Apparent digestibility of wheat bran and extruded flax in horses determined from the total collection of feces and acid-insoluble ash as an internal marker.

The research article investigates the digestibility of wheat bran and extruded flax in horses, comparing methods of using total feces collection and acid-insoluble ash (AIA) as an internal marker. The goal is to determine accurate digestion coefficients for these feeds, identifying whether the AIA method can provide a less expensive but equally accurate alternative to total feces collection.

Study Design and Procedure

• In this research, scientists conducted trials on six adult geldings (castrated male horses) ranging from 3 to 11 years old, each averaging around 540 kilograms in weight during the trials.
• The horses were subjected to three in vivo digestibility trials on varying diets; hay only, a combination of hay and wheat bran (60:40), and a combination of hay and extruded flax (80:20).
• A 14-day adaptation period was held prior to each six-day feces collection stretch, where diet digestibility was determined.
• Digestion coefficients of the three diets were measured for dry matter, organic matter, crude protein, and gross energy. Apparent digestion coefficients for wheat bran and extruded flax were also calculated by determining the difference from the primary digestion coefficient results.
• Data analysis was done using a Student t-test for paired samples.

Results and Conclusions

• The research found similar digestion coefficients when using the total collection of feces and the AIA method, indicating both strategies have comparable accuracy.
• AIA method exhibited a higher data variability, as indicated by a larger standard deviation, in estimating apparent digestion coefficients.
• While the study concludes that AIA can be a less expensive method for determining apparent digestion coefficients, it still upholds the total collection of feces as the best choice for determining the digestibility of specific feeds due to its higher data stability.

This study contributes to better understanding of determining feed digestion in horses, which is crucial for optimizing their diet for better health and performance. Its findings can be used to inform feed practices and further research in equine nutrition and digestive physiology.