Linseed oil supplementation in diet for horses: Effects on palatability and digestibility

Abstract

Feed palatability and in vivo apparent digestibility of nutrients were compared in horses fed concentrates in which barley was, or not, partially substituted by 8% linseed oil. According to a cross-over design, three geldings and one stallion were fed at near maintenance level hay plus low or high fat diet (50/50). The last days of each 3-months sub-periods, partial faeces collections were performed and concentrate intake rate was measured to estimate the digestibility and the palatability of the diet. The inclusion of linseed oil did not affect the palatability of the diet and increased significantly ( P < 0.05) the apparent digestibility of DM (66.5 vs 64.1%), CF (83.7 vs 57.3%) and NDF (53.0 vs 50.7%) but not of CP and ADF.