Potassium Requirement of the Weanling Guinea Pig

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Abstract
The potassium requirement of the weanling guinea pig was evaluated over an 8-week period, using a diet based on casein protein and containing by calculation 0.3% sodium and 35 mEq of excess cation/100 g of diet. The potassium requirement, estimated from regression analysis, was 0.46% when the potassium was fed as the acetate and 0.54% when fed as the chloride. When suboptimal levels of potassium were supplied as the chloride, the addition of excess cations in the form of sodium acetate improved the growth rate; but when potassium was supplied as the acetate, regardless of the level, the addition of sodium acetate did not significantly influence the growth rate. Animals fed diets based on soybean protein and 0.5% of DL-methionine grew more rapidly than those fed casein diets, but still 0.4% of potassium supported as rapid growth rate as 1.6%. It may be concluded that excess cations are essential in the guinea pig's diet and that the potassium requirement does not exceed 0.5% when the cation level is adequate.