Nutrient Requirements of Camel

by ICAR
January 2013

Camels are browsing herbivores, evolved with the capacity to utilise fibre-rich diets. Under normal feeding conditions, their feeding behaviour is affected by season as they feed on shrubs and trees during the dry season and shift to ground grasses and forbs after substantial rainfall during the wet season. Such feeding behaviour enables them to select the nutritious parts from a variety of vegetations to meet their nutrient requirements. However, when camels are intensively managed and hand-fed in yards, nutritionists face the challenge of providing them with the quantity and quality of feeds that are most suited for their system.

This is mainly due to a lack of knowledge about the nutrient requirements of camels and the impacts of intensive nutritional management systems on their feeding behaviour. Few studies are available on the nutrient requirements of camels and requirement tables, similar to those of other livestock, are not available. So in this booke, we will focus on nutrient requirements of camel.