Nutrient requirements of Equine by Kisan Forum Pvt. Ltd.

7 NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF ANIMALS

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF EQUINE

ICAR

Indian Council of Agricultural Research New Delhi

PRINTED : JULY 2013

FIRST EDITION 2013

Project Director

Incharge (English Editorial Unit) Editor Chief Production Officer Technical Officer (Production)

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Dr Rameshwar Singh

Dr R P Sharma Reena Kandwal Dr V K Bharti Punit Bhasin

Dr V K Bharti and Punit Bhasin

Correct Citation: Nutrient Requirements of Animals - Equine (ICAR-NIANP), 2013

ISBN: 978-81-7164-142-0

Price: ?100

Published by Dr Rameshwar Singh, Project Director, Directorate of Knowledge Management in Agriculture, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi 110 012; Lasertypeset at M/s Dot & Design, D-35, Ranjeet Nagar Comm. Complex, New Delhi 110 008 and printed at M/s Royal Offset Printers, A-89/1, Naraina Industrial Area, Phase I, New Delhi 110 028.

CONTENTS SI. No. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Title

Page No.

Introduction Feeding system

Digestive system Common feed resources Nutrient requirements Dry matter

Energy requirement Protein requirement Mineral requirement Vitamin requirement Water requirement Nutrient requirement for different physiological functions Maintenance Growth Gestation Lactation and brood mares Work/performing horses Feed formulation

1 3 4 4 7 7 9 9 10 10 10 11 11 13 15 17 19

Conclusion

References

Annexures

A1 Feeding guidelines and practical feed formulations A2

Proximate composition and nutritive value (% DM basis) of common feed resources for equines

List of Tables

Introduction The members of Equidae family viz.-Horses, Donkeys, Mules and K Ponies played an important role in the service of mankind since time immemorial. In ancient times, horses served man as a beast of burden, a |draught animal, a means of transportation and a true companion of soldiers E in the batde field. Their association for faithfulness and loyalty is documented Bin ancient civilizations of the world. Before domestication, horses were I hunted for meat. Even today, in some of the countries like Mongolia, Russia, B German and France, horse meat is highly prized. Mare milk has several K medicinal properties apart from its nutritional value, and is used extensively B in Mongolia. Besides these, horses are also used for carts, Tonga Safari, | Horse Safari, sports (like Races and Polo) and specific equestrian state and | national sport activities (like show jumping, tent pegging, hunting etc.) . It is the only animal used in Olympic Games. In many developing countries, B donkeys and mules are still used in agricultural operations. In northern K India, mules and horses are a major source of animal draft power. Horses are increasingly being used in Army, Para Military Forces and Police B departments for activities related to security. Other members of equine family ike donkeys, mules and ponies also play an important role in the livelihood B economy of landless laborers, small and marginal farmers and other poorer K sections of the society in rural and urban areas. Although draft equine are seen in almost all the regions of the country, race horses deserve special attention as they are given special treatment and full secrecy is maintained their owners about their maintenance, upkeep, training and feeding B system for their high-level performance in races/games where huge money B is staked on winning horses. L According to the latest livestock census (DADF, Livestock Census B2007), the total Indian equine population is million 1.19 Bcomprising 52 percent B horses, 37 percent Bdonkeys and 11 percent 1 Equine B mules . trend population I indicated continuous (-58.39 1 decline percent) from 1951 to 2007, mainly due to competition due to mechanization and j

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF EQUINE

modern transport system. Population of horses, ponies and donkeys showed net decline, while mule population increased. In Rajasthan state during 1997-2007 total equine population decreased, horses and ponies increased marginally (6.69%) and mules, donkeys declined markedly. India possesses nine horse breeds, out of which Marwari, Kathiawari, Spiti, Zanskari, Manipuri and Bhutia are well recognized. Other 3, being Chummarti, Deccani and Sikang, which have distinct breeding tracts in various parts of the country. Marwari and Kathiawari breeds belong to Kathiawar province (Gujarat) and Marwar region (Rajasthan), respectively. Manipuri horses, both hill and plain breeds, have been bred over centuries in the Manipur state. They enjoy high reputation for intelligence and are used in Polo and racing. Spiti horses have their home tracts in Lahul and Spiti and Kinnnaur districts of Himachal Pradesh; Zanskari horses in Zanskar region of Ladakh; and Butia horses in Sikkim, Darjeeling, Arunachal Pradesh and Bhutan. All these 3 breeds are capable of thriving in cold climates. Chummarti, Deccani and Sikang breeds are considered on the verge of extinction. Exotic horse breeds introduced in India are English Thoroughbred, Water, Arab, Polish, Connemara and Haflinger. Asses (.Equus asinus) are considered to be purely of African origin and have contributed to mule production. Mules are fit for agricultural operations and are able to take more loads compared to horses. According to the FAO, Indian breeds are of three types, viz. Indian, Indian wild and Kiang. Indian wild asses named Kulan are available in Rann of Kutch (Gujarat), and Kiang asses in Sikkim and Ladakh of upper Himalayas. Indian donkeys are of two types depending on their size, viz. large sized light grey to white and small dark grey. Mules have combined qualities of both horses and donkeys and are ideal as pack and transport animals, both in civilian occupations and military operations. They are heavily muscled and have average body weight of 550 kg. Most of the horse owners in India are marginal or poor farmers. No balanced feeding is practiced, however over-feeding or under-feeding is very common. Gram feeding resulting in high protein feeding is common but horses require different amounts of nutrients in their daily diets, depending upon their physiological status. Many health or performance problems can be prevented or corrected with good nutrition. Fresh water, good quality hay, cereal grain (when needed for extra energy), and a vitamin/trace mineral source are the essential components of quality nutrition. The National Research Council (NRC), USA Sub-committee on Horse Nutrition published the nutrient requirements for horses in 1966 based on the work conducted in temperate region during forties. It was later revised in 1973 in the light of work done during sixties. Thereafter, the requirements for horses were published by the NRC in 1989 and recently revised in 2007.

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF ANIMALS

| InIndia, researchwork on horse nutrition has been initiatedin early nineties. B Some of the Indian feeds have been evaluated in horses (Nehra, 2002).The work done on idle brood mares, non-pregnant and non-lactating, pregnant and lactating mares at the Equine Breeding Stud Farm at Babugarh resulted i in compilation of some information regarding voluntary dry matter (DM) intake and nutrient requirements based on all roughage rations as well as I rations fed as per the feeding schedule prescribed in theIndian Army (Raut, I 1987a). Feeding system

Equine family consists of different types of domesticatedanimals having varied mature body weights, living in diversified geography/climate and B performing multiple works and hence feeding systems are to be followed While landless, small and marginal farmers depend on grazing, feeding along with supplementation, standard feeding schedule is followed for feeding service horses of official studs. Owners of some stud firms give mixture of gram, barley, wheat bran, salt and fodder hay to their pregnant and lactating horses. The diet of race horse should include mixture from leguminous fodders and grasses, and concentrate mixture K leving mineral mixture and common salt. I

Killin'

Generally three types of equine feeding systems are followed: R* a) Stallfeeding: It is used for working ponies, mules andhorses. These animals are fed concentrate mixture twice a day- in the morning and evening. Foals and lactating mares are fed thrice a day. Fodders are offered ad libitum and concentrates in 2 or 3 equal parts. i b Grazing: Animals are allowed to graze in common grazing lands offallow lands/pastures for 6 -10 hours daily. Non-working animals do not require any supplementation except in lean season of low pasture availability and for balancing; feeding of concentrate/ good quality forage is required. c) Feeding bags: Feeding bags are used by horse/mule/donkey tonga R owners. Animals are offered hay/concentrates in bags during the rest period. :

Race horses deserve special mention. They have strong body frame of

Kanmsd.es with minimum fat. Most owners maintain tight secrecy about their

system. Obesity is a serious disqualification for race horses. Race need special care of their temperament, management, housing, exercise and training, and need energy for maximum and strenuous * lacing which is as high as 70 times that of the energy required at rest, that F tkn for 1-3 minute racing period. The diet should be formulated so as to

Hhoraes

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF EQUINE

provide maximum energy during racing. Feeding and training schedules are aimed to maximize storage and availability of energy for muscular activity for high racing performance. Glycogen and free fatty acids are important energy sources for muscular work in untrained and trained horses. Untrained horses use more glycogen and are not able to utilize fat as efficiently as trained one. Addition of 5-10 percent fat in the diet has a sparing action on muscle glycogen reserve that can be mobilized to prevent fatigue during exercise. Similarly, the level of protein, vitamins, minerals and salt need to be increased in relation to fat level. Although addition of fat increases energy density of the diet it also reduces DM intake. During exercise, race horses lose electrolytes through sweating. This should be compensated through supplementation of Na, Cl, P, Mg, Se, Fe and iodine which are closely linked with muscular energy metabolism. Sweat contains almost 0.75% salt. Higher vitamin E level seems to be beneficial along with vegetable oils. Digestive system The digestive system of an adult horse is about 20% of body weight, 35 m long andconsists offore and hind-gut. Functions of the horseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s foregut are similar to that of pigs with simple stomach. Functions of hind-gut are comparable to the rumen of ruminants suitable for digestion of fibrous feeds and fodders. The mobile nostrils and flexible upper lip help in feed selection. Teeth have a hard layer over the dentition and continue to grow throughout their life. Foregut comprises mouth, pharynx, oesophagus, stomach and small intestine. Hind gut or large intestine comprises 4 ft long caecum, 11 ft long large colon, 11 ft small colon and 1 ft rectum ending in anus. Large intestine is about 60% of digestive system, and caecum, large colon and smallcolon comprises of about 15, 40 and 10 percent of hind gut respectively. Caecum becomes fully functional in adult horse at about 2 years of age. Since the stomach capacity of mature horse is smaller than that of cattle, horses require frequent feeding over prolonged period. Gall bladder is absent in horses.

Digestive physiology and hindgut fermentation Rate of feed passage is about 40 hours in equines, just half the time compared to 85 hours in ruminants. Digestion in foregut of equines is similar to that of simple stomached animals, and digestion in hindgut is similar to that of ruminants, and is intermediate between the two. In spite of different digestive system, horses thrive well on same feeds and fodders those are consumed by the ruminants. Although rumen is absent in equines, caecum is well developed. Grains and by-products containing low fibre are

I NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF ANIMALS

digested similarly by both equities and ruminants, but crude fiber is less digestible in equines compared to that in ruminants. This indicates that equine is less efficient in digesting fibrous roughages, and thus need to be fed concentrates to meet the nutrient requirements. Glucose and galactose are absorbed from the gut but lactose is not absorbed after 3 years of age as the lactase enzyme activity is limited. Undigested feeds and fodders from the foregut flowing into the hindgut are subjected to microbial fermentation but not as efficiently as in ruminants. Stomach harbours good population of lactobacilli producing gas from fermenting sugars and starch. Excess grain feeding should be avoided to prevent lactoacidocis and stomach damage. Oat feeding is, thus, preferred over maize due to its low energy and high fibrous nature. The VEAs produced are absorbed in the caecum and colon; they provide about one-fourth of energy requirements. However, for high performing horses needing high energy level, maize may be included in the ration. Concentration of VFAs depends on the dietary composition. With high grain diet, proportion of propionic acid, isovaleric acid and valeric acid are increased and that of acetic acid decrease. Because of glucose energy availability from foregut and VEAs energy from hindgut fermentation, the plasma glucose concentration is in between those of simple stomached and complex stomached animals. Protein digestion takes place mainly in the small intestine. Amino acids synthesized in the hindgut are not efficiently utilized by the host and essential amino acid lysine needs to be supplemented in the diet. Feed resources and feeding practices Before rations can be evaluated or formulated it is necessary to know the nutrient content of the feeds used. Visual evaluation cannot accurately predict the nutrient value of a feed. A brief description of commonly used feeds in horses is provided below.

Forages

Forages are the basis for any horse feeding programme and should receive 1.0 to 2.5 kg of good quality forage (or â&#x20AC;&#x153;pasture equivalentâ&#x20AC;?) on DM basis/100 kg of body weight/day. Commonly fed green forages are cowpea, berseem, lucerne, maize, sorghum, bajra, oat, grasses and hays. The fibre in forages assists the horse in maintaining gastrointestinal health. Pasture should be utilized whenever possible. During most part of the growing season, about 2.5 to 3.0 kg of fresh pasture is equivalent to about 1 kg of good hay. Most grasses can be grazed by horses, and legume-grass mixtures are excellent. Rotational grazing and (or) clipping are important management practices because horses are selective and tend to graze the

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF EQUINE

youngest and most tender grasses. With plenty of high-quality green fodder, pasture or hay, only rapidly developing weanling and yearling horses, mares that are lactating and to be bred back, and show and performance horses may need supplemental grains.

Hay Doob grass, Marvel grass, Sewan grass, Rhodes grass and Para grass make excellent hay for horses. Grasses are palatable and usually less dusty, and less likely to become moldy than the legume hays. Grasses like Anjan, Dhaman, Bahia and Lampa can be used as pasture. Legumes are richer in nutrient content than grasses, and may be fed alone or in combination with grass hays. But these are difficult to cure properly, and are thus more prone to mold and become dusty. Lucerne hay is more laxative than grass hays and may cause â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;looseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; faeces. Voluntary feed intake of horses decreases when fed on leguminous fodders .This may be due to saponin, a bloat forming agent. Undoubtedly, obtaining good hay, storing and feeding can be a major management problem. However, moldy or dusty hay may cause colic and heaves in horses. Large amounts of very poor quality hay can be poorly digested and may not pass through the digestive tract, causing impaction and colic. Very high quality clover or small grain hay can be readily digested, but when fed with a high-grain feed may result in loose faeces or colic.

Concentrates When a horse cannot meet its energy and protein needs through forage alone, additional nutrients via concentrate feedstuffs must be provided. Concentrate mixtures need to be fed to foals, weaned colts, growing yearlings, pregnant, lactating, working, race and polo horses as the forage feeding is not enough to meet their nutrient requirements. Such mixtures can be formulated from oats, barley, maize, sorghum, pearl millets, wheat bran, linseed, groundnut, soybean meal, molasses, mineral mixture and common salt. Oats is the most widely used and the most popular grain for horses. Heavy, bright or clean oats, containing a small percentage of hulls are preferred. It is better to roll or crush oats for horses with poor teeth or young foals. It is poorer in the energy content than other grains but will cause less trouble with stomach compaction. Dusty oats should be avoided because they may cause colic. Maize, like oats, is widely used for horses. It should be cracked, coarsely ground, or preferably rolled. Maize is higher in energy compared to oats and when included with oats it is used at a lower

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF ANIMALS

proportion than oats. Barley is also popular for horses and should be coarsely ground or preferably rolled, and usually mixed with oats in about equal parts. Wheat, rye and milo are not used much because they become rather doughy and tend to ball up with moisture when ground. If used, it should be rolled and mixed at a low level with bulky feed such as oats or wheat bran. Wheat bran is very valuable for its mild laxative effect and for its bulky nature; it is generally used at 5 to 15% of the diet. Daily feeding of 2 to 5 kg crushed gram is most popular among horse owners in India and is considered to impart strength to the animals. It is usually fed as a single feed after soaking in water overnight. Feeding linseed meal, a popular proteinsupplement, may result in bloom and luster in the hair coat. Often, pelleted meal is used to avoid dustiness. Soybean meal is used quite extensively for horses and may be substituted on an equal protein basis for linseed meal. It contains high-quality protein and is generally more economical. Cottonseed meal is lower in protein quantity and quality vis- a- vis. soybean meal. It may contain gossypol, which may not be toxic in adult horses, but a maximum of 0.03 percent gossypol is tolerable by young horses. Beet pulp is high in fibre, but is well-digested andhas fairly high energy value. It is often used to replace hay in the diet for horses with heaves. Inclusion of molasses at 5 to 10 percent sweetens the feed and makes it more palatable. It also tends to condition feeds, prevent separation and reduce dustiness. Rice bran, rice hulls, citrus pulp or soybean hulls are also used depending on the cost and availability. The proximate composition and nutritive value on percent dry matter basis of some commonly used feed and fodders resources of equine are presented in Annexure (A.1).

Nutrient requirements Dry matter Dry matter (DM) requirement of growing foals is high (3-5% of BW) as the rate of growth is highest by 6 months of age and then declines up to 18 months of age. About 75 percent of adult body weight is achieved by 18 months, hence adlibitum feeding of goodquality feeds is needed for younger foals. Idle and dry brood mares require very less DM for maintenance (up ID 2.0 percent of BW) but lactating mares and working horses need higher DM from 2.5 to 3.5 percent of BW (Table 1A & IB).

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF EQUINE

Table 1A. Dry matter intake (NRC data)

Forage

DMI (% Body Wt) Concentrate

Total

0 0.5 1.0 1.0- 1.5 1.0- 1.5 1.0- 1.5

1.0 -2.0 1.5 -3.0 1.0 -2.0 1.0- 1.5 1.0- 1.5

1.0-2.0 2.0-4.0 2.0- 3.5 2.0- 3.0 2.0-3.0

1.5 -2.0 1.0- 1.5 1.0 -2.0 1.0 -2.0

0.0 - 0.5 0.5 - 1.0 1.0 -2.0 0.5 - 1.5

1.5 - 2.5 1.5 -2.5 2.0 -4.0 1.5 -3.5

1.0 - 2.0 1.0 -2.0 0.75-1.5

0.5 -1.0 0.75 - 1.5 1.0 -2.0

1.5- 3.0 1.75- 3.5 1.75-3.50

Category Growing horses Nursing foal(3 months) Weaning foal (6 months) Yearling foal (12 months) Long yearling (18 months) Two year old (24 months) Mature horses Maintenance Mares, late gestation Mares, early lactation Mares, late lactation Working horses Light work Moderate work Intense work

(NRC, 2007)

Table 1B. Dry matter intake (Indian data)

DMI (% Body Wt)

Category

Forage Maintenance Dry brood mares on all roughage rations b.w.480-540 kg Idle dry brood mares on all roughage ration Dry non-pregnant brood mountain artillery mares (525-535 kg BW) on roughage + cone, ration Dry non-pregnant brood mountain artillery mares (525-535 kg BW) on all roughage ration Dry non- pregnant GSM (330-340 kg) on roughage + cone, ration Dry non- pregnant GSM (330-340 kg BW) all roughage ration Marwari stallions (350 kg BW) Lactation Lactating Mares MABM*( 405 - 475 kg BW) with concentrate and roughage Lactating Mares MABM*( 405 - 475 kg BW) all roughage (BW 460 kg) Lactating mares GSBM**(290-345 kg BW) with roughage+ concentrate ration Lactating mares GSBM**(340 kg BW) with all roughage ration Working Horse Working Horse

{"Concentrate j

Total 1.8-2.0

1.8-2.3

1.77-2.29 1.52

0.55

1.77-2.29 2.07

2.46

2.46 1.18

0.69

1.93

1.87 1.93

2.77-2.89 2.4-1.02

0.8 to 2.4

3.08 -3.38 3.80

3.63-3.76

3.80

041 - 2.70

0.94 3.35

3.58

*MABM-Mountain Artillery Brood Mare, **GSBM-General Service Brood Mare *** Raut, 1988; Rautetal.,1982a,b,1986,1989; Nehra, 2002

3.58

3.0

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF ANIMALS

Energy requirement ! Energy status can be determined by weighing animals regularly, and also by using subjective ‘condition scoring5 system to monitor die status of body condition. Based on body fatness with scores ranging from 1 (very thin) to 9 (very fat), most horses shouldbe maintained at a score of at least 4 and not exceeding 7. I Environmental temperature has a large impact on the energy requirements for maintenance, especially if horses do not have a shelter. The requirement has been provided by NRC (2007) as: For maintenance : DE (Mcal/day) = 1.4 + [0.03 X BW (kg)] I For growth : DE (Mcal/kg BW/day) = 56.5 X’0145 (where, X= age in months) For desired ADG : DE (Meal) for gain = (1.99+ 1.21 X - 0.021X2) x ADG Where, ADG is Average daily gain.

Energy for work It depends not only on the type of work but also on the speed and the terrain over which the work is performed. The NRC (2007) suggested daily DE (Mcal/d ) requirement for different works over and above the

.maintenance as below; 1 Light work Moderate work P Heavy work P Very heavy work P

DE (Mcal/d) DE (Mcal/d) DE (Mcal/d) DE (Mcal/d)

= (0.0333 x BW) x 1.2 = (0.0333 x BW) x 1.4 = (0.0333 xBW) x 1.6 = (0.0333 x BW) x 1.9

Protein requirement [ Protein requirements are usually expressed as grams of CP required per day. Mature horses at maintenance have relatively low protein needs and deficiency is rare with an adequate energy. A mature 500 kg horse needs 660 g CP/day, for maintenance which can be supplied by 8 kg of hay •ontaining 8.25% CP. Young growing horses, lactating mares and mares in bre gestation need a diet with higher protein quantity and quality. Protein quality is an important consideration in growing horses. Lysine is the first feniting amino acid in diets for growing horses, with threonine being the second limiting amino acid. Brood mares need protein for the deposition of ibetal tissues andmilk production. If mare’s milk contains about 2.0% protein amd a 500 kg mare produces 15 kg of milk/day, about 300 g of protein will be secreted in the milk. Since, conversion is not very efficient 1,430 g of dietary CP may be needed.

NUTRIENT REQUIREMENTS OF EQUINE

Mineral requirement Ca and P are of special importance in horses. The development of quality bone is more important in horses than in other livestock species simply because some athletic activity may put more stress on bones. About 35 percent Ca and 16 percent P may be needed in the mineral mixture, and deficiencies or imbalances in dietary Ca and P can result in various bone disorders. High P can impair the absorption of Ca. Hence the concentration of P should not exceed that of Ca. The availability of Ca and P should also be considered. In addition, sufficient amount of vitamin D must be available. Sodium, K and Cl which function as electrolytes are essential for all classes of horses. Most non-working horses obtain enough Na and Cl to meet their needs with their access to a salt block or a loose salt mix. Potassium is usually met by K found inhay and pasture. The needs are greater for working horses, lactating mares and horses that are exposed to high environmental temperatures. Deficiency can reduce the water/feed intake, besides showing some unusual oral behaviour such as licking of stall surfaces.

Other minerals Iodine deficiency and toxicity have been reported in horses, and hence the iodine content of common feeds needs to be considered. Iron (Fe) is usually met by the typical feed ingredients. The Fe deficiency signs are rarely reported. Copper (Cu) level and availability of Cu is very low in many forages, and it is a common practice to formulate grain mixes to contain 20 to 30 mg Cu/kgDM. Forages may also be low in Zinc (Zn) and its deficiency can reduce growth of young horses hence it need to be supplemented. Selenium supplementation is often necessary and done carefully because of its toxicity.

Vitamin requirement Fat-soluble vitamins, Vitamins A andE, are of great practical importance in horse diets. Green pasture/forages can be a good source of both Carotene and Vitamin E, but once a plant is harvested for hay, vitamin E activity can decrease. Vitamin D supplementation is not necessary for horses kept in the open. Limited information is available on horseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dietary needs about water-soluble vitamins but microbes in the hind gut seem to be capable of synthesizing several B vitamins.

Wafer requirement An adequate supply of clean water is important for horses. Water should be made available all the time. The water content of the body is relatively

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