PSVII-17 Effects of steaming or soaking hay on acute glycemic response in Standardbred racehorses. (7th December 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Owens, T; Gargano, V; Mansilla, W; Merkies, K; Shoveller, A
• Is Part Of: Journal of animal science. Volume 96(2018)Supplement 3
• Page Start: 56
• Page End: 56
• Publication Date: 2018-12-07
• Subjects: racehorse -- steamed hay -- glycemic response; Livestock -- Periodicals; Livestock; Electronic journals; Periodicals; 636.005
• DOI: 10.1093/jas/sky404.125
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0021-8812

Abstract

Abstract: Soaking or steaming hay are processes which are both known to alter hay nutrient content, including non-structural carbohydrates (NSC). Since high NSC content in hay has been identified as a risk factor for development of some insulin-related disorders in horses, this study sought to examine acute glycemic response in horses after being fed dry hay, hay soaked overnight, or hay steamed for 1 hour and left to cool overnight. In a 3 x 3 Latin square design, blood glucose was measured every 30 min from nine Standardbred racehorses (mean ± s.d. bwt, 472 ± 41.3 kg; 4 geldings, 1 colt, 4 mares; 1.5 – 9 years of age) for six hours following a meal of 0.5% BW of treatment hay. Nutrient analyses revealed that soaked, but not steamed hay, had significantly lower concentrations of NSC, water-soluble carbohydrates (WSC), and ethanol soluble carbohydrates (ESC) in contrast to the same dry hay (P<0.0001). Peak glucose was higher in horses fed dry hay compared to those fed steamed (P=0.0617), however, soaked did not differ from either dry or steamed hays. This indicates that steaming hay does have an influence on acute glycemic response in horses, however the cause of this effect is unknown as steaming hay did not decrease NSC, WSC, or ESC. Future research should investigate how insulinemic response is affected by providing steamed or soaked hay, and how both insulin and glucose are affected by long term ingestion of these processed hays.