Influence of High Dietary Iron as Ferrous Carbonate and Ferrous Sulfate on Iron Metabolism in Young Calves

Twelve intact male Holstein calves averaging 90 kg and 12 wk of age were fed one of three dietary treatments for 28 d. The diets were A) control, B) control plus 1000 ppm iron as ferrous carbonate, and C) control plus 1000 ppm iron as ferrous sulfate monohydrate. Calves were dosed orally on d 15 of the treatment period with 1 mCi of iron-59. Neither source of added iron had a significant effect on weight gains, feed consumption, hemoglobin, packed cell volume, serum total iron, serum total iron-binding capacity, unbound iron-binding capacity, serum copper, tissue copper, fecal dry matter, or a consistent effect on fecal pH. The ferrous carbonate had no significant effect on stable zinc or stable iron in any tissue studied. Calves fed ferrous sulfate had higher average stable iron in most tissues and significantly more in the small intestine. Tissue zinc was lower in spleen and pancreas of ferrous sulfate-fed calves. Both sources of added iron sharply reduced iron-59 in serum, whole blood, and body tissues. The reduction was substantially greater in calves fed the ferrous sulfate iron. Iron in ferrous sulfate had a higher biological availability than that in the ferrous carbonate; however, bioavailability of the ferrous carbonate iron appeared to be substantial and considerably more than that noted in previous studies in which a different source of ferrous carbonate was used. The maximum safe level of dietary iron is materially influenced by the source of iron with a higher tolerance indicated for ferrous carbonated than ferrous sulfate monohydrate.