Digestion in Horse

I. General Anatomy of the Equine Digestive System

A. Mouth
1. Upper and lower incisors for mastication
2. Mobile lip – organ of prehension
3. Salivary gland
a. Parotid
b. Sublingual
c. Submaxillary
d. No enzymes present – for lubrication of food
B. Esophagus
1. One-way peristaltic movement (horse do not vomit)
2. Strong cardiac sphincter
C. Stomach
1. Small in relation to total tract
2. Not as muscular as in other species
3. Tends to lead to greater digestive disturbances
4. Should be fed in small meals but frequent, several times per day
5. HCI, pepsin, mucin
D. Small intestine
1. Much the same as in other species
a. Duodenum
b. Jejunum
c. Ileum
2. Pancreatic secretion, brush border secretion
3. No gall bladder
a. Continuous secretion of bile from liver into small intestine
E. Large intestine
1. Cecum
2. Large colon
3. Small colon
4. Rectum
5. Microbes inhabit Cecum and Large Colon
-Acetate
-Propionate
-Butyrate
II. Digestion
A. Carbohydrates
1. Soluble – wheat, oats, barley
a. Digestion in SI – amylase, Disaccharides
2. Fibrous – cellulose
a. LI – microbial fermentation
b. VFA produced, absorbed, utilized as energy
c. Less efficient than ruminant due to faster passage rate
B. Fats
1. No gall bladder, constant excretion of bile
2. Digested and absorbed in the SI
C. Proteins
1. Digested in stomach and SI
2. Microbial protein produced in hindgut
a. Cannot be digested or absorbed
D. Vitamins
III. Consideration
A. Colic
-potentially fatal syndrome, manifested by mild to severe abdominal pain and depression
-primary causes gut compaction and/or dehydration
a. Too much or too rapid grain consumption
b. Stoppage of intestinal flow
-other causes: parasites, gas production, and improper husbandry
-symptoms: pawing, kicking at belly, abnormal postures (tuck in), sweating, recumbency if severe
B. Founder
-problem with too much or too fast eating can cause acidosis and production of endotoxins
-most common cause: excess soluble carbohydrates in grain or lush pastures
-leads to laminitis

General Anatomical Characteristics

Horse:
-have simple stomach
-stomach and SI similar to other Monogastric
-SI empties ingesta into the cecum via ileocecal orifice
-large intestine is massive and anatomically complex in comparison to most other animals
-colon is also large
-cecum and ascending colon have bands of smooth muscle (tenia) causing the organs to forms pouches called haustrae
-descending colon becomes the rectum at the inlet of the pelvis

Fermentation and Physiology

-digestive function in stomach and intestine same with other Monogastric animals
-dietary protein is digested and absorbed as amino acids
-soluble carbohydrates are hydrolyzed to monosaccharides (glucose, fructose, galactose) in the SI
-cellulose pass through the SI intact (maybe softened and swollen prior to entry into the cecum)
-cellulose and hemicellulose, along with intact and other CHO not digested in SI, flow into the LI where they are
subjected to fermentation
-LI of horses and other hindgut fermentation is a fermentation system analogous to the rumen
-fermentation is identical to the rumen, producing VFA
-one significant difference between ruminant and horse, large quantity of microbial protein generated in the equine
hindgut are wasted because they are not absorbed unlike in the ruminant
Avian Digestive System
Features:
-birds digestive system is faster and more efficient than those of other vertebrate
-digestion begins with entry of food via the beak and ends with waste exiting at the vent
-a birds mouth is relatively unimportant in eating and digesting food in comparison with mammalian mouth
-most birds have salivary glands and beak, and tongue to help birds manipulate food for swallowing
-most birds have crops (enlarged area of the esophagus)
Function of Crops:
-temporary storage of food
-allows food to soften before entering the stomach
-site for the action of ptyalin
-pigeons and doves produce “crop milk” for feeding the young for the first two weeks after hatching
-has two part stomach:
a. Glandular portion – proventriculus
-secretes HCI, mucus, and pepsin and start digestion
-passes food to ventriculus
b. Muscular portion – ventriculus (gizzard)
-function as mammalian teeth
-grinding and disassembling the food for easy action of digestive enzymes
-most contains sand grain grits to aid in grinding
-final digestion and absorption of food takes place in the small intestine
Variation in SI
a. Carnivorous birds: SI shorter, less complex
b. Herbivorous birds: SI longer, more developed SI
-large intestine reduced, featureless connection between the SI and cloaca
-birds possess two blind pouches known as ceca (ceca is for bacterial fermentation)
-cloaca – bulbous final holding area for:
o the waste products of digestion
o eggs in the hen
o urine in the form of uric acid
-vent – opening of the cloaca
-differs from mammals in that birds have no teeth to physically breakdown their food
-glandular stomach is the proventriculus
-between the proventriculus and the mouth is an enlargement of the gullet – crop
Function of the crop:
a. stored food temporarily
b. where food is softened before moving to the proventriculus place for salivary amylase to work
-food passes quickly through the proventriculus to the ventriculus (gizzard)
-function of the gizzard: to crush and grind coarse food, aided with grits and gravel

Avian Digestion
1. Gizzard
-no digestive enzyme
-reduces the size of food particles
2. Small intestine (duodenum)
-amylolytic enzyme
-lipolytic enzyme
-proteolytic enzyme
3. Bile from the liver
4. Further segment of small intestine: peptidase (erepsin) digest protein to amino acids

-no white urine is voided in birds (discharge into the cloaca and excreted with the feces)
-white materials in birds dropping are largely uric acid
-mammal urinary nitrogen – urea
-the relative shortness of the avian digestive tract is reflected in rapid digestive process (about 4 hours)
 Summary of General Digestion and Absorption
I. Oral Cavity
 Physical digestion includes
o mastication (chewing of food by the teeth provides for initial breakdown of food into smaller food particles)
o allowing for increased surface area of food particles, thus enhancing exposure of food to digestive fluids
 Enzymatic secretion
o salivary amylase hydrolyzes degradable starches to maltose
o short time of exposure prior to inactivation by the acidic environment of the stomach limits the degree of
starch hydrolysis by salivary amylase (ptyalin)
o salivary lingual lipases (limited digestion action)
-salivary amylase hydrolyzes starch to maltose
II. Stomach
 Physical – highly muscular provides for significant mixing of ingested food, saliva, and gastric juices
 Major component of gastric juices (in addition to water):
a. Hydrochloric acid (HCI): produced by the parietal (oxyntic) cells of the stomach mucosa
Primary action
-denature proteins (to further promoted enzymatic action on protein)
-kill most ingested microorganism
-activate pepsin (proteolytic enzyme) from its inactive secretory form (pepsinogen)
b. Pepsinogen: produced by the chief cells of the stomach mucosa and inactivated by gastric HCI to active
enzyme pepsin
Action of Pepsin
-endopeptidase hydrolyzes the peptide bonds at the interior of the polypeptide structure of protein (not the
adjacent amino or carboxyl terminal of AA residues, unlike the exopeptidase)
-pepsin hydrolyzes protein to peptones, proteoses, and polypeptides
c. Rennin: enzyme secreted into the stomach in nursing animals
Action
-coagulation of casein (milk protein) to delay the passage of milk from stomach to SI
-promote proteolytic digestion of milk in the stomach
III. Small Intestine
-major site of nutrient digestion and absorption
A. Pancreatic secretion (also called pancreatic enzymes/pancreatic juices) includes:
1. Proteolytic Enzyme
o Endopeptidase
a. Trypsin
-cleave the peptide bonds adjacent to basic amino acids
-secreted as trypsinogen, activated by enterokinase to pepsin
b. Chymotrypsin
-cleave peptide bonds adjacent to uncharged amino acid (aromatic AA- phenylalanine and tyrosine)
-secreted as chymotrypsinogen and activated by trypsin to Chymotrypsin
-trypsin, chymotrypsin, and carboxypeptidase hydrolyzes peptones, polypeptides, proteoses to
amino acids and dipeptides
c. Elastases
-cleave bonds adjacent to small amino acid (glycine, serine, and alanine)
-secreted as proelastase and activated by Trypsin
o Exopeptidase
a. Carboxypeptidase
-cleave the carboxyl terminal peptide bonds
-secreted as procarboxypeptidase and activated by trypsin
 2. Carbohydrase
a. Alpha amylase (pancreatic amylase)
-cleaves alpha 1-4 linked glucose residues of starch and glycogen (from meat and liver)
-pancreatic amylase hydrolyzes starch to maltose (disaccharides)
3. Lipolytic enzyme
a. Pancreatic lipase
-cleaves the ester linkages of triacylglycerols (cleaving fatty acids from the glycerol component)
-pancreatic lipase hydrolyzes emulsified fats to fatty acids, glycerols, and glycerides
4. Others
a. Phospholipase A2
b. Cholesteryl ester hydrolase
c. Deoxyribonuclease (DNAse)
d. Ribonuclease (RNAse)
*pancreatic secretions also are alkine (pH 7.5-8.0 or higher) that neutralizes the acidic pH of the chyme (digesta passing
out of the stomach)

B. Bile
-produced by the liver
-stored in the gall bladder
-secreted into the duodenum
-contains bile salts
-actions:
 reduces surface tension
 aid in the emulsification of triacylglycerol and fatty acid
-emulsification promote the efficient digestion and absorption of fat and fat-soluble vitamins
 serves to neutralize the acidic enzyme
 serves as an excretory route for bile acids, cholesterol, bile pigments, drug/toxins, and several minerals
(copper, zinc, and mercury)
C. Small intestine secretes intestinal juices/enzymes secreted by Brunner’s gland and Crypt of Liberkuhn
Includes:
o Aminopeptidase
o Dipeptidase
o Disaccharide
-Maltase
-Lactase
-Sucrase
o Oligosaccharides
-amylase
-phosphatase
-nucleosidase
-phospholipase
 Primary Digestive Enzymes of the Alimentary Tract
D.

Large intestine (cecum and colon)

-undigested food residues (endogenous secretion) pass from the ileum to the colon
-complex of ecosystem of anaerobic microorganism further degrades and metabolizes the undigested residues
entering the large intestine
-site of microbial fermentation of:
o carbohydrates result in the production of volatile fatty acids (VFA) (which can be absorbed and utilized
by the host energy), carbon dioxide, and methane
o proteins and amino acids result in the release of ammonia that is absorbed via the portal blood and
converted into urea in the liver
o certain amino acids (tryptophan) to indole and 3-methylindole (skatole)
-volatile compounds produced are responsible for portion of the characteristic odor or feces
-also, site of absorption of most water
-in many herbivores, omnivore animals, an intestinal sac/pouch called cecum located near the junction of the
ileum and colon. In the human, the appendix is the vestigial remnant of the cecum; in many birds, a pair of ceca is
also important in site of microbial fermentation
*no physical and chemical digestion takes place in the large intestine. Except the above activities. Likewise, there
are no digestive enzymes being secreted except secretion of mucus (for lubrication)
Process of Digestion
1. Ingestion – taking in of feed/food in the mouth
2. Mastication – physical breakdown of food
3. Digestion – mechanical disintegration of feed and the chemical disintegration caused by the digestive enzyme (juices),
bacteria, and protozoa coming in contact with it
4. Absorption – process by which nutrients or other substances pass through the mucous membrane of the digestive
cavity into the blood circulation
5. Assimilation – construction of the animal tissue from feed nutrients
6. Metabolism – sum of the changes within feed/food undergoes in its conversion to excretory products
-has two processes:
a. Anabolism - building up of tissues from chemical substances (construction phase)
b. Catabolism –breakdown of complex substances to simple forms thus producing energy (destruction phase

*Nutrients = substances of homogenous chemical composition that support life

Factors of Digestion
1. Chemical factors – include enzymes and certain non-enzymic chemical substances (like HCI) produced by the
digestive glands
2. Mechanical factors – mastication, deglutition, regurgitation, gastric and intestinal motility, defecation
3. Microbiological factors – reflect the activities of bacteria and in some species of animals – protozoa
4. Secretory factor – contribute to digestion include the beneficial activities of the digestive glands

Digestion in Monogastric Animals

-chemical and secretory factors of digestion especially enzymes, play an important role in the digestion of food in man,
poultry, swine, and other monogastric animals
-digestion of food (especially fibers) by means of microorganism is lesser importance in these species
-horse: digestion of fiber by microorganisms occur in the cecum

Digestion in Polygastric Animals

-digestive compartments of the ruminant have microorganisms which break down cellulose to form the short chain colatile
fatty acids (VFA) – acetic, propionic, and butyric
-VFA absorbed in the rumen and provide the ruminant with 60-80% of its energy needs
-starches, sugar, and proteins are also broken down in the rumen. An average of 60-90% of the total digestion within
ruminant occurs in the rumen (fermentation vat)
Function: Microorganisms (rumen)
o synthesis of b-complex
o synthesis of all essential AA which can be synthesized from non-protein nitrogen compound (NPN) such as urea,
diammonium phosphate, or from proteins that are deficient in one or more essential AA
o microorganisms are also being digested by their host
-a substantial amount of methane gas and carbon dioxide are produced in the rumen and if allowed to accumulate
causes bloat or an inflation of the rumen. Gases are normally expelled quite freely by eructation (belching) and to
a lesser extent by absorption into the blood, from which they are eliminated through exhales air from lungs.
Digestion of Carbohydrate
-begins in the mouth
-in contact with other ptyalin (parotid gland) by hydrolyzing starch to maltose and dextrin
-man, swine, dogs: saliva contains a small amount of ptyalin
-horse: saliva contains very small amount of ptyalin
-cow, sheep, goat: non (no ptyalin in the saliva)
-most carbohydrates are digested in the mouth and stomach (esophageal – cardiac region) which is alkaline protein, and
NPN to microbial proteins and B complexes (no enzymes from the ruminant gastric secretion are involved in microbial
synthesis)
 Small Intestine (duodenum)
-amylopsin (amylase) from pancreas digest starch dextrin to simpler dextrin and maltose
-other enzymes from the intestinal juices:
o sucrase hydrolyzes sucrose to glucose and fructose
o maltase hydrolyzes maltose to glucose and glucose
o lactase hydrolyzes lactose to glucose and galactose
 Cecum and colon
-microorganisms also digest cellulose to VFA

Digestion of Protein
 Stomach
-site of the beginning of protein digestion
-pepsin converts protein to peptones, proteoses, and polypeptides (initial)
-young animals (nursing) rennin causes milk to coagulate forming paracaseinate to stay longer in the stomach
 Small intestine (duodenum)
-trypsin, chemotrypsin, and carboxypeptidase continue protein digestion initiated by the stomach by pepsin
breaking down peptones, proteoses, and polypeptides to dipeptides and some amino acids
-peptidase (erepsin) hydrolyzes dipeptide to amino acids

Digestion of Fats
-starts in the stomach by gastric lipase (gastric glands) converting into higher fatty acids and glycerine (limited in any
species)
 Small intestine
-bile emulsifies the fats
-emulsified fats are converted to fatty acids, glycerol and glycerides by lipase (steapsin) secreted by pancreas
-fats are absorbed as fatty acids and glycerol principally in the lymph

Digestion of Other Nutrients

1. Minerals – dissolved from foods in the HCI solution by the stomach released organic compound digested by various
enzymes
2. Water – no digestion needed
3. Vitamins – used within the body without conversion to simple compound

Absorption of Food Nutrition

1. Mouth and stomach – no absorption
2. Stomach – very few absorbed
3. Rumen - VFA
4. Colon – except water, very little absorption in carnivores and man
5. Large intestine – site of substantial absorption in many herbivores
6. Water, organic salts, and products of carbohydrates, proteins, and VFA – absorbed largely by the blood