Near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS) was used to predict the chemical composition, apparent digestibility and digestible nutrients and energy content of commercial extruded compound foods for dogs. Fifty-six foods of known chemical composition and in vivo apparent digestibility were analysed overall and 51 foods were used to predict gross energy digestibility and digestible energy cont...

Problem statement: There is evidence that the addition of 3% STA-LITE polydextrose to a dry food reduces clinical signs of osteoarthritis in dogs. For the application of polydextrose as functional ingredient of dog foods, information as to its impact on the acceptance of food, feces consistency, fecal odor and digestibility of macronutrients and minerals is required. Approach: A feeding experim...

Meat and bone meal is a valuable protein and mineral source in diets of production animals and contributes to the protein, energy and mineral component of diets. The aim of the present study was to more accurately characterise the apparent ileal amino acid digestibility of meat and bone meals produced in New Zealand and evaluate routine in vitro assays used in practise to measure meat and bone ...

Estimation of the quality of commercial diets is a topic of interest for the majority of dog owners. Recently, in a French consumer association magazine, an evaluation of eight dog commercial dry diets (from super-premium, basic-nutrition, private-label and economy brands) according to several nutritional criteria was published. The aims of the study were: (1) to evaluate the apparent digestibi...

Producing organic fish diets requires that the use of both fishmeal and fish oil (FO) be minimized and replaced by sustainable, organic sources. The purpose of the present study was to replace FO with organic oils and evaluate the effects on feed intake, feed conversion ratio (FCR), daily specific growth rate (SGR) and nutrient digestibility in diets in which fishmeal protein was partly substit...

1. The use of a nylon-bag technique for pig feed digestibility determination was studied. Bags, measuring 25 x 40 mm and containing feed samples, were introduced into the pig gastrointestinal tract through a duodenal cannula, and recovered in the faeces between 23 and 69 h later. The disappearance of organic matter and crude protein (nitrogen x 6.25) from the bags was compared with in vivo appa...

The effects of offering broilers phosphorus-adequate diets containing 10.0 and 11.8 g/kg lysine, without and with 500 FTU/kg exogenous phytase, on growth performance and nutrient utilisation were determined. Each of the four experimental diets was offered to 6 replicates of 10 birds from 7 to 28 days of age. Effects of treatment on performance, apparent metabolisable energy, apparent ileal dige...

Availability of phytate-bound P as influenced by supplemental phytase was studied in eight horses consuming four diets in a 4 x 4 Latin square design experiment. The treatments were a control (containing a low P level, 18.4 g/d) and three high-P diets. These diets contained P as monocalcium phosphate (MCP; 43.7 g/d), myoinositol hexakisphosphate in the form of wheat and rice bran (MIHP; 41.8 g/...

Two experiments with growing pigs were conducted to investigate the effects of two distinct multienzyme preparations on nutrient digestibility, growth performance and blood profiles. In Exp. 1, a total of 96 pigs (29.7±0.69 kg) were utilized in a 42-day performance and digestibility trial using four dietary treatments: CON (control diet), ENDO (control+0.10% Endopower), NSPase1 (control+0.10% N...

The gut microbiota plays an important role in nutrient digestibility in animals. To examine changes in the pig gut microbiota across growth stages and its effects on nutrient digestion, the gut microbiota population in pigs at 28 days (before weaning), and 60, 90, and 150 days of age was assessed by 16S rDNA gene sequencing. The apparent digestibility of crude fiber (CF), neutral detergent fibe...