Effect of Prebiotics on Dry Matter, NDF and ADF Digestibility of Common Equine Feeds Using an in Vitro Model

The Ankom Daisy II incubator will be used. The Daisy II was developed for in vitro digestibility determinations using rumen fluid but a method has been adapted to use equine feces. The system consists of 4, 1 liter vessels that contain a slurry of buffer and feces. Porous bags containing feed samples are placed in the vessels with the slurry and incubated at 38 C for various periods. After the incubation period is complete the bags are removed, rinsed, dried and then assayed for dry matter (DM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF) content. Digestibility of each variable is then calculated using the known amounts of each in the bag at the beginning of the incubation. The hypothesis of this study is that inclusion of the prebiotics in the incubation vessels will result in higher dry matter, NDF and ADF digestibility.