Effects of feed additives and processing on in vitro digestibility

Grants and Contracts Details

Description

A previous project developed an in vitro method of assessing the digestibility of equine feeds. This method utilizes the Daisy II incubation system (ANKOM Tech). The Daisy II is a temperature controlled cabinet that contains 4, 2-liter incubation vessels. The Daisy II was developed for use with rumen fluid as the inoculum, but we have utilized equine feces successfully in the system. Once the inoculum is prepared (a combination of feces and buffer), each incubation vessel is filled with the inoculum. Up to 24 nylon bags containing approximated 0.5 g of test feeds are added to the incubation vessels and the vessels are placed in the incubator for the assigned times. Jars can be removed individually so that each jar can be incubated for an individual time (4,8, 12,24 h, etc). After the incubation period is completed the bags are removed from the vessels, rinsed and then analyzed for dry matter, NDF and ADF disappearance. The previous study showed good agreement between in vitro values and digestibility values obtained in vivo using total fecal collection. This method can now be used to compare feeds or to evaluate new feeds. One area of interest is the effect of various feed additives on feed digestibility. This project will investigate the effects of additives designed to affect feed digestibility on the dry matter, NDF and ADF disappearance of a standard concentrate feed and a high fiber feed. Two sets of experiments will be conducted. In the first set of experiments the feed additives will be incorporated directly into the feeds that are included in the nylon bags and two different types of feeds will be used. In the second set of experiments the feed additives will be incorporated into the fecal inoculum.
StatusFinished
Effective start/end date6/1/066/30/07

Funding

  • Cooperative Research Farms: $13,824.00

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