Optimum Digestive Health

Aspergillus niger fermentation product provides a natural source of digestive enzymes that support efficient nutrient breakdown and absorption. The fermentation process yields enzymes such as amylases, proteases, cellulases, hemicellulases, and glucosidases that act on complex carbohydrates, fibers, and proteins within the gastrointestinal tract.

By enhancing the enzymatic digestion of feed components, these bioactive compounds promote improved nutrient release and support a balanced hindgut microbiome. This contributes to optimal fermentation, energy availability, and digestive comfort in horses consuming high-fiber or performance diets.

Aspergillus niger–derived enzyme products are commonly used in equine nutrition to support feed efficiency and maintain normal gastrointestinal function. Their use in Optimum Digestive Health helps promote consistent nutrient utilization and overall gut resilience.

Beta-glucans are complex polysaccharides naturally present in the cell walls of fungi, yeast, bacteria, and certain plants. They are recognized for their ability to support immune function, gastrointestinal integrity, and overall digestive health.

By interacting with intestinal immune cells and promoting the activity of macrophages and neutrophils, beta-glucans help maintain normal immune surveillance and support the body’s natural defense mechanisms. They also contribute to gut barrier stability by reinforcing tight junction function and supporting a balanced microbial environment.

In equine nutrition, beta-glucans are used to help maintain gastrointestinal comfort and immune readiness, particularly in horses exposed to environmental stressors, training, or dietary changes. Their prebiotic and toxin-binding properties make them valuable ingredients in formulations such as Optimum Digestive Health to support a resilient digestive and immune system.

Calcium carbonate is a natural mineral salt and a primary supplemental source of calcium in equine nutrition. Calcium plays essential roles in bone and teeth formation, muscle contraction, blood coagulation, nerve transmission, and intracellular signaling. It also contributes to maintaining the calcium-to-phosphorus balance necessary for skeletal integrity and metabolic function.

As a feed ingredient, calcium carbonate — often referred to as limestone flour — provides a highly bioavailable form of calcium. It is commonly included in diets for growing, lactating, or heavily exercised horses with elevated calcium demands, or when forage calcium levels are low.

In addition to its nutritional function, calcium carbonate serves as an excipient and carrier in supplement formulations, improving product stability and flowability in powdered or pelleted mixes.

Dried yeast extract is produced from the soluble components of yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and provides a concentrated source of mannan-oligosaccharides (MOS), beta-glucans, nucleotides, and peptides. These bioactive fractions support a balanced hindgut microbiota, efficient nutrient absorption, and optimal digestive and immune function.

Beta-glucans and MOS from yeast help maintain microbial stability and gut barrier integrity by promoting beneficial bacteria and reducing pathogen attachment to the intestinal wall. The naturally occurring nucleotides in yeast extract play a key role in supporting rapid epithelial turnover and cellular regeneration in the intestinal lining, especially during periods of stress or high metabolic demand.

Through its combined prebiotic, immune-supportive, and trophic effects, dried yeast extract contributes to digestive resilience and gastrointestinal health in performance and metabolically sensitive horses.

Lactobacillus acidophilus is one of the best-studied lactic acid bacteria used in equine probiotics. It naturally occurs in the horse’s gut and helps maintain a balanced, diverse microbial community by producing lactic acid and other metabolites that support a stable hindgut environment.

This species ferments carbohydrates to produce lactic acid in controlled amounts, contributing to a healthy gut pH that discourages the growth of undesirable microbes. L. acidophilus also adheres to the gut lining, competing with harmful bacteria for space and nutrients, and helping support the integrity of the mucosal barrier. These actions contribute to normal digestive processes and healthy immune function.

Research shows that L. acidophilus can promote the production of beneficial short-chain fatty acids such as butyrate, which supports gut lining health and efficient nutrient absorption. In horses, supplementation with L. acidophilus often alongside L. casei has been associated with improved protein and fibre digestibility, more efficient fermentation, and overall support for healthy hindgut function.

Lactobacillus casei is a lactic acid–producing bacterium known for its ability to tolerate a wide range of acidity and temperature conditions. It naturally occurs in the equine digestive tract and is commonly paired with L. acidophilus because the two species complement each other’s growth and activity.

As a direct-fed microbial, L. casei helps support a balanced hindgut microbiome by competing with undesirable microbes for space and nutrients, a process known as competitive exclusion. This strain can adhere to the gut lining and produce bacteriocins—natural antimicrobial peptides—that help maintain a healthy microbial environment. These actions support normal digestive function, nutrient utilization, and gut barrier integrity.

Research in horses indicates that supplementation with L. casei, particularly when combined with other probiotic species such as L. acidophilus, can enhance fibre and protein fermentation, contributing to improved nutrient absorption. Studies in other species also demonstrate that L. casei can help maintain microbial balance during periods of stress and provide antioxidant activity that supports normal immune responses.

Lactobacillus farciminis is a lactic-acid–producing bacterium that supports healthy fermentation in the equine hindgut. This species helps break down structural fibres such as cellulose and hemicellulose, releasing short-chain fatty acids that the horse can use as an energy source.

By producing lactic acid in controlled amounts, L. farciminis contributes to a stable hindgut pH and helps maintain an environment that limits the proliferation of undesirable microbes. In vitro work also shows that this strain can inhibit certain harmful bacteria, including some E. coli species, while providing antioxidant activity that supports normal immune function.

Research using hindgut samples from horses supplemented with L. farciminis demonstrates improved fibre fermentation and enhanced gas production patterns associated with active, healthy microbial activity. Additional studies suggest this strain can adhere to the gut lining, helping to support a resilient mucosal barrier and overall digestive tract integrity.

Lactobacillus fermentum is a Gram-positive lactic acid bacterium that naturally forms part of the horse’s gut microbiota. Like other lactic acid bacteria (LAB), it is valued as a probiotic because it can survive exposure to gastric acid and bile, allowing it to reach the hindgut where it contributes to a balanced microbial community.

L. fermentum produces natural antimicrobial compounds such as lactic acid and hydrogen peroxide that help limit the growth of undesirable microbes through competitive exclusion. Research in other species shows that this strain can block pathogen attachment to gut tissues and promote a more favourable composition of gut bacteria, supporting normal digestive function and microbial stability.

This species has also demonstrated antioxidant activity in experimental models, helping support normal inflammatory pathways and gut tissue health. By contributing to efficient fermentation, supporting the mucosal barrier, and enhancing nutrient availability, L. fermentum plays a meaningful role in maintaining overall digestive and immune function in horses.

Lactobacillus plantarum is a beneficial lactic acid bacterium (LAB) that naturally inhabits the equine digestive tract. It is commonly used in equine probiotic formulations because it can withstand the acidic conditions of the stomach and help maintain a balanced hindgut microbiome.

Research shows that L. plantarum supports normal digestive function by enhancing fibre and protein fermentation and by helping the gut microbiota break down nutrients more efficiently. Certain strains, including the LF4 strain, have demonstrated the ability to inhibit harmful bacteria through competitive exclusion and to provide antioxidant activity that supports normal immune responses.

Direct-fed microbials like L. plantarum also contribute to maintaining a stable hindgut environment by helping regulate microbial populations and supporting the production of beneficial fermentation by-products. Preliminary studies in animals suggest that long-term supplementation with L. plantarum may help support healthy energy metabolism and overall physiological resilience during exercise.

Mannan-oligosaccharides (MOS) are complex carbohydrates derived from the outer cell wall of yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). They function as prebiotics that help maintain a balanced hindgut microbiota, support mucosal integrity, and promote optimal digestive function in horses.

MOS can bind to certain pathogenic bacteria, reducing their attachment to the intestinal lining and supporting a healthy microbial environment. These actions contribute to improved nutrient absorption and overall digestive resilience. In addition, MOS contains beta-glucans that support normal immune modulation and gut barrier function.

Mad Barn uses Bio-Mos^® from Alltech^® as the source of MOS in our formulations. Bio-Mos^® is derived from a proprietary yeast strain and has been evaluated in over 700 research trials, including peer-reviewed studies in horses and other species.

Oat hulls are the fibrous outer casing of the oat grain and are removed during the milling of oat products. The hull is not considered grain; it is an inedible protective layer composed primarily of structural fiber. In equine feeds, oat hulls are valued for their functional roles as a source of dietary fiber and as a natural binder that helps form durable, well-structured pellets.

Rich in insoluble fibers such as cellulose and hemicellulose, oat hulls add bulk to the ration and help support normal digestive function and gut motility. Their very low non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) content makes them appropriate for horses that require controlled starch and sugar intake, including easy keepers and those maintained on low-NSC feeding programs.

The coarse, fibrous nature of oat hulls also slows the rate of carbohydrate digestion when included in a feed, supporting a more gradual energy release and helping maintain normal glucose and insulin responses. This makes them a practical ingredient in formulations designed to provide steady, controlled energy.

In pelleted feeds, oat hulls act as a neutral structural carrier, helping bind nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and amino acids into a consistent, easy-to-feed pellet without adding extra starch or sugar.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae 1026 is a live yeast strain used as a probiotic to support hindgut health and digestive efficiency in horses. It promotes a stable hindgut environment by helping maintain optimal pH and fostering the growth of beneficial cellulolytic bacteria that aid in fiber fermentation.

This yeast strain has been shown to enhance nutrient digestibility, particularly for fiber and phosphorus, and to support normal microbial balance under dietary or environmental stress. It may also improve feed efficiency and promote consistent appetite and digestive comfort in performance horses.

Mad Barn utilizes Yea-Sacc^® 1026 from Alltech^® as its source of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This strain has been extensively researched for its effects on digestion, microbial ecology, and nutrient utilization in horses and other livestock species.