVESTOCK INCORPORATING A TRERAPEUTIC SUBSTANCE The regular feeding of therapeutic substances to animals be they farm animals, horses or domestic pets is always difficult if not hazardous.

Supplementing the regular diet by including therapeutic material in a portion of the diet is a well recognised method.

However, supplementing regular lines of manufactured feeds for animals is becoming more difficult for manufacturers due to ever growing concerns about the safety of feeds and those who handle them.

As drugs of almost every kind become less acceptable, alternative therapies are gaining recognition.

Products known as probiotics are in the forefront of efficacious and more user-acceptable animal therapy ingredients. A probiotics may be defined as "a live microbial feed supplement which beneficially affects the host animal by improving its intestinal microbial balance".

A large number of bacterial species and strains have been identified as lactic acid producers of varying degrees of efficacy in the animal gut. These may all be considered to be probiotics. Of these, the bacterial species Enterococcus faecium M74 has been shown to have a particularly beneficial effect on digestive processes, pathogen suppression and immunity over a wide range of animals and humans.

It is therefore desirable, in a wide range of circumstances, to enhance the diet of certain livestock, such as the recreation horse and the domestic dog or cat with Enterococcus faecium M74 or an alternative probiotic substance of similar efficacy.

A recent innovation in the daily feeding routine of horses and domestic pets has been the purchase and use of "treats". In the past, horses were rewarded wit lumps of sugar, dogs probably with the occasional piece of chocolate. Now there are ranges of specifically manufactured, packaged and marketed "treats". Such products are widely available at tack and saddlery shops and pet stores and are normally purchased in relatively low-cost packs by the individual owner.

An object of this invention is to use the treat as a vehicle for the regular feeding of a therapeutic quantity of probiotic to horses and domestic pets.

According to the invention a method is proposed of producing a feedstuff for livestock by spraying a liquid suspension of probiotic agent onto a biscuit-like product made from ingredients which include at least ground cereal grains and oil seed extracts.

Preferably the liquid in which the probiotic agent is suspended is an oil.

Preferably the probiotic agent is or includes Enterococcus faecium M74.

Preferably the ingredients for the biscuit-like product also include cereal by-products and/or vitamins and/or other trace minerals and micronutrients.

The biscuit-like product will generally be made in conventional manner by mixing the ingredients together, and by an expansion cooking process, such as extrusion cooking, followed by at least partial cooling, prior to application of the probiotic agent.

A specific favouring for individual animal palatability, e.g. apple flavour for horses, may also be sprayed onto the biscuitlike product, preferably in the same or a further liquid suspension.

The quantity of probiotic substance is carefully monitored through the spraying process so that a known, therapeutic feed is contained in each treat or multiple of treats.

In carrying out the invention the ingredients for production of one specific example of a biscuit-like "treat" which is particularly suited to acting as a carrier for a probiotic agent are: Ingredient % by weight Maize meal 50% Wheat (ground) 35% Extracted soyabean meal 5% Fine wheatfeed 7.5% Vitamin/trace element premix for horses 2.5% These ingredients are mixed together in a standard commercial process and the mixture is extruded while cooking at a temperature in the range 150-190"C. The residence time in the oven is generally about 30 seconds. The product is generally about one third less dense than oven cooked biscuits. In other words it contains a higher than normal proportion of air.

A suspension of probiotic, such as Enterococcus faecium M74, in an inert oil, such as silica oil, is sprayed onto the biscuitlike product while it is still cooling. The proportion of bacteria to oil is suitably in the range 0.1-1.0% by weight.

The quantity of oil suspension sprayed onto the product is carefully controlled (by conventional dosing/flow control methods) so that about 2% to 6% by weight of oil, relative to the weight of the biscuit, is applied.

Generally, small individual biscuits are formed by cutting at the time of extrusion or shortly thereafter. With the above proportions of Enterococcus faecium M74 and oil to biscuit ratio, about four such biscuits will incorporate sufficient of the probiotic for the recommended daily intake for a recreation horse.

As mentioned a flavouring may also be applied and this could be incorporated in the same oil suspension, or it could be applied in a further operation. In the latter case, the flavouring is preferably also suspended in silica oil. However, it could be suspended in another compatible oil or other liquid which can be sprayed on. Even a dry powder flavouring may be possible in some circumstances.

The invention is not, of course, limited to the details of the above described example. Many variations in detail are possible, particularly in the biscuit ingredients and the cooking procedure, but also in the proportion of bacteria, the strain of bacteria, and in the carrier oil.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. A method of producing a feedstuff for livestock by spraying a liquid suspension of probiotic agent onto a biscuit-like product made from ingredients which include at least ground cereal grains and oil seed extracts.
2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the liquid in which the probiotic agent is suspended is an oil.
3. A method according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the probiotic agent is or includes Enterococcus faecium M74.
4. A method according to any of claims 1, 2 or 3 wherein the ingredients for the biscuit-like product also include cereal by-products.
5. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the ingredients for the biscuit-like product also include vitamins.
6. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the ingredients for the biscuit-like product also include trace minerals.
7. A method according to any preceding claim wherein the biscuit-like product is made by mixing the ingredients together, and by an expansion cooking process prior to application of the probiotic agent.
8. A method according to any preceding claim where in a flavouring is also sprayed onto the biscuit-like product.
9. A method of producing a feedstuff for livestock substantially as hereinbefore described.