by Marné Meyer

The crocodile industry moved from home mixing of feed to commercially manufactured feed in the recent past. Manufactured feed holds many benefits for the farmer including consistent feed quality, lower feed costs as well as reduced transport costs.

There has been little research done on crocodile feeding, thus alligator research was used as a reference to set up specifications for crocodile feed. In the past few years, crocodile farmers have seen an increased incidence of double scale (DS) on the farm. There are many theories about this disease and what causes it, but the common belief is that there is a multitude of factors that play a role. At Novatek Animal Feeds we have formulated a range of extruded crocodile feeds that reduces the occurrence of DS through balanced feeding.

As with any species, feed has to supply the animal with adequate nutrients to support maintenance, growth and reproduction. This is achieved by supplying a well-balanced diet with the correct levels of nutrients such as energy, protein, lipids, vitamins and minerals. Since farming with crocodiles is a business, it is important that the feed allows the animals to grow as efficiently as possible to ensure maximum profitability for the farmer. To achieve this, the feed must support fast growth without jeopardising skin quality.

Amount and frequency of feeding

Feeding regimes differ greatly between farms, some farms feed every second day while others believe in feeding small amounts regularly. Research has shown that a crocodile will consume the same amount of feed irrespective of the feeding schedule. Thus, if they are fed every second day, they will consume large amounts of feed at once compared to crocodiles being fed on a daily basis.

Let’s look into the important aspects of the feed in more detail:

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates serve as a source of energy in feed. The most commonly used source of carbohydrates in the African animal feed industry is maize. Previously it was believed that crocodiles are not able to utilise maize, but research has proven that glucose is absorbed completely by crocodiles. When maize is extruded (heat treated) the utilisation of maize is increased and the nutrient content is enhanced, thus making it an available source of energy to the crocodile. It has many other benefits in feed such as reduced cost, since it is the least expensive energy source available.

Maize also has many binding properties, which makes it easy to pelletise the feed. This will enable the crocodiles to consume it easily and also reduces nutrient loss when the pellet is dragged into the water by the crocodile.

Lipids

Lipids or fat is a source of energy and fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K) to animals. Research has shown that crocodiles perform well on low fat diets since the quality or composition of the fat is more important than the quantity of fat in the diet.

Protein

Protein plays an important role in maintenance, growth and reproduction. Young animals such as hatchlings require a high amount of well-balanced protein to ensure maximum and efficient growth. The correct ratio of amino acids, which are defined as the building blocks of protein, is essential to ensure proper skeletal growth. As an animal ages, the amount of protein required reduces as the focus shifts from muscle and skeletal development to energy required for maintenance and reproduction.

The Novatek Crocodile feed range focusses strongly on this concept by starting with a high protein (65%) post hatch feed. The range consists of seven feeds that can be fed from post-hatch up until finisher. The range allows a gradual decline in protein levels to ensure young crocodiles achieve optimal growth, while older crocodiles do not waste unnecessary nutrients that are not utilised.

The common belief in the crocodile industry is that crocodiles are not able to utilise plant proteins, but research has proven this to be incorrect. Crocodiles are able to utilise 40% of their protein from plant protein sources when a diet is well balanced and good husbandry practices are followed on a farm. When soya beans are heat treated by extrusion, the anti-nutritional factors are destroyed, making it a usable protein source for animal species such as crocodiles. Older crocodiles have a greater ability to utilise plant-based protein than young crocodiles, thus hatchling diets contain mostly animal protein sources whereas mature crocodiles are able to utilise soya efficiently as a protein source.

As with lipids, the composition of the protein is very important. The amino acid balance must be correct to ensure that the crocodile is able to utilise the protein without having high levels of undigested protein in the lower gut.

Novatek Crocodile Feeds

The Novatek Crocodile feed range supplies a high protein feed to crocodiles. This range has proven to produce long, lean crocodiles with fast and efficient growth. Their feed also reduces the incidence of DS by supplying a well-balanced diet to the crocodile, thus ensuring good skin quality.

You can contact Wiehan Visagie at wiehanv@novatek.co.zm or Marné Meyer at  nutritionist@novatek.co.zm for any information on feeding and feeds.