[Dynamics of weight gain in calves fed with microalgae]

Studied was the effect of biomass of freshwater microalgae on the dynamics of the weight gain in calves. A total of ten test calves aged 10 days were treated three time subcutaneously at 15-day intervals with 5 cm3 each of a 10 per cent suspension of biomass of such algae. Higher gain was established on the 10th, 25th, 40th, 60th, and 90th day after birth as compared to the 5 control calves. It was also found that the daily growth rate with the test animals was higher than the that of the control -- 112, 84, 87, and 62 g,-respectively, however, the difference proved statistically insignificant. Significant in this sense was the rise of the gain in the twice treated hypotrophic calves at 15-day interval as compared with the untreated animals. The total gain with the calves treated for 30 days was 3.9 g higher than that with the control calves. The daily gain was 837 +/- 23 g for the test animals and 707 +/- 13 g for the control animals.