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Effect of Dietary Arginine Level on Urinary Orotate and Citrate Excretion in Growing Kittens¹

Departments of Animal Science and Physiological Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA 95616

Three experiments were conducted to examine the effect of dietary arginine on urinary orotic acid excretion and the relationship between orotic aciduria and the cat's dietary arginine requirement. In the first experiment, diets containing 1.66 or 0.83% arginine were compared for their ability to sustain growth and food intake and prevent orotic aciduria. Growth and food intake were similar for each diet but the cats fed the 0.83% arginine excreted seven times as much orotic acid as those fed the 1.66% arginine. In the second experiment, diets containing 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0% arginine were compared for their ability to support growth and food intake and to prevent citric and orotic aciduria. Growth and food intake were optimized with arginine as 0.8% of the diet. Over the range of 0.4–1% arginine, orotic acid excretion was inversely related to the level of arginine, also orotate excretion of cats fed all levels of arginine was greater than that recorded in cats given 1.66% dietary arginine. The estimated level of dietary arginine required to minimize orotic acid excretion was 1.05%, which is 0.3% in excess of that required for maximum growth. Citrate excretion did not respond to dietary arginine level. In the third experiment, cats receiving a commercial cat food containing 1.74% arginine did not show orotic aciduria.

KEY WORDS: • cats • kittens • arginine requirement • orotate excretion • citrate excretion

¹ This research was supported by a gift from the Curnation Co., Los Angeles, CA.

Manuscript received 17 September 1979.