The nutritional quality of captive sambar deer (Rusa unicolor brookei Hose, 1893) velvet antler

Abstract

Semiadi G, Jamal Y. 2015. The nutritional quality of captive sambar deer (Rusa unicolor brookei Hose, 1893) velvet antler. Biodiversitas 16: 156-160. Deer farming has been a well-developed agriculture diversification worldwide since 1970s. To the present
time information concerning the nutrient value of velvet antler of sambar deer (Rusa unicolor brookei Hose, 1893) is limited. Therefore,
a study on the nutritional quality of velvet antler of captive sambar deer was conducted. Velvet antlers were obtained from captive
sambar deer in Penajam Paser Utara, East Kalimantan, Indonesia, and were analyzed for its nutritional quality from the hard and soft
parts. The results showed that fresh weight of a pair of velvet antler (approx. 70 days post hard antler cast) was 523.1 g (SE = 49.99). In
the soft part of the velvet antler, ash content was 25.9% DM (SE= 0.78) as compared to 40.4% DM (SE = 1.07) in hard part, whilst the
lipid and protein contents from the soft part were 3.3% DM (SE = 0.20) and 70.8% DM (SE = 2.07), respectively, higher compared to
those in the hard part being 1.9% DM (SE = 0.12) and 59.5% DM (SE = 1.92), respectively. From the study it can be concluded that the
production of velvet antler from captive sambar deer seemed to be far from its genetic potency, and the nutritional qualities of the velvet
antler contents were not different from the red deer Cervus elaphus.