Scientific Camel Care

Humavyte

Rumen Support Supplement to Improve Digestion in Camels.

Provides a complete, balanced mineral & trace element supplement

Microbial Digestive Supplement to Improve Digestion in Camels

• reduce the incidence of indigestion, grain overload and ruminal acidosis in camels

• maintain and replenish normal, healthy gut microflora in camels

• stimulate appetite, and improve the utilisation of feeds to improve nutrient availability

• prevents the overgrowth of pathogenic bacteria such as E.coli and Salmonella, by maintaining a more normal gut environment

• provides a balanced mineral and trace element mix

• safe, non-toxic and residue free

The camel is by nature a browser, feeding at any time of the day, selecting the preferred type of plant, and moving up to 30km per day. It is an efficient user of low quality, high roughage diets, typical of its natural forage.

Common Racing Camel Diets

Racing and working camels may not be able to fulfil their daily nutritional requirements by browsing alone, and these camels are typically fed a variety of concentrate rations to increase energy, protein, vitamins, mineral and trace element intake to provide adequate nutrition for performance. These foods can be dates, milk, succulent roughages such as alfalfa, mouldy feeds, grains and concentrates.

Carbohydrate Excess Causes Grain Overload & Indigestion

Because of the variability in quality and quantity of food consumed, and the likely excesses of grain and carbohydrates, in particular, in a racing camel diet, digestive abnormalities such as indigestion, grain or carbohydrate overload (leading to ruminal acidosis), depraved appetites (pica), diarrhoea, and enteritis are common. Changes to the normal alkaline rumen pH can precipitate serious disease states. Any rise in acidity creates a rapid reduction in rumen microflora population, with subsequent reduced digestive efficiency, and often, acute disease states. Alterations in rumen pH appear to be a major cause of the fatal Haemhorrhagic Disease in camels, where abnormal populations of Bacillus cereus proliferate in the bowel. Any opportunity, as provided by Humavyte, to maintain a normal rumen and gut pH, and maintain normal gut bacterial populations, without overgrowth of abnormal pathogenic bacteria, could be expected to reduce the incidence of these potentially fatal and performance reducing camel disease.

Racing Camels Are Most At Risk

Racing camels require a more concentrated diet, and, in order to obtain a better power to weight ratio, bulky feeds are generally restricted. This lack of roughage can alter the efficiency of digestion, and also alter the normal bacterial and fungal population in the rumen and gut, predisposing the camel to digestive emergencies. In racing camels, indigestion and rumen overload are the most common daily problems for handlers and veterinarians. Usually there is a history of excessive intake of grains, dates or milk, and even alfalfa. These situations invariably alter the activity of the rumen microbe populations, and alter the acidity (pH) of the rumen and gut contents. In many cases, re-inoculation of ruminal microflora from a healthy camel is used to re-establish a normal gut bacteria and fungal population so normal digestion can commence as quickly as possible.

Digestive Disturbances Are Common in Hand Fed Camels

Even in well fed racing camels, digestive disturbances are common, and range from indigestion to vitamin B1 (thiamine) deficiency. The imbalance between fibre and concentrated carbohydrate induces a chronic (and sometimes acute) ruminal acidosis, seriously reducing healthy rumen fermentation and the bacterial synthesis of essential nutrients such as thiamine.

Stress and Antibiotics Reduce Rumen Microbe Populations

Despite all precautions, racing and training stress results in periodic imbalances in rumen operations, and procedures such as antibiotic therapy seriously reduce rumen bacterial populations.

Normal Rumen Microbe Population Is Finely Balanced

Bacteria and fungi are normal inhabitants of the ruminant digestive system, and any feeding excess or insult can rapidly alter the normal microflora population, leading to serious, and often, life-threatening emergencies. The normal healthy bacteria and fungi in the gut are responsible for the breakdown of nutrients by fermentation in the rumen, and they are primarily responsible for improving the digestibility of fibre, and the availability of essential nutrients, including minerals and trace elements.

Young Camels Develop Microbe Populations From 8 Weeks of Age

Camel calves will start to take some interest in their mother's food at about 6-8 weeks, when the rumen bacterial population is still being formed, so any sudden ingestion of amounts of alfalfa (lucerne), dates, grain mixes or pelletised foods can result in indigestion and diarrhoea from that age.

What Can you Expect From Humavyte

Any natural product which can reduce the incidence of indigestion and ruminal acidosis in camels will reduce the likelihood of digestive emergencies, improve digestion, and significantly improve the availability of nutrients in the feed, by maintaining a healthy gut microflora population.

Helps to stimulate appetite, and improves the utilisation of feeds to improve nutrient availability.

Used daily reduces and prevents the overgrowth of pathogenic bacteria such as E.coli and Salmonella, by maintaining a more normal gut environment. These are two common problems in young camels.

Provides a balanced mineral and trace element mix, all as highly bioavailable chelated elements, just as would be available from healthy plant tissues. Without minerals, vitamins do not work! Enzyme function essential to all biological systems in the body depend on minerals. Many soils, and the plants and roughage grown on them, are commonly deficient in essential minerals such as selenium, cobalt, copper, magnesium, phosphates. When these minerals are chelated, as in Humavyte, they are bound to amino acids, and are 3-5 times more bioavailable than normal inorganic minerals in the diet.

All minerals and trace elements in Humavyte are safe, non-toxic and residue free. They occur naturally in healthy soils and in healthy rumen populations. It is not possible to overdose as chelated minerals are non-toxic, in contrast to older inorganic mineral supplements.

Contains no prohibited substances.

Storage
Should be stored in a cool place, and kept tightly sealed.

Dosage
As the rumen microflora populations vary daily according to feeds and environment, as well as the stress of racing, it is strongly recommended that Humavyte be given daily, either as an oral drench over the tongue, or mixed well into feed to be consumed immediately.

Maintenance Dose While Growing, Training & Racing:
Under 300kg: 10-20mL daily
Over 300kg: 20-40mL daily

Stress Dose:
For recovery from illness or surgery, or after antibiotic use:
Give maintenance dose twice daily.

Pack Size:
Each 1 litre container provides for one adult camel for 25 days.