A comparison between chromium-mordanted hay and acid-insoluble ash to determine apparent digestibility of a chaffed, molassed hay/straw mixture.
Abstract: The apparent digestibility of a molassed, chaffed grass hay/straw mixture was determined using four mature horses (mean weight 606 kg). Animals were stalled individually and kept on rubber mats. A preliminary feeding period of 18 days was followed by a 10 day collection period. Chromium-mordanted hay was given before the first feed at 08.00 h and subsequent meals were at 12.00, 16.00 and 20.00 h. On Days 3 and 10 of the collection, all faeces were sampled over a 24 h period. In addition, throughout the 10 day collection, faecal material was sampled at 10.00 and 16.00 h. The mean (+/- se) chromium recovery was 96.5 per cent +/- 0.76 and the hay/straw mixture contained 7 MJDE/kg dry matter and 15.1 g DCP/kg dry matter. There was no significant difference between the methods used to estimate apparent digestibility although chromium measurements consistently underestimated whilst acid-insoluble ash consistently overestimated digestibility values. There was a large variation in faecal chromium concentration for each horse over a 24 h period compared to acid-insoluble ash concentrations and, consequently, indirect estimates of apparent digestibility of nutrients in the equine are prone to large errors if chromium is used as a marker. If total faecal collection is impractical, acid-insoluble ash is the preferred indirect marker for the estimation of apparent digestibility coefficients for nutrients in horses.
Publication Date: 1990-03-01 PubMed ID: 2318176DOI: 10.1111/j.2042-3306.1990.tb04223.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Comparative Study
- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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This study investigates the accuracy of using either chromium-mordanted hay or acid-insoluble ash to measure the apparent digestibility of a particular hay/straw mix in horses. The results suggest that although both methods yield similar estimates, chromium may underestimate and acid-insoluble ash may overestimate the figure, and amongst these two, acid-insoluble ash is the preferred method due to less variation.
Research Methodology
- The study was carried out on four mature horses individually stalled and kept on rubber mats. The mean weight of the horses used for the experiment was 606 kg.
- The horses were given a preliminary feeding period of 18 days followed by a collection period of ten days. The feeding schedule was fixed at four hours intervals: 08.00 hrs, 12.00 hrs, 16.00 hrs, and 20.00 hrs.
- The feed used in the experiment was a chaffed, molassed hay/straw mixture. The first feed also included chromium-mordanted hay.
- During the collection period, the horses’ faeces were sampled over a 24-hour period on days 3 and 10. Additionally, faecal material was also sampled at 10.00 hrs and 16.00 hrs throughout the ten-day period.
Results and Findings
- The average chromium recovery from faecal samples was found to be 96.5% with a standard error (se) of 0.76. The hay/straw mixture contained 7 MJDE/kg dry matter and 15.1 g DCP/kg dry matter.
- No significant difference was observed between the chromium and acid-insoluble ash methods for estimating the apparent digestibility of the feed. However, it was noted that chromium measurements tended to underestimate the digestibility values, while acid-insoluble ash seemed to overestimate them.
- Furthermore, the researchers found that there was a significant variation in faecal chromium concentration for each horse over a 24-hour period when compared to acid-insoluble ash concentrations. Thus, it was concluded that indirect estimates of apparent digestibility of nutrients in the equine could have large errors if chromium is used as a marker.
Conclusion
- If total faecal collection is impractical, the study recommends using acid-insoluble ash as the preferred indirect marker for estimating apparent digestibility coefficients for nutrients in horses, as it produced more consistent results compared to chromium.
Cite This Article
APA
Cí·¯ord D, Hughes D.
(1990).
A comparison between chromium-mordanted hay and acid-insoluble ash to determine apparent digestibility of a chaffed, molassed hay/straw mixture.
Equine Vet J, 22(2), 122-125.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2042-3306.1990.tb04223.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Veterinary Clinical Studies, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Roslin, Midlothian.
MeSH Terms
- Animal Feed
- Animals
- Chromium / analysis
- Digestion
- Feces / analysis
- Horses / metabolism
- Molasses
- Poaceae
Citations
This article has been cited 1 times.- Fehlberg LK, Lattimer JM, Vahl CI, Drouillard JS, Douthit TL. Digestibility of diets containing calcium salts of fatty acids or soybean oil in horses. Transl Anim Sci 2020 Apr;4(2):txaa001.
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