Dietary starch is required for a dry, extruded kibble; the most common diet type for domesticated felines in North America. However, the amount and source of dietary starch may affect digestibility and metabolism of other macronutrients. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effects of 3 commercial cat diets on in vivo and in vitro energy and macronutrient digestibility, and to anal...

Measures of amino acid (AA) digestibility are used widely to estimate bioavailability of AA in feed and food ingredients for monogastric animals. In principle, the digestibility assay is simpler than in vivo assessments of AA bioavailability and allows for simultaneous estimation of the bioavailability of all AA in an experimental diet. It is generally assumed that absorption of intact AA in th...

Corn silage is a major forage crop in Idaho, supporting its dairy industry. Corn silage produces more digestible energy per acre than other forages. Nutritionally, corn silage is palatable when ensiled properly, and high in energy because it typically contains 50% corn grain. Digestibility of starch declines as the kernel matures. Effective roller processing of corn silage ensures that most of ...

The aim of the present study was to assess whether near infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS) and regression equations are the practical and accurate approach of nutritional assessment of common feedstuffs. Therefore two experiments were conducted to study the effect of amino acid determination methods on broiler performance. In experiment I, two hundred thirty four male Ross broiler chicks ...

The objectives were to compare the effect of exogenous fibrolytic enzyme (Biocellulase A20) or anhydrous ammonia (4% DM) treatment on the nutritive value, voluntary intake, and digestion kinetics of bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon cultivar Coastal) hay harvested after 2 maturities (5- and 13-wk regrowths). Six individually housed, ruminally cannulated Brangus steers (BW 325 ± 10 kg) were used in...

Plant saponins have been used as additives to mitigate methane emissions originated from enteric fermentation of ruminant animals. Most of the studies however were based on in vitro techniques, and only limited studies were directly conducted on the animals. Inconsistencies of saponin effects on methane emissions have been previously observed, which might be related to their levels in rations. ...