Digestible energy expenditure in grazing activity of growing horses.

The research article explores how the amount of time spent grazing affects the digestible energy intake, bodyweight gain, and energy expenditure in grazing activity in young horses.

Research Participants and Methodology

• The research involved ten Thoroughbred yearlings, split into two groups – five females (Long Time Grazers or LTG) and five males (Short Time Grazers or STG).
• The female group was made to graze for a longer time (17 hours per day) while the male group grazed for a shorter time (7 hours per day).

Research Findings

• The digestible energy (DE) intake from pasture forage was found to differ between the two groups. The LTG horses showed a DE intake of 27.3 Mcal/day, while the STG horses showed a range of 12.7-13.9 Mcal/day.
• The research also revealed variation in the average daily gain (ADG) between the two groups, with LTG horses having an ADG of 0.37 kg/day and STG horses showing a higher ADG ranging from 0.39-0.61 kg/day.
• The difference in DE intake between the two groups was found to be 10 Mcal of DE.

Implications of the Study

• The study suggested that digestible energy expenditure in grazing activity, carried out entirely at night, of growing horses was around 1 Mcal/hour under the conditions of this study.
• This paper provides a better understanding about how the duration of grazing can impact energy intake, bodyweight gain and energy expenditure in young horses.
• These findings can potentially aid in designing suitable feeding strategies for young horses to ensure they receive the necessary amount of energy for their growth and development.