The following is an edited transcript of Tom Martin's interview with Dr. Kayla Price, poultry technical manager for Alltech Canada. Click below to hear the full interview:

After you read or hear this interview, you may never look at an egg quite the same way again. Dr. Kayla Price is poultry technical manager for Alltech Canada. Price joined Tom Martin from Ontario, Canada, to talk about eggshell quality and why it matters.

Tom:                          For this discussion, we're focusing on the outside of the egg. Let's first go to the basic question: What is eggshell quality? What does that mean?

Kayla:                         I think eggshell quality means different things to different people. And when we focus on the outside of the egg specifically, we’re looking at things like eggshell thickness, what is the eggshell strength, how difficult or how easy is it to actually break that egg. And then, what does that egg look like in terms of dirty spots on it, or anything else to that effect. The external quality is very different than the internal quality. But, for this podcast, we're just focusing on the outside of the egg.

Tom:                          And do the uses of eggs vary according to how they are graded?

Kayla:                         Absolutely. If you look at the grading system — and it's only a little bit different where I'm from in the Canadian grading system versus in the U.S. or even globally — there are some basic commonalities. We’re looking at eggs of different sizes, which can go from small to large, extra-large or jumbo. Most of what you see that comes to the table is going to be that larger size, whereas the other sizes may be beneficial in terms of eggs that come in cartons, so they're already cracked, versus the eggs that would be table eggs. You also have lower-graded eggs that may have a small crack on them or a small dirt spot, but the inside is still usable.

Tom:                          Are there specific strategies for developing quality shells of different sizes?

Kayla:                         In general, the hen is always going to be laying the same part of the egg, whether that egg is small, large or extra-large. So, when we talk about eggshell quality, we’re really talking about it in general. We really want that hen to be getting the nutrients and the management that she needs in order to build the shell of that egg.

                                    That being said, with the hen, she's laying the same amount of shell components whether she's young and laying a small egg or whether she's older and laying a larger egg. So, in that bird that is older or toward the extra-large, that same amount of shell component is going to cover a different amount of space versus that same amount of shell component on a small egg. But again, we can use the same management techniques regardless of the size of that egg, because you're trying to avoid those under-grade eggs, which are your dirty eggs or your cracked eggs, regardless of the size.

Tom:                          Okay. Now, if I’m going after a premium quality egg, what are the essentials that I need to take into consideration?

Kayla:                         When I start thinking of the word “premium,” I'm really looking for an egg that is going to have a good, hard shell to it, so it will not break easily. It won't break when it’s at the farm, when it’s moving to the processing plant and, ultimately, it won’t break when it's in the carton before we break that egg to put in the skillet. We’re looking for that outside eggshell quality just as much as that internal quality, like making sure that the yolk looks good and the egg white looks good.

                                    In terms of the essentials, there are a couple of things to consider. You can start looking at the nutrition of the bird — what goes into making that eggshell just as much as the internal component — and you also have to start thinking about management: the health of that bird, how old is that bird and what needs to be changed depending on the age, the environment and, to a small extent, the genetics. The things that we can change would certainly be nutrition management, health and environment.

Tom:                          At what point in bird's life cycle should producers start thinking about egg development and eggshell quality?

Kayla:                         I think that's a really interesting question because when people start thinking about eggshell quality, the first thing that comes to mind is when the hen actually starts laying that egg, which is about halfway through her full lifespan. If you only start looking at eggshell quality halfway through, then you’re really only capturing half the potential. I think it's really important to start having that conversation when that poulet or hen starts to be placed in her housing system and continue all the way through the growing phase, before she reaches the age of maturity to be producing an egg and then also continuing it through. The idea being that you're setting up the bird for proper body confirmation and skeletal development, which are going to have an impact on the eggshell quality — shell thickness, —  just as much as they impact the size of the egg and how well the bird can lay that egg. So, again, I think it's important to start thinking about things from the very start, as opposed to when that hen starts laying that egg.

Tom:                          Why should calcium receive particular attention?

Kayla:                         Calcium is something that people always go to when they start thinking about eggshells because many people know the eggshell has a good amount of calcium within it. So, this is the first thing that people start thinking about. It is incredibly important because the eggshell itself is about 95 percent calcium carbonate. One of the main components of calcium carbonate is calcium. So, this is something that certainly needs particular attention.

Tom:                          Is the size of the calcium particle important?

Kayla:                         Yes, it is. This is something that people in the industry are taking more notice of. It’s important to talk about the different sizes. So, you can go from a fine calcium particle size to a medium calcium particle size to a coarse calcium particle size.

                                    What’s important is, you have to think of the fine calcium size as giving that quick shot of calcium. The bird can absorb it quite quickly because they don't need to break it down at all. But, if you start moving toward the coarse calcium, this one is good because it takes more time for that bird to break down the calcium and a longer amount of time for that bird to absorb the calcium. This is important as the bird goes into nighttime and starts really putting that calcium onto the shell or laying down that shell, because when it’s nighttime, she’s not eating. This slow release or slow breakdown of coarse calcium really helps out during this time.

                                    It’s not that you only need one or only the other — you need a good combination of both. This changes as the bird gets older. As the bird gets older, you’re tending toward going more and more coarse but still having a certain amount of fine particle size in there. It’s really about knowing your ratios, and that's where the nutritionist can help in terms of how to deal with the fine-to-coarse calcium ratio.

Tom:                          What other nutrition elements such as minerals can impact eggshell quality, and how?

Kayla:                         In terms of other nutrition elements, I think it's important to start thinking about what they are. As I said before, when people think of eggs, they often think of calcium in terms of the actual eggshell, but there are other components to it.

                                    In the eggshell itself, you have an inner as well as an outer shell membrane. That outer shell membrane is the calcium carbonate, and the inner shell membrane is made of many other components. You want to make sure that you're building strength, not just in your outer shell membrane, but also in that inner shell membrane. This is really where other nutritional elements come into play — like minerals, which have a very important role in building that eggshell, somewhat in terms of the outer, but also somewhat in terms of the inner shell membrane.

                                    For example, minerals like copper, which helps a little bit in collagen formation in terms of that eggshell membrane. Similarly, minerals like manganese and zinc, each sort of playing their own different role. Then you can look to minerals like selenium, which supports the reproductive tract itself.

                                    So, these elements, and components like that carbonate component of calcium carbonate, or all other elements that are important for the actual eggshell quality, have very different roles to play within the whole system itself.

Tom:                          How is eggshell quality impacted by gut health? Is there a direct relationship?

Kayla:                         It's more of an indirect relationship. I always say that the bird is ultimately a gut with lots of things attached to it. That can be applied to any bird that we want to talk about because, ultimately, what we're putting into the bird and having that bird eat, we want it to be able to translate into the performance factors as well as health factors.

                                    In this case, with the laying hen, a hen that is going to provide us our table eggs, we want our feed ultimately to translate into table eggs, or more table eggs, at the end of the day. So, if we have a gut that is healthy and that is acting the way we want it to, it means this gut is able to absorb nutrients and translate those nutrients as well as absorb things like calcium, like minerals and, ultimately, translate that so it can be used within that reproductive tract or other places within the body. So, direct, perhaps not, but certainly indirect, and there is a role between them.

Tom:                          What are some of the more common problems being encountered today by egg producers that they're trying to work around or work through?

Kayla:                         There are always many different kinds of problems, and new problems evolve as we keep raising these birds. But I think the one specifically related to the egg itself at the moment would be — that isn’t related to viral issues, which are certainly happening in the industry and are very important and I wouldn't want to ignore — but relating specifically to the egg, would be looking at things like deep cracks in the eggs, especially as people start either thinking or moving toward, or are already using, these alternative housing systems. You want to make sure you have a nice strong egg that is not going to be easily cracked by other things happening within the system just as much as you want to make sure you have a good internal eggshell quality, and you want to make sure that you are able to maintain that food safety aspect so that you're able to provide safe food or safe eggs, ultimately, for the public that is consuming those eggs. So, those would be common problems encountered by egg producers. And, again, the biggest one being those downgraded eggs, which would be your cracks, which would be your dirty eggs.

Tom:                          What does it mean to support the good guys in relation to eggshell quality?

Kayla:                         I think it's a very interesting phrase, “supporting the good guys.” It relates back to this indirect relationship between gut health and eggshell quality. So, ultimately, with gut health, we want to make sure we're maintaining a healthy and well-balanced gut, meaning that in the gut, there can be good microbes or good bacteria. There can be bad bacteria or bad microbes, or those that are potentially bad. Those that are potentially bad are opportunistic. Given the right environment, they will become bad or they will become a problem.

                                    When we relate back to gut health, we want to make sure we have this balance between our good guys, our potentially bad guys and our bad guys. In order to help with gut health and, ultimately, help with how that gut is able to digest and absorb nutrients and then translate this within the body to help with the egg and the eggshell, we want to make sure that we're supporting those beneficial bacteria — or supporting the good guys. The end goal is to maintain good gut health.

Tom:                          How do you manage and sustain that balance?

Kayla:                         There are a couple different factors. It's never just one thing that's going to solve the problem. Everyone always looks for that silver bullet, but when it comes to animals and to biology, a silver bullet is almost an impossible goal. You want to make sure that there is a good combination of management practices. We want to make sure that we're using the best practices in managing the birds, just as much as biosecurity on the farm — which is incredibly important as we start thinking about other viral or bacterial problems that can potentially impact these birds — and the type of nutrition that these birds are receiving.

                                    We want to make sure that they are receiving the best nutrition possible with the best ingredients possible. We want to make sure that those ingredients are free from contaminants like mycotoxins and use minerals in their best possible form that are most available and well-absorbed by the bird. This would be things like organic trace minerals versus what is very commonly used as inorganic trace minerals.

                                 And then also making sure when we talk about management, we want to make sure that there's proper water quality. At the end of the day, we just want to make sure we have a good combination program within the diet and the nutrition, a good feed additive program, to help with that just as much as a good management program and good biosecurity.

Tom:                          Dr. Price, when we began the conversation, I said we were going to focus on the outside of the egg, but I'm wondering, does the internal quality of an egg in some way impact the quality of its shell?

Kayla:                         That’s an interesting question because we're still talking about the egg itself. But when we talk about the internal quality of the egg, we're really talking about aspects like the yolk color, what the yolk looks like or how high that yolk is, just as much as what the egg white looks like and how that egg white spreads. So, in terms of if the internal eggshell quality is going to have a direct effect on how easily or if the shell cracks, possibly not. I think this is more of an indirect relationship where if you're focusing on a good quality internally and externally, ultimately, you're going to have a good-quality egg overall. That’s really the target: making sure we have a good-quality egg that is safe for consumers.

Tom:                          Are there some programs for enhancing eggshell quality that you recommend?

Kayla:                         I think this goes back to that combination program. Again, it's important to look at not only management, biosecurity and nutrition, but also the feed additive program.

                                 We touched a little bit on organic trace minerals and making sure that you're using organic trace minerals that are bioavailable to the bird, supporting good absorption and using other additive components that can help in terms of supporting those good guys or supporting the beneficial bacteria within the gut.

                                    This can mean using components like mannan-enriched fractions, which help selectively remove bad bacteria and allow room for good bacteria to thrive. There are plenty of other feed additive components that can be built into a program to make sure that you have a comprehensive program on the feed additive side. That can be combined with a full program on the nutrition side and with management and biosecurity.

Tom:                          Are there any emerging trends in poultry out there that you're watching that have captured your interest and attention?

Kayla:                         Yes. There are always some new and interesting things. Unfortunately, sometimes it relates to viruses. I think something to watch in the layer world — people have been talking about this virus — is false layer syndrome. We are certainly watching how this can be handled. This is one of many emerging things, along with making sure that we have the right biosecurity to avoid any other possible avian influenza outbreaks, which we haven't seen at all lately. Hopefully, we will not see any in the future. And, of course, making sure that we do what we can to achieve fewer cracks and dirty eggs.

                                 So, there are a couple of different things to watch out for. Another one is the constant concern about food safety and making sure that we're producing safe food for our consumers and being transparent in showing that we’re producing safe food for our consumers. 

                                    Those are a couple of different things that really grab my attention and I will continue to follow.

Tom:                          Dr. Kayla Price is poultry technical manager for Alltech Canada.  And thank you so much for joining us.

The following is an edited transcript of Tom Martin's interview with Dr. Anna Catharina Berge, veterinarian and owner of Berge Veterinary Consulting. Click below to hear the full interview:

Dr. Anna Catharina Berge, owner of Berge Veterinary Consulting BVBA, is a veterinarian with extensive knowledge and skills combining real-life animal husbandry with epidemiological perspectives of animal and public health challenges. Berge joins Tom Martin from Vosselaar, Belgium, to discuss the use of, and alternatives to, antibiotics in pig production.

Tom:                          Let’s begin with pig production. Is antimicrobial use in pig production a real threat?

Catharina:                 All antimicrobial use has the potential to increase antimicrobial resistance in bacteria. Antimicrobials are really vital to humans and animals to protect against bacteria that can cause disease or death. Antimicrobial resistance is threatening the efficacy of these valuable drugs to treat bacterial disease. Even the World Health Organization (WHO) stated in 2014 that the antimicrobial resistance situation is so serious that we are entering a post-antibiotic era in which common infections and minor injuries can kill. This is far from being an apocalyptic fantasy — it’s a very real possibility for the 21^st century. This is not just some journalists writing up some fearful scenario. This was the WHO. So, it is a real threat.

                                 Microbial resistance in pig production is usually a consequence of decades of antibiotic use for disease prophylaxis or growth promotion. The antibiotics administered are not completely absorbed by the animals. If you’re giving an antibiotic to an animal, 30 to 90 percent of those antibiotics are actually excreted through the urine or feces. The antibiotics can reach the source through medical waste, improper drugs or even from dust from pens in barns. These antibiotic residues can also impact the environment and disturb the delicate ecological balance.

                                 Antibiotic-resistant bacteria may also spread into a virus through other mechanisms. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria may also spread to humans through food or through the environment. These antibiotic-resistant bacteria don't just disappear if we stop using antibiotics. They tend to linger. They’re easily created, but they don't tend to disappear quickly. Therefore, we need to do everything to not increase this pool of resistant disease that can spread between different types of bacteria. These resistant diseases can spread from bacteria that are not dangerous and just hanging around in our dust to those bacteria that are really causing disease and even death. If that resistant disease finds bacteria that cause death, then we have a bacterial disease that can’t be treated, and we may die from it. So, resistance is dangerous.

                                 Antibiotic resistance is also an increasing challenge on many pig farms because producers are noticing that good old antibiotics are not working any longer because bacteria become resistant to them. So, they use newer and newer antibiotics. And this newer antibiotic is what the WHO now calls critical antibiotics, those that we want to maintain to treat humans against dangerous disease, so we’re building up resistance to all of these newer antibiotics. The problem is, there are really no new antibiotics created today. The pharmaceutical industry has stopped investing in the research and development of new antibiotic drugs, so we're running out of good drugs to treat bacteria.

Tom:                          You have noted that herd-level immunity, individual pig gut health, systemic immunity, nutritional status, stress levels, and environmental conditions all interact. Why is it important to understand these interactions?

Catharina:                 No animal, organ or cell works in isolation. They all work closely together and, hopefully, in harmony. They all influence each other. So, a pig, furthermore, is living within a very complex production system where you have various factors that can influence its health and productivity. So, unless you take the whole system into account and evaluate this whole system, you don't really know the cost of a disease or why the pig is not doing well. You may think the cause is something other than disease, but it’s really the disease as a consequence of the production system.

                                    Our production systems have not been optimized for what the pig needs and what we want from the pig. We are trying to adapt the pig to our production systems instead of adapting our systems to the pig. This is creating a problem, and one of the solutions has been to medicate with antibiotics.

Tom:                          What challenges do antibiotics pose to the gut health of pigs and livestock?

Catharina:                 Antibiotics can prevent bacteria from reproducing or destroy bacteria. These antibiotics don't differentiate between bacteria that are good for the body and those that are potentially harmful. Some antibiotics work on different threats to the bacteria and some can work against a lot of bacteria types. Others work against just a few.

                                 Many of these antibiotics are used in the feed in pig production for extended periods of time. They have what we call a broad spectrum. They work against a lot of different bacteria. An example of such is tetracycline. These antibiotics can modify the gut flora and reduce diversity of the bacteria in the gut. Therefore, many good bacteria that are helping in many different ways are killed. Some harmful bacterial also are killed, but when the good gut flora is destroyed, then the pathogenic, harmful bacteria have a bigger chance to reproduce and attack the intestinal lining, maybe even invade the body and cause disease. It’s really essential to create a good microbial flora in the pig, and these antibiotics can actually work against them in that way.

Tom:                          Globally, farmers are now showing that it is possible to reduce antimicrobial use without sacrificing performance in health. A key focus has been placed on gut health. Why is gut and intestinal health in pigs so important?

Catharina:                 It’s key to a healthy animal. The gut is responsible for the digestion and absorption of nutrients that are necessary for the whole body to function properly. Through the food ingested, the pig gets energy — macronutrients and micronutrients — to fuel and support the functions of every single cell in the body. So, if the gut is not working, then the pig’s overall health will suffer.

                                  It’s in the gut that the immune system encounters many potential pathogens that are harmful bacteria. These need to be stopped before they start destroying the intestinal linings or invade the body. In the gut, we have the most immune cells of the whole body. This immunity has high requirements for energy and nutrients and must be in top shape for protecting the pig. If you don't have good gut health, then the immune system doesn't have enough energy to do good work.

                                 A healthy gut, furthermore, has a microflora of bacteria that participates in the digestion of many nutrients. These healthy gut microflora also prevent pathogens from growing and invading intestinal cells. This microflora shows a high level of diversity, and every bacteria species influence each other. So, the healthy gut microflora is also critical to a healthy gut.

Tom:                          What do you think will be the best measures to reduce antibiotic use?

Catharina:                 I like the holistic approach. The best measure to decrease antibiotic use is to optimize the production system and nutrition to better meet the pig’s basic needs.

                                 A first step is to create awareness of the consequences of our antibiotic medicating system and motivate people to change. It’s important for producers to understand that reductions in antibiotic use can be made without compromising the health of the animal or their productivity. But it requires an evaluation of the whole production system and nutrition to identify the weaknesses in every single system because every single system we enter is different.

                                 The easiest part to change is nutrition for the pig and making sure that it’s correct for every single stage of its life and that the pig is not exposed to high levels of bacteria or mycotoxins in the feed and the water. Thereafter, we are starting to look at management changes and housing changes to meet the physiological needs of the animals and protect them from disease from inside and outside the unit. That’s also called “biosecurity,” and that's very important. Thereafter, we need to start looking at how we can boost immunity so that the pig is then able to meet all the challenges.

Tom:                          Among the farms you are working with, what percentage of reduction do you think is realistically achievable?

Catharina:                 I would say most farmers across the world are still using a lot of antibiotics prophylactically to prevent disease, or they use it for growth promotion. And I believe that all of that use can stop. There, again, there has to be a motivation of the producer to change. But, in general, if we go onto a farm, a realistic goal we usually can see without too much of a challenge is a 50 percent reduction in antimicrobial use already within the first year.

Tom:                          What are the components that should be included in any antibiotic reduction program?

Catharina:                 There was a philosopher in 1850 that said if you don't record it, you can’t improve it. So, you have to have an antibiotic use registration system and you have to evaluate it. It’s not enough just to jot down a few notes in a book somewhere. You have to evaluate. Then you have to set targets. You have to ask, “How can I achieve this reduction with those targets?” You need to look at the appropriate nutrition for every single stage of production. All the pigs, based upon where they are and how old they are, have different needs. You need to have appropriate nutrition. You also have to have very good, quality feeds — low microbial levels and low mycotoxin levels. Then you need to look at the management level. How are you moving the pigs around the system? Are you weaning them too young? Are you stressing them at different phases by mixing litters, and so on? So, management systems are very important.

                                 Housing systems need to be evaluated. Many times, we have pigs in old systems where it’s really not optimized for holding them, and we may need to consider rebuilding on a long-term scale.

                                 A very important part is biosecurity. Biosecurity is what we call “disease protection.” You need to protect the animals from disease that is found inside the uterus. That’s called “internal biosecurity.” You also need to protect the pigs from diseases that are not on the farm currently, but could be introduced by animals, vehicles and people. That’s called “external biosecurity,” and that's very important.

                                  You also need to be able to correctly diagnose and treat the clinical diseases in the best way. People don’t always understand what they're seeing and how it should be best treated.

                                 And of course, we have the alternatives to antibiotics that are valuable tools to support health and productivity. We have products that can support microflora in the gut and optimize the strength of the gut lining such as Bio-Mos® and Actigen®.

                                 We have alternatives to boost immunity. Vaccines, for example, are vital to protect the pigs against many diseases. Organic minerals are important to boost the immune system and help the immune system work optimally. So, all of those components are appropriate and are very important to consider in a program.

Tom:                          You have suggested that the goal to reduce antibiotic use should be rephrased to a goal to produce healthy production systems. How do producers look at this challenge as an opportunity instead of a threat?

Catharina:                 Well, I think for that exact reason: Health is not a threat. It’s something we all strive for, whether in our bodies, a healthy business, healthy ecosystem or healthy planet. And producers are realizing more and more that diseases are costly. Furthermore, there is no joy in working with sick animals. Honestly, I have yet to meet a pig producer that tells me that he or she wants to use antibiotics. It’s rather that they believe it's necessary to prevent disease. When we start showing that we can remove the antibiotics without suffering productivity losses or increased diseases, then they start seeing the possibility of moving toward a more sustainable production.

Tom:                          Can you expand on the practical measures a pig operation could implement to develop a healthy production system?

Catharina:                 I would recommend any pig producer that wants to develop a healthy production system seek out a team of experts: consultants, nutritionists and veterinarians who can evaluate the whole system. That is what we call a “whole herd audit.” This audit usually takes at least a day. Based upon this initial audit, there will be various points to address, whether in housing, management, nutrition or disease treatment. You start setting up the concrete plan of what major issues to address and what targets to achieve.

                                  Everyone involved in production, as well as nutritionists and veterinarians, needs to be involved in an antimicrobial reduction plan. Once you’ve set up this plan and you start implementing, it's really important that you have a very good follow-up. Therefore, you should have regular audits to monitor the progress, create accountability for effort and set up new achievable targets as necessary. Alltech has actually developed such a holistic antimicrobial reduction audit.

Tom:                          What is the future of antibiotic use in the pig industry?

Catharina:                 I hope that the pig industry will move toward reducing antibiotics very quickly so that the consumers are not forcing them to completely ban all antibiotics. The future of antibiotic use, as I see it, is that antibiotics will be available for individual treatment of sick pigs or serve a metaphylactic use in the exceptional cases. But all prophylaxis or regular continual use such as growth promotion is stopped.

Tom:                          In the past couple of years, we've seen some significant increases in the presence of mycotoxins in haylage, barlage and silage. Why are mycotoxins important to consider when we're talking about antibiotic reduction?

Catharina:                 Mycotoxins are produced in various unfavorable conditions. As you mentioned, we see them more and more emergent in all our feed sources. They’re very toxic compounds, and they can impact both immunity and health. There are various types of mycotoxins present in most feeds in various levels. We have seen in audits of many pig producers that an underlying reason for poor health and productivity is a high level of mycotoxin exposure.

Tom:                          What kind of effects do mycotoxins have on pigs?

Catharina:                 That is one of the problems — that people don't realize that they have a mycotoxin challenge in their production because the signs are very subtle and diffused. There are various symptoms that the producer does not recognize. Some of these symptoms are, for example, poor feed efficiency, suboptimal growth, digestive distress, various disease problems and poor reproductive performance. Mycotoxins have strong immune suppressors, and that’s one of the reasons why we see more and more disease and why the pigs are susceptible to disease.

                                 All of these mycotoxins — there are many — have different modes of action. But there’s seldom just one mycotoxin present in the feed. There’s usually multiple. When they’re working together, sometimes they can have an additive effect, but sometimes they will have a multiplicative effect. The gut and immune system are first to encounter the mycotoxins once ingested. We have talked about the importance of gut health and antimicrobial reduction audits and programs. It’s essential to address this risk as an aspect of the reduction program. We have always seen in our antimicrobial reduction audits that when we go in and address these mycotoxin challenges and feed through the inclusion of a good broad-spectrum mycotoxin binder such as Mycosorb®, then we see improved productivity.

Tom:                          What consumer demands are driving significant changes in the industry?

Catharina:                 Consumers have high demands on the industry. Today’s consumers want food from animals from a sustainable, animal-friendly system. They also want food from animals that have not been medicated with antibiotics. We have seen that consumers are actually willing to pay a higher price for meat produced without antibiotics.

                                  Animal welfare is another area that has a very high importance for consumers. Measures such as tail docking and castration are increasingly questioned. Since these interventions are often coupled with an antibiotic injection, systems where castration and tail docking are not necessary will have reduced antimicrobial use. Tail docking has been performed to reduce the incidence of tail biting in group-housed pigs. If the animal environment is improved, it is possible to rear pigs with their tails intact. That is the case in Sweden, where tail docking is banned.

                                  An improved group housing system will reduce antimicrobial use in growing pigs. Another area is the group housing for gestating sows, so they don’t stand locked up in small crates all their life. This is also highly desirable by consumers. This also optimizes the health and strength of these sows, and they can rear healthier piglets. The animal welfare requests of consumers contribute to healthy animals that do not need antibiotics. 

Tom:                          Dr. Cat Berge of Berge Veterinary Consulting BVBA in Vosselaar, Belgium. Thank you so much for joining us.

Have a question or comment?

Derek Wawack, Alltech On-Farm Support forage specialist, has been a part of the company for over seven years and visits nearly 500 farms annually. Drawing from this experience, he explains the key things he looks for when inspecting a silage pile, and the steps farmers can take to avoid costly issues.

Safety

When I go on-farm for a bunker audit, the first thing I do is inspect the silage pile for any safety concerns. Large cracks, often found when there are two crops butted together, can come down, causing an avalanche or collapse. Are there overhangs? Tires falling down? Bales that could tip over? Always exercise extreme caution when around large piles.

Mold

Molds like Penicillium, Aspergillus and Fusarium are often found in corn silage and are common mycotoxin producers.

Colorations can help us identify molds, especially in corn silage. White-to-red/pinkish molds are Fusarium, or field-borne, molds. Blue-green molds are typically Penicillium, which is more often storage-related but can occur in the field under certain weather conditions. Aspergillus, which is very common in dry climates, is olive green to yellow in color.

When I observe large mold lines, I do not touch, inhale, grab or sample those areas. Many molds cause health issues to both animals and humans, and they can also produce a fair number of different mycotoxins.

In humans and animals, Penicillium mold alone can cause dermal irritation as well as gut health complications if ingested. Mycotoxins can also cause performance and reproductive problems.

Facing

Increased surface area permits more oxygen to penetrate the feed, triggering mold and yeast growth, which increases heating. We look for a smooth face, with little loose material at the base and edges. The proper facing and feed out equipment can help reduce shrinkage. A shaver provides a very smooth and clean face and can help reduce losses with proper management. Rakes or claws will cause tine marks, increasing surface area, but they do limit oxygen penetration during facing. Finally, bucket facing leads to a lot of oxygen penetration due to lifting the pile face.

Infrared inspection

Along with evaluating facing techniques, we utilize infrared cameras for hot spot detection on the piles. These cameras are used to look for areas of aerobic instability that could be due to yeast, mold, bacteria or even the management of facing practices. Shavers tend to not allow oxygen very deep into piles. Rakes and buckets can allow oxygen into the piles, resulting in quicker spoilage.

Other issues we see on infrared cameras are yeasts. Yeasts have a tendency to show up as a large bubble on the images and, being water soluble, will drain down the pile. Yeast can contaminate the top and then drain down through the face. In contrast, molds have a tendency to grow in a linear or spherical fashion. This means molds will stay more toward the top of the pile and will develop in lines.

Plastic

We also look at how well the plastic has been managed. Has it been pulled back too far? How many sheets are being used? Are the tires touching? Are the sides covered well and is the plastic pulled out with sand around the edges if it’s a drive-over pile? Or is it a bunker in which the plastic has been, at the very least, run down the walls and double overlaid?

Due to the curvature of the pile surface area, taking proper precautions and good management of the top of the pile can result in reducing up to a third of spoilage and oxygen penetration:

• Tires: You don’t want to see large spaces between tires; in fact, the tires should nearly be touching. For ease of weight and placement, side walls work the best and reduce water-holding capacity, which can encourage bugs and pathogens.
• Plastic: One black and white sheet with an oxygen barrier film, or two layers of black and white plastic, will protect the top of the forage from the elements and discourage animals from penetrating your feed.
• Cutting: Depending on height, conditions and other safety factors, try to keep the plastic cut 6 inches to 1 foot from the face edge. Two to three feet is common, but air, rain and other weather conditions can truly damage your forage when it is exposed to the elements.
• Treatment: Most spoilage occurs at the top of the pile, where the packing density isn’t as high. A mold inhibitor can help counter the impact of increased oxygen flow in this area.

Up to 60 percent of the average farm’s expenses are feed-related. By increasing the quality of your forage and reducing shrinkage, considerable cost savings can be achieved without even leaving the farm. To learn more about proper forage management, watch Pat Crowley, Alltech’s forage specialist, explain the “4 unwritten rules for great silage.”

In a recent webinar, Dr. Shelby Roberts, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Alltech Center for Animal Nutrigenomics and Applied Animal Nutrition, used her knowledge of ruminant health and immunology to take a closer look at calf gut health and the importance of nutrition during the first weeks of the calf’s life. Here are a few points to keep in mind in the midst of spring calving.

1. The importance of colostrum for the calf’s immune system

Colostrum is the mother’s first milk and the calf’s first source of immunity and nutrients. Antibodies from colostrum protect calves until their immune systems are fully functional. However, the first couple weeks after birth can be a period of elevated risk as the maternal antibodies disappear and the calf’s immunity is maturing, as shown in the diagram.

2. The balancing act between pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria

Good bacteria (e.g., lactobacilli, bifidobacteria) are constantly fighting to keep the pathogenic bacteria (e.g., E. coli, Salmonella) in check, but the immune system is also fighting the pathogenic bacteria. The immune system and the good bacteria work together to keep the cow healthy and to suppress the pathogenic bacteria. When antibiotics are used, this clears out the pathogenic bacteria AND the good bacteria. While recolonizing the gut, the cow is at risk for pathogenic bacteria recolonizing at a quicker rate than the good bacteria, leaving the immune system as the last and only line of defense when antibiotics are removed.

3. The new research behind Bio-Mos® is here

Since the 1980s, Alltech has been conducting studies on its signature product, Bio-Mos. The calf research on Bio-Mos has shown the following results:

• Maintenance of gastrointestinal health
• Alteration of intestinal microbial populations
• Stimulation of immune activity
• Stimulation of the natural defenses of the animal 

When it comes to receiving diets, Bio-Mos has also been tested. In a study conducted in a commercial feedlot in Southern Alberta in Canada, 902 mixed-breed, newly weaned beef cattle were split into two groups, one fed a control and one supplemented with Bio-Mos. Cattle fed Bio-Mos showed improved average daily gain and maintained a healthy immune response. 

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When you hear the word “nutrigenomics,” your first reaction may be “What in the world is that?” Nutrigenomics is an up-and-coming research field that aims to understand how nutrition can influence an animal’s genome and what that means for animal health and production. It isn’t genetic engineering or modification, but rather a way of measuring changes in the activity of genes that result from changes in an animal’s diet. This field of research opens many doors that were previously closed in classic animal nutrition and allows us to better understand how “you are what you eat,” or rather, your chickens are what you feed them.

What is nutrigenomics?

Before we can talk about nutrigenomics, let’s do a quick review of molecular biology. Each animal has what’s called a genome that contains all of the genetic material, or DNA, of an animal and provides the basic blueprint for life. These carefully drawn out plans provide the blueprint for that animal’s life. However, outside influences, such as nutrition, can have a strong impact on the expression of this genetic information, or essentially how that blueprint is read.

Over the last decade, genomes have begun to be sequenced. This means that we know the approximate makeup of an animal’s entire genome. Identifying the genome sequences opened the door for cutting-edge research approaches to understand the molecular mechanisms behind everyday life. Even more importantly, we can now use genomic technologies to understand how each of the genes in that genomic sequence responds to outside influences and how this relates to the health and disease of an animal. The genomic sequence is very stable, so changes in function and activity come from up-regulating (“turning on”) or down-regulating (“turning off”) individual genes to produce (or decrease) products called transcripts in response to a stimulus like nutrition.  These transcripts code for the proteins that make up structures and functions in the cells, so the result is that changes occur in physiological processes like energy production or immune response.

Nutrigenomics is the field of research we use to study these changes in gene activities that occur because of changes in the animal’s diet. This information can help us better understand how nutrition influences animal health and production by giving us insights into what is going on within the cell in response to changes in the diet. We can measure the response in animal tissue using a technology called DNA microarrays. These tools are the basis of nutrigenomics studies and allow researchers to profile the activity of all the genes on a genome at once. The information gathered from nutrigenomics studies can provide us with a better understanding of nutrition by giving us clues to how nutrients work, why different forms of nutrients have different effects and how such nutrients can be optimized for health and production.

How can we use nutrigenomics to further poultry nutrition?

Current research can paint us a picture of how nutrigenomics is being applied to poultry nutrition. For example, recent work at Alltech has helped decipher why different forms of nutrients in the diet, such as Bioplex® organic minerals versus inorganic forms of minerals, can have very different effects on animal health. Before nutrigenomics, analyses like animal growth and tissue nutrient content gave us only part of the picture. But now, we can understand why changes occur.

Mineral matters

We know that Bioplex minerals support increased tissue levels. Through nutrigenomics, we identified changes in important transport proteins in the intestine that lead to increased mineral uptake into tissues when Bioplex zinc is used in poultry diets. In a similar fashion, we used nutrigenomics to understand why Sel-Plex® has a greater effect on reproduction than inorganic selenium. Traditional poultry nutrition studies were only able to reach the conclusion that it was due to selenium’s role in antioxidant defenses. However, nutrigenomics data confirmed this and, more importantly, indicated that selenium in the form of Sel-Plex could alter genes involved in energy production and reproductive signaling in the oviduct. In males, it made a clear impact on genes involved in tissue structure and function.

Early birds

Another area in which nutrigenomics is leading to a new understanding of the importance of nutrition is nutritional programming. This concept is the idea that nutrition, especially early in life, can have lasting imprints on an animal’s entire life. By understanding the gene expression patterns that are targeted by early life nutrition, we can begin to determine how this programming occurs and use it to our advantage in poultry production. For example, nutrigenomics studies have shown that changing the trace mineral content in the post-hatch diet can have long-term effects on genes in the gastrointestinal tract that are important for nutrient transport and for intestinal tissue structure. These genes remain changed in the adult bird weeks after the post-hatch period.

In the future, the information that nutrigenomics provides us could change the way we feed birds and make poultry nutrition a more precise field. Molecular findings can add to our understanding of how nutrition influences animal production and health and how we can use nutrition to get the best out of our animals. Nutrigenomics provides a way to know preciously what nutrients, timing of nutrients or combinations of nutrients are optimal. Through this information, we can not only streamline nutrition, but improve performance, efficiency and health.

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Trace minerals are essential to maintaining health and productivity in livestock animals. Traditionally, trace minerals were fed based on the minimum level required to overcome a deficiency symptom and not necessarily to promote productivity. Feeding adequate amounts and sources of trace minerals is essential to optimize production, health and feed costs and to minimize effects on the environment.

The growing uncertainties associated with trace mineral requirements and supply puts nutritionists in the dilemma of balancing the costs of either underfeeding or overfeeding trace minerals. A deficiency will impair health in dairy cows, leading to problems such as retained placenta and mastitis, and can decrease reproduction and lactation performance. On the other hand, excess supply will inflate feed costs and increase the risk of environmental pollution and toxicity, and it may also result in unwanted antagonistic interactions among minerals, leading to poor absorption.

Dietary trace minerals are supplied from feedstuffs and mineral supplements. The National Research Council (NRC) requirements are based on both sources of trace minerals, accounting for their absorption coefficients. Feed trace minerals usually have lower absorption coefficients compared with supplements. Furthermore, mineral supplements differ in their bioavailability. The NRC (2001) requirements appear to be adequate for most minerals, except for manganese and cobalt, for which new data suggests higher concentrations.

Inorganic minerals generally have lower bioavailability compared with organic minerals. Inorganic minerals become free in the rumen and can interact with other feed components. They can also bind to other minerals and pass through the gastrointestinal tract unabsorbed. Inorganic minerals may also include a source of contaminants, such as the heavy metals cadmium and lead. The presence of inorganic trace minerals in premix feeds can negatively affect the stability of enzymes and vitamins. To circumvent these bioavailability and absorption uncertainties, inorganic minerals are often supplemented at multiples of NRC requirements, which may further reduce their absorption and may reduce animal health and performance.

The Total Replacement Technology™ (TRT) mineral program at Alltech offers trace minerals (Bioplex®, Sel-Plex®) to provide highly available and traceable sources of minerals that support the animal’s requirements.

Most lactation diets will supply adequate to excessive amounts of iron, while other trace minerals will be supplied at amounts below NRC requirements, ranging from 40 percent to 85 percent. The TRT program should accommodate most situations but may need to be adjusted for specific situations in which extreme dietary concentrations are found. Regular assessment of trace mineral levels in forages is critical to building a more efficient mineral nutrition program.

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By Brian Springer, CCA

Sixty percent of a dairy cow’s diet is forage. With so much of the diet dependent on the nutrients a cow receives from forage, it is important to make sure the crop reaches its nutrient and energy potential. Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, the major components of fertilizer, are essential for soil nutrient content and are controlled by pH. We test and fertilize for these nutrients regularly, and they are often the first place we look for a solution if a problem arises in crop health.

However, critical elements — like calcium, magnesium, and sulfur — are often seen as secondary in importance in terms of soil content, and, in turn, plant health. For example, with current industry practices, recent findings show that sulfur deficiency of 10 to 20 pounds per acre is common in much of the United States. Of these elements, sulfur in particular might be the missing piece in your forage puzzle as it increases nutrient quality and aids in balancing the microflora in the rumen.

What is sulfur?  

Sulfur is one of the 17 elements essential to crop production. This is because, according to the International Plant Nutrition Institute, plants almost exclusively use sulfate as their primary source of nutrition. It can be found in high levels in salt domes and volcanic deposits, typically in its elemental form. But it is also present in almost all soil types in smaller quantities.

Plants receive sulfur through two primary mediums:

• Soil: The sulfur found in soil is typically organic sulfate that has been converted from elemental sulfur by soil bacteria. Ninety-five percent of plant sulfur uptake is in the organic form of sulfate.

• Air: Inorganic sulfur dioxide is often absorbed through the leaves and stoma.  

What role does sulfur play in forage plant and dairy cow processes?

Required by both plants and animals, sulfur appears in every living cell and is essential for the synthesis of certain amino acids and proteins.

A deficiency of sulfur in the soil can lead to deficiencies in the cow. Nutritionists recommend 0.2 percent of sulfur or sulfate in the diet of cattle, and ensuring your forage has enough sulfur is the easiest and most cost-effective way to manage sulfur requirements for the ration. Most of the dietary sulfur required by the cow is actually utilized by the rumen microbes for amino acid production. By feeding the microbes, the cow can produce amino acids, enzymes and proteins that then contribute to cow health, milk production and quality.

Not only will the sulfate aid the cow, but plants use sulfate for chlorophyll formation, which contributes to higher sugar content and nutrients, resulting in greener, fuller foliage.

What does our current sulfur landscape look like?

In recent years, there has been a decrease in soil sulfur content as well as an increased demand on the soil for higher crop yields, and the fact that many fertilizers contain little to no sulfur is the primary reason for our current depletion of sulfur in the top soil. Secondary causes include erosion and mineralization.

How to recognize a sulfur deficiency

Since high-yielding crops often don’t receive adequate amounts of sulfur or receive it at inopportune times, it is important to be able to recognize a sulfur deficiency. Thankfully, if presented in its organic form, sulfate can quickly be absorbed in two to three days, which helps avoid leaching as you fertilize. If you notice some of the following signs of sulfate deficiency, it is recommended to provide a sulfur treatment two to four days before cutting forage to increase chlorophyll, resulting in a fuller, energy-rich harvest.  This short-term solution can be done by applying biostimulant products, as a sulfur application would need to take place much earlier in order to keep the plant healthy and growing well. Signs of sulfur deficiency include:

• Yellowing of young growth; yellowing of old growth indicates a nitrogen shortage.

• Curling of young leaves.

• Diminished foliage.

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Photo is provided courtesy of the International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI).

Although sulfur is present in the soil, it is often below recommended standards. Furthermore, in its inorganic sulfur state, it cannot be properly taken up by the plant until it has been converted to organic sulfate. By checking your forage crop for sulfur deficiency and treating as needed, you can increase the sugar and nutrient quality of your forage and provide sulfur to your herd to support rumen microflora health.

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Farmed fish species are generally exposed to a huge variety of microorganisms that inhabit the water column within aquaculture systems. This is especially true for fish farmed in marine settings, as these species must drink large volumes of the surrounding water to maintain an osmotic balance with their environment. Such interactions between environmental microbes and those of the gastrointestinal system of fish can potentially lead to disturbances of the commensal gut microflora, which can consequently affect the normal functioning of a healthy digestive system.

Support the good

An increased level of positive commensal bacteria in the gut can enhance the innate immunity of fish, improve performance and help to support the efficient functioning of the gastrointestinal system.

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Figure 1. Illustration of microvilli

Extensive peer-reviewed research has shown that mannan-oligosaccharides (MOS), derived from specific yeast strains, can have a positive impact on the overall gut health of fish. Through feeding these yeast fractions, both the length and density of villi and microvilli can be increased in the gut. This translates to a larger gut surface area and supports enhanced uptake and absorption of nutrients delivered within the feed.

In addition, MOS serve to fortify the epithelial layer of the intestine, thereby enhancing mucus production, which prevents opportunistic bacteria from attaching themselves to the surface of gut enterocytes. As a result, these microbes are readily removed from the fish intestine.

Tackle the bad

Promoting a stronger mucus layer and longer microvilli is a giant leap forward in gut health, but these benefits alone are not sufficient to guarantee optimal functionality within the intestinal tract. Alltech’s Bio-Mos^® aids in normalizing gut microflora. 

Bacteria attach to the epithelial cells in the gut via fimbriae that recognize certain sugars on the cell exterior. Many pathogenic bacteria attach via specific type 1 fimbriae, which recognize mannose as a surface receptor, depicted in the illustration below.

Figure 2. Illustration of bacterium attaching to Bio-Mos^® instead of the gut surface

The Alltech^® Gut Health Management program is based on the unique “Seed, Feed and Weed” principle developed by Dr. Steve Collett at the University of Georgia, in which we seed the gut with favorable microflora and then feed the beneficial resident bacteria, maintaining a natural intestinal environment. Through these interconnected processes, we can subsequently weed out potentially unfavorable microorganisms and strengthen the immune defense system of farmed fish.

Avoid the ugly

In modern aquaculture, ensuring optimal gut health is more vital than ever before. We want to avoid ugly situations and produce farmed fish as responsibly as possible, which means the maintenance of optimal water quality parameters is of paramount importance. Every farmer continuously strives to improve the performance of their livestock, and this also applies to terrestrial farms. Fish farmers focus predominately on two key aspects to maintain productivity: the reduction of feed costs and the improvement of growth performance rates.

By implementing our gut health management program in combination with our dedicated on-farm support, we can achieve:

1. Enhanced growth performance, which drives a shorter production cycle.
2. Optimal immune defense, which means reduced treatments and veterinary costs.
3. Strong, robust fish with an optimal fillet quality that satisfies consumer demands.
4. Highly efficient, responsible and sustainable aquaculture practices.

Interested in having our experts help you to achieve optimal gut health in your farmed fish? Email aquasolutions@alltech.com today to request an on-farm assessment. Irrespective of your target species and farming environment, we are here to help.

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Pig producers are well aware that enhanced gut health is the driving force behind profitability. Mortality, feed efficiency, growth and health costs are just a few of the many areas influenced by achieving optimal health. Positive gut health can have long-lasting effects on animal performance, herd health and producer returns.

In this webinar, Dr. Stewart Galloway, senior swine nutritionist at Hubbard Feeds, discussed the lifetime impacts of gut health strategies implemented early in the life of the pig. According to Galloway, gut health is a critical success factor that affects things such as pig value — as a source of profit and as a source of protein globally — sow productivity, animal welfare and the responsible use of antibiotics.

Gut health is essential for building a foundation for performance and profitability in pig production. Healthy pigs will eat and produce more efficiently, ensuring they are performing at their maximum potential.

What is the ideal gut?

The goal is to help generate a fully developed gastrointestinal system in which water, pH and beneficial bacteria are balanced and maintained while pathogens and toxins are kept out.

So, how you can tell if a pig’s gut is healthy? To start, observe pig activity. Are the pigs alert and moving around? Are they eating? Are they displaying normal behavior? Another indicator is diarrhea. Diarrhea is a telltale sign that something is not right with the pig’s gut, so it is important to keep an eye out for pigs that have this symptom. Other indicators of a healthy gut include lower morbidity and fewer treated pigs as well as growth and feed efficiency.

However, it is important to remember that many factors can disrupt good gut health. For example, weaning is the biggest stressor put on a pig. Poor gut health strategies implemented at this stage of life will negatively impact the pig throughout its lifecycle. Dietary changes, pathogens and mixing, and crowding stress are some of the other factors that negatively affect gut integrity.

Tips for good gut health

Galloway suggests a comprehensive program approach by implementing these three strategies for good gut health:

1. Decrease gut inflammation

2. Decrease pathogens

3. Decrease water loss

When a gut is inflamed, several problems arise: nutrients are not properly absorbed; there is an increase in antigens, leading to further inflammation; pathogens and toxins move right through the cells, causing inflammation inside the cell; and there is water loss and water movement out of the cells into the gut, leading to dehydration and diarrhea.

To combat inflammation and in turn decrease pathogens and water loss, producers should do a few critical things. First, identify the pig’s stressors and decrease stress. Second, optimize ingredient selection and combination, such as proteins and amino acids, as well as the use of carbohydrates. Third, use enzymes to draw more nutrients from the feed, making them more available for absorption by the pig for its own use and less available for the pathogens to use as a food source later on in the gut.

Achieving and maintaining a healthy gut is a continuous process and requires a complete approach to gut health, not just a one-time or quick fix. An animal truly never gets over a good or bad start. Make gut health a priority and get your pigs on track for lifelong success.

To receive a recording of the webinar and learn more about Galloway’s strategies for good gut health, click the button below:

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Horses exude beauty and strength, and yet, large and robust as they appear to be, we equestrians know that horses are also some of the world’s most fragile and finicky creatures. Along with their penchant for finding bizarre ways to inflict bodily harm upon themselves, they are often prone to internal ailments, especially involving their digestive systems. Why is this?

Different by design

Horses are non-ruminant, monogastric (single-stomached) herbivores. The digestion of the horse is notable for several reasons. They are perhaps most well-known for their inability to vomit. But, have you ever thought much about how their digestive tract works?

When a horse eats, portions of the feed are first digested enzymatically in the foregut. Afterward, microbial fermentation of other nutrients, like cellulose, occurs in the hindgut. The equine digestive system is truly unique because the first section resembles that of other monogastrics, like humans, but the second section is more akin to that of a ruminant species, like cattle.

What is the hindgut, and what happens there?

The equine hindgut consists of the cecum, large colon, small colon and rectum. It contains billions of symbiotic bacteria, protozoa and fungi, which all help to break down and absorb fiber. Like all species, horses do not possess enzymes capable of digesting fiber, so they rely on these microbes to process fiber for useful nutrient absorption.

What if the hindgut malfunctions?

When you consider that the majority of your horse’s diet (at least 50–60%) should be made up of forage, it makes one realize just how much work the hindgut has cut out for it. So, if something is awry, it can spell big trouble in the form of hindgut acidosis (when lower pH levels lead to increased acidity), which often leads to colonic ulcers, poor body condition, colic or laminitis.

So, what’s a horse person to do?

Keeping the hindgut healthy starts with keeping your horse’s overall nutrition in order. Below are some easy rules of thumb to keep in mind when feeding your equine partner(s).

1. Feed good-quality hay.

2. Don’t let your horse go on an empty stomach. Feed smaller, more frequent meals throughout the day or consider offering free-choice hay.

3. Remember that less is usually more when it comes to grain. Grain is often high in sugar and starch, which is difficult for the hindgut to digest. This can have an adverse effect on pH and bacteria levels (see acidosis mentioned above).

4. Add healthy fats in the form of vegetable, corn, flax or another type of palatable, equine-friendly oil.

Remember also that movement is hugely beneficial for gut motility, so be sure to give horses ample turnout time and exercise. And, last but certainly not least, don’t undervalue the importance of fresh, clean, temperate water — hydration plays a key role in keeping the horse’s overall digestive system functioning at its best.

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