Equine Nutrition - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

1 / 86
About This Presentation
Title:

Equine Nutrition

Description:

Exercise and hot environments will increase horse's requirement for water ... Synthesized along with B vitamins by GIT microflora to meet horse's requirements ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

Number of Views:1947
Avg rating:5.0/5.0
Slides: 87
Provided by: tjar
Category:

less

Transcript and Presenter's Notes

Title: Equine Nutrition


1

Equine Nutrition
2
Then and Now
3
Digestive Physiology
4
Digestive Physiology
  • MOUTH
  • Lips, tongue, and teethprehension, ingestion,
    and mastication
  • Distinction from cattle the horse has upper AND
    lower teeth
  • Graze closely to the ground
  • More intense mastication resulting in 3 times
    faster ingestion of long stemmed hay compared to
    cattle/sheep
  • However, horses chew slower and thus spend more
    time/day grazing

5
Digestive Physiology
  • MOUTH
  • Teeth are vital to the wellbeing of horses
  • Horses depend on their teeth to a much greater
    extent than ruminants
  • Abnormal/diseased teeth can be a causative factor
    in digestive upsets/colic
  • Can limit horses ability to utilize forages and
    compromise general health

6
Digestive Physiology
  • MOUTH
  • Saliva
  • No enzymatic activity
  • Efficient lubricant to prevent choke
  • Esophageal impaction
  • Contains bicarbonate to neutralize pH in proximal
    region of stomach to allow for CHO fermentation
    to lactate
  • Prevention of gastric ulcers

7
Digestive Physiology
  • ESOPHAGUS
  • 50-60 inches long
  • Entrance to stomach is the cardiac sphincter
  • Powerful, muscular valve
  • Prevents regurgitation or vomiting

8
Digestive Physiology
  • STOMACH
  • Small organ comprising only 8 of GIT
  • Food remains here for short period of time
  • 15 minutes-2 hours
  • Extent of digestion here is slight
  • Thus, the small volume and rapid passage rate is
    the reason horses eat almost continuously
  • Hay Burners

9
Digestive Physiology
  • STOMACH
  • Gastric anatomy very different
  • Half mucosal surface is lined with squamous
    instead of glandular epithelium
  • Nonglandular Esophageal and Saccus caecus
  • Fermentation in saccus caecus region
  • Glandular Fundic (HCL and pepsinogen) and
    Pyloric regions
  • Sharp pH decline arresting fermentation and
    initiating proteolytic activity of pepsin

10
Equine Stomach
Cardiac Sphincter
Saccus Caecus Region
Pyloric Sphincter
11
Digestive Physiology
  • SMALL INTESTINE
  • Relatively short (21-25 m)
  • Rapid transit time (30-90 min)
  • No gall bladder!
  • Bile secreted in response to HCl presence in
    duodenum
  • Major site of nutrient absorption
  • Major site of fat absorption (10-15 dietary fat)
  • Unlike other speciesfat composition of diet
    impacts body fat composition

12
Digestive Physiology
  • SMALL INTESTINE
  • Major site of nutrient absorption
  • Efficiency of CHO absorption critical for
    prevention of digestive upsets caused by
    excessive CHO reaching the hindgut
  • Major site of protein digestion/absorption from
    grain-based diets (50-70)
  • Only 1/3 of protein from hay is digested/absorbed
    in SI

13
Digestive Physiology
  • LARGE INTESTINE
  • Includes cecum, large colon, small colon, and
    rectum
  • Contains an active population of bacteria similar
    to rumen
  • Any feeding regimen that alters the homeostasis
    of the hind gut will result in digestive problems

14
Digestive Physiology
  • LARGE INTESTINE
  • Fermentation
  • FIBER ? VFA (energy source)
  • STARCH ? VFA Lactic acid
  • Excessive amounts of LA production digestive
    upsets
  • Maximize starch digestion in fore gut
  • MICROBES ? PROTEIN B-VITAMINS
  • Horse can not use microbial protein
  • THUS-poor quality protein is poor quality protein

15
Digestive Physiology
  • LARGE INTESTINE
  • This is where a majority of the digestive
    problems occur
  • Compaction
  • Colic (Twisted Gut)
  • Abdominal pain ceases LI contractions which
    result in accumulation of gases of fermentation
  • More later on health problems related to
    nutrition and feeding!

16
Nutrients
  • As a general rule Most nutrients are digested
    and absorbed as in other monogastrics

17
Water
  • Largest single determinant of water intake is dry
    matter intake
  • 2 L of water/kg DMI (5 L/100 kg BW)
  • Exercise and hot environments will increase
    horses requirement for water
  • 5-6 L/kg DMI (12-15 L/100 kg BW)
  • Water repletion should be accompanied by balance
    electrolytes (Na, K)

18
Water
  • Excessive cold water intake can precipitate colic
    or founder
  • Decreased water intake in the winter can
    predispose horse to impaction colic
  • Provide warm water (7-18C 45-65F) to increase
    consumption

19
Water
  • Foals
  • Daily milk yield of mares contains around 12 kg
    of water
  • However, water intake is still vital to foals due
    to their inability to concentrate (or pull water
    out of) their urine
  • As a of BW foals will have a higher water
    requirement than older, mature horses

20
Nutrients
  • Commercial horse diets generally contain
  • 4 fat
  • 7-12 protein
  • 2/3 of diet CHO

21
CHO/Energy
  • Digested to glucose in SI
  • Preferred energy source for most tissues
  • Fermented to VFA (acetate, propionate, and
    butyrate) in LI

22
CHO
  • Glucose main energy substrate when grain diets
    fed
  • VFA main energy substrate when forage diets are
    fed

23
Blood Glucose Response to Diet
24
Practical Feeding Recommendation
  • Horses consuming diets rich in concentrates
    (grain based diets) should be fed regularly and
    frequently to smooth out cyclic changes in blood
    glucose and to prevent colic.

25
Protein/AA
  • Necessary for tissue synthesis
  • Inverse relationship between age and protein
    requirements
  • Young horse is synthesizing more tissue and thus
    has a higher requirement
  • Most expensive ingredient in horse diets
  • Should not be used as a replacement energy source

26
Protein for Maintenance
  • Tissue proteins are broken down and resynthesized
    during normal maintenance
  • 2.7 g digestible protein/kg BW0.75
  • 900 lb horse 240 g digestible protein or 370 g
    dietary CP

27
Protein for Growth
  • Young horse with mature BW of 1000 lb normally
    gains 2 lbs/d from 3 to 6 mths of age
  • However, must have adequate energy for protein
    utilization, so requirements are expressed as a
    proportion of DE
  • TB and QH need 1.88 g lysine/ Mcal DE

28
Protein for Growth
  • Much of the growth of young horses occurs on
    pasture
  • Leafy grass forages range from 5-13 g lysine/kg
    air-DM
  • Meet requirements with a cereal protein source

29
Macrominerals
  • Ca and P
  • Excessive amounts of Ca do not initiate the types
    of dietary problems encountered in other species
  • 31 to 61 have been fed with no problem

30
Macrominerals
  • Ca and P for lactating mares
  • Milk production for 5-6 months can produce a
    deficit of 1.8 kg Ca and 0.7 kg P derived from
    skeletal reserves and feed

31
Macrominerals
  • Na and Cl
  • Most feedstuffs are deficient
  • Added to ration or provided as free choice block
  • Requirement ? when animal sweats
  • Moderate work 100 g/d loss

32
Microminerals
  • Those affect bone formation
  • Cu/Zn
  • Horses less subject to Cu toxicity
  • Mo and S do not affect Cu status as in cattle
  • Deficiency fragile bones and cartilage
  • Excess Zn ( 100 mg/kg) may exacerbate Cu
    deficiency

33
Microminerals
  • Those affect bone formation
  • Mn/Si
  • Required for cartilage/collagen and bone matrix
    formation Si is found in osteoblasts
  • Si supplementation has been reported to extend
    work time before leg injury and reducing work
    withdrawal frequency in horses in training

34
Microminerals
  • Fe
  • Most natural feeds rich sources of Fe
  • Except milk
  • Deficiencies unlikely unless heavy parasite load
  • Most abused supplement in horse diets
  • Mistaken belief that Fe supplementation ? PCV and
    Hb and will increase energy
  • Toxicity and antagonism are more of a problem

35
Microminerals
  • Se
  • Requirement 0.15 mg Se/kg feed
  • Se content of forages/cereals determined by Se
    status of soil grown in
  • Highly toxic
  • 2-5 mg/kg feed
  • Causes hair sloughing, bone lesions, hoof wall
    sloughing

36
Se Toxicity
37
Fat Soluble Vitamins
  • Vitamin A
  • Grazing horses meet requirement via fresh forages
  • Conversion of carotenoid pigments in forages to
    actie Vitamin A
  • Hay virtually devoid of Vitamin A value
  • Horses off pasture can become deficient in 2
    months
  • Deficiency excessive tear production
  • Rare in stabled horses because all concentrates
    supplemented with synthetic Vitamin A
  • Exception Feeding old feed

38
Fat Soluble Vitamins
  • Vitamin D
  • Required for proper Ca and P metabolism
  • Sufficient supplementation in concentrate feeds
    to meet daily requirement (1000 IU/kg)

39
Fat Soluble Vitamins
  • Vitamin E
  • Works in conjunction with Se
  • Necessary to prevent tying up of muscles and
    proper performance capability
  • Important in maintaining normal immune function
  • Fresh forages and germ of cereal grains rich
    sources
  • Frequently supplemented due to instability under
    most storage conditions

40
Fat Soluble Vitamins
  • Vitamin K
  • Required for proper clotting mechanisms
  • Synthesized along with B vitamins by GIT
    microflora to meet horses requirements
  • May be inadequate during first 2 weeks postnatal
    or during extended treatment with sulphonamides
  • Leafy forages good source of Vit K
  • Bleeders ? Vitamin K deficiency
  • Expression of blood vessel fragility

41
Water Soluble Vitamins
  • The horses requirement can generally be met by
    microbial synthesis of these vitamins
  • However, there are situations where
    supplementation may be required
  • Foals
  • Horses receive extended AB treatment
  • Sick horses
  • Horses in hard work
  • Horses receiving primarily grain diets with
    little forage

42
Water Soluble Vitamins
  • Biotin
  • Only water soluble vitamin the have brought about
    clinically observable responses with adequate
    diets in healthy horses
  • Unavailable in most cereals fed to horses
  • Improves strength and growth rate of horse hooves

43
Effect of Biotin Supplementation
44
Feeding the Broodmare
45
Feeding the Mare
  • First priorityknow her body condition
  • Need to ensure mare does not fall into negative
    energy balance
  • How?
  • Regular weighing
  • Visual appraisal of BCS
  • Mare should have fat covering ribs so they are
    not easily seen, but readily felt with minimal
    pressure
  • Mare should be carrying her weight behind the
    shoulder and above the flank giving her a rounded
    appearance
  • Should be enough fat cover over croup to prevent
    vertebrae visualization

46
Maiden Mares
  • Realize they are still growing
  • Similar to first calf heifers or gilts
  • Feed 14 CP grain mix containing 0.7 Ca and 0.6
    P and good quality hay/pasture
  • Amount of feed/d 1 of BW
  • It is important she enter the breeding season
    GAINING weight

47
Barren Mares
  • Need to know why mare is barren
  • Foaling problems dystocia, foaling too late in
    season, uterine infection, old age
  • Nutritional problems negative energy balance,
    too thin (lactational anestrus), loss of foal due
    to poor feeding
  • Emphasize forage consumption
  • May benefit from flushing (? plane of nutrition
    prior to breeding)
  • No evidence that overweight mares are prone to
    infertilitymay cause foaling difficulties

48
Pregnant Mares
  • First 2 trimesters feed similar to barren mare
  • Last 90 d of pregnancy ? in protein, energy,
    Ca, and P requirements
  • 12 increase in energy requirements
  • Possible to meet requirements with good quality
    forage
  • Many breeders supplement with grain mix at 0.5
    of BW

49
Lactating Mares
  • Nutrient requirements greatest during lactation
    than any other time
  • Exception hard training
  • Avg. mare will produce 3 of BW in milk first 3
    months and 2 for last 3 months of lactation
  • Undernutrition is SEVERE during lactation
  • Greater impact on condition of the mare than on
    quality or quantity of milk produced

50
Lactating Mares
  • Can affect milk production and composition with
    diet
  • e.g. high fiber, low energy diets will increase
    protein and fat in milk and decrease yield
  • Thus, poor pasture/hay situation would benefit
    from grain supplement (protein and starch)
  • Mares that become too thin will not cycle/rebreed
  • At weaning, it is common to remove grain
    supplements to slow milk production by the mare

51
Feeding the young horse
52
Young Horses
  • Feeding the young horse is the most challenging
    area
  • Firstthe young horse should be considered a
    potential athlete
  • Secondthe young horse is growing rapidly and
    feeding errors can become greatly magnified
  • Thirdall classes of nutrients must be considered
    when formulating the young horse diet

53
Young Horses
  • Dangerous to assume maximal and optimal growth
    are the same thing
  • Rapid growth can result in a number of
    developmental disorders
  • QUESTION how fast can you stimulate growth and
    not compromise proper skeletal development?
  • Meet requirements for energy, protein, and
    macrominerals

54
Young Horses
  • Recognize that in foals up to 2 moths of age
  • Nutrient requirements met solely by the mares
    milk
  • Creep Feeding not recommended as free choice
    (rapid growth)
  • Not exceed 1.5 of BW
  • Rule of thumb 0.5 kg creep feed/month of age
  • Post weaning growth lag will be minimized if
    foals are consuming creep feed prior to weaning

55
Young Horses
  • Energy Requirements
  • Inadequate energy unthrifty appearance, slow
    growth rate, inefficient utilization of other
    nutrients
  • DE requirement per kg gain increases as foal ages
    due to ? in maintenance reqt. And ?in efficiency
    of gain
  • b/c ration consists of less milk and more forage

56
Young Horses
  • Energy Requirements
  • Conservative approach to energy needs is
    necessary until relationship b/w energy intake
    and developmental disorders is determined
  • Methods for reducing E intake to encourage
    moderate growth
  • Increase forage consumption
  • Feed small meals multiple times/day
  • Feed fat instead of starch (15 fat max)

57
Young Horses
  • Protein Requirements
  • Take into account CP and lysine concentrations
  • Protein quantity and quality are important
  • First 12 monthsmuscle and bone development
  • Overfeeding protein is expensive and does not
    improve growth rate

58
Young Horses
  • Mineral Requirements
  • IMPORTANT Ca and P
  • 21 ratio is ideal, but 11 is more easily
    achieved
  • Recognizemany of the energy sources utilized
    contain phytate bound P that is unavailable to
    the horse
  • Supplement diets with inorganic P source

59
Young Horses
  • Weanlings
  • Provide 1-1.5 of BW as concentrate
  • Provide liberal quantities of high quality forage
  • Free access
  • Free access to voluntary exercise
  • Increases bone density

60
Young Horses
  • Yearlings
  • Assuming proper nutrition in previous
    stagesgrowth rate should be slowing
  • Provide adequate protein and minerals and avoid
    excessive energy intakes
  • ? muscle and bone deposition and ? fat deposition
  • Feed 0.75-1.5 of BW as grain mix and liberal
    quantities of forage
  • 14 CP ration

61
Performance Horses
62
Performance Horses
  • Little is known about exact requirements
  • Light work aerobic metabolism
  • Uses fat stores first then CHO stores (glycogen)
  • Strenuous work anaerobic metabolism
  • Uses CHO stores and ATP

63
Performance Horses
  • Energy Requirements
  • Greatest increase is here!
  • Reqt. at high levels of work is 2X maintenance
  • More strenuous the workmore of the diet should
    be provided as soluble CHO (starch)
  • Cereal grains
  • Can not meet reqt. on forage alone
  • Small stomach and large reqt.
  • Feed 1-1.75 of BW as grain mix and minimum of 1
    of BW as forage

64
Performance Horses
  • Protein Requirements
  • No evidence that this requirement increases
  • Increasing amount of feed to meet E reqt. Will
    increase protein intake
  • This will replace protein loss to sweat and
    muscle catabolism

65
Performance Horses
  • Vitamin Requirements
  • Increasing vitamin intake not warranted and may
    result in toxicity
  • May want to supplement B vitamins
  • Involvement in energy metabolism
  • Mineral Requirements
  • Ca, P11 minimum
  • Na, Clhuge losses via sweat
  • 90 g Na
  • Include 0.5-0.75 of diet as salt

66
Performance Horses
  • Forage!
  • Still important
  • Prevent stable vices (cribbing and wood chewing)
  • Promotes efficient function of GIT
  • 50 of needs can be met with good quality forage
  • Prevent hay belly by feeding good quality,
    digestible forages cut in early stage of maturity

67
Mature, Idle Horses
68
Mature Horses
  • Does very well on pasture or good quality hay
  • 3.5 of BW/day
  • If forage is limited, can supplement with grain
    mix to maintain body condition
  • Generally, only supplementation required is free
    choice water and trace mineralized salt

69
Stallions
70
Stallions
  • Specific information is lacking
  • No reason to believe nutrient needs differ from
    mature horse
  • Reqt. increase 25 during breeding season
  • Greatest concern would be energy
  • Protein, mineral and vitamin reqt. unlikely to
    vary
  • Do not want stallions to be overweight
  • Founder, colic, heart disease

71
Stallions
  • Feed 1 BW as grain and 1.3-1.6 BW as forage
  • Exercise is important to maintain longevity

72
Bottom Line
  • Each horse is an individual and will vary in
    requirements
  • Some horses get fat on air
  • Some horses take much more feed than what is
    thought to be required to maintain body
    condition
  • That is the art of feeding horses!!

73
Common Nutritional Disorders
74
Colic
  • 2 categories
  • Improper forage concentrate ratios
  • Use of contaminated feedstuffs (minor cause)
  • ? grain diets increase rate of passage providing
    rapidly fermentable CHO to LI
  • ? in lactate and gas production, ? pH, changes LI
    microflora populationrelease of bacterial toxins

75
Colic
  • Also, may see in spring on pasture
  • Why? Immature grasses have high soluble CHO and
    H2O content, ? rate of passage and aberrant
    fermentation
  • Solution DONT skimp on the hay!

76
Developmental orthopedic disease
  • A collection of disorders affecting the young,
    growing horse
  • Epiphysitis (inflammation of cartilage in growth
    plates)
  • Osteochondrosis (aberrant maturation of joint
    cartilage)
  • Wobbler syndrome (OC in vertebrae causing spinal
    cord damage)
  • Acquired flexural deformity

77
Developmental orthopedic disease
  • Causative Factors
  • Strong genetic component
  • Faster growing, earlier maturing, larger horses
  • Injury/trauma
  • Nutritional deficiencies, toxicities, imbalances
  • Treatment recommendations
  • Reduce energy intake
  • NOT protein, minerals, or vitamins
  • Offer quality hay liberally

78
Fescue Toxicity
  • Only affects pregnant mares grazing
    endophyte-infected tall fescue pastures
  • Signs of toxicosis
  • Abortion in latter months of pregnancy
  • Prolonged gestation
  • Dystocia
  • Retained placenta
  • Suffocation of foal due to abnormally thick,
    tough placenta
  • Lack of udder development poor milk production
  • Infertility due to damage to reproductive tract

79
Blister Beetle Poisoning
  • Confined to horses consuming hay produced in
    southwestern US
  • Toxin produced by beetles is stable over long
    periods of time
  • Beetles are baled with hay (mower conditioner vs.
    sickle mowers)
  • Affected horses show severe colic, diahrea, and
    dehydration
  • Death occurs within 48-72 h after ingestion

80
Nutritional Poisoning
  • Moldy corn (Blind Staggers)
  • Mold produces toxin (fumonisin B) that is
    absorbed in GIT and has lethal effect on brain
    cells
  • Cystitis (Prussic Acid Poisioning)
  • Consumption of sudangrass
  • Inflammation of urinary tract
  • Other symptoms muscle tremors, nervousness,
    respiratory distress, death

81
Wood Chewing
  • NOT cribbing!
  • Result of boredom or nutritional inadequacy
  • Not enough forage!!!
  • Direct relationship between wood chewing and
    amount of fiber in the diet
  • Pastured horses will chew wood (mainly in
    spring-immature forages)
  • Colic and wood chewing is reduced when hay is
    offered to grazing horses when extreme pasture
    growth is occurring

82
Heaves
  • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
  • Similar to asthma in humans
  • Horses may have nasal discharge, cough, and heave
    line from muscle hypertrophy caused by effort of
    expelling air
  • Treatment
  • Forage source ? hay
  • Pasture NOT barn
  • Ammonia, mold, dust irritants

83
Tying Up Syndrome
  • Also referred to as Monday Morning Disease (stiff
    gait, painful muscles, sweating, etc.)
  • Traditionallythought that grain feeding and no
    exercise after a consistent level of intense
    exercise was causative factor
  • Treatment
  • Management of grain intake
  • Maintaining proper electrolyte balance

84
Founder (Laminitis)
  • Excessive starch intake!!
  • All about microbial ecology
  • Starch fermentation lactate production
  • Low pH kills all acid-intolerant bacteria
  • e.g. Enterobacteriaceae, E. coli
  • Dying bacteria release endotoxin (LPS)

85
Founder (Laminitis)
  • Endotoxin and lactic acid in blood causes
    increased blood flow to foot and little to no
    blood flow to laminae
  • Causes degeneration of the bond between hoof and
    bone to
  • Rotation of pedal bone under horses BW
  • Treatmentcall you vet
  • Remove from feed, feed evacuation from GIT, AB
    treatment (kills lactic acid-producing bacteria)

86
We are DONE!
Write a Comment
User Comments (0)
About PowerShow.com