Lewis on VFAs

[Tivers@aol.com]

"These Volatile Fatty Acids are absorbed and provide 30 to 70% of the horse's 
digestible energy needs, with the amount provided being at the upper end of 
these ranges on high fiber diets and the lower end of these ranges on high 
nonfiber carbohydrate or starch diets."

In other words, if you feed almost nothing but forage, VFAs can provide as 
much as 70% of the basal energy needs of the horse. Lewis is not talking 
about high-performance needs here. 

If, on the other hand, you feed a high grain diet, then the contribution of 
VFAs to the energy pool drops to as low as 30%. That's because available 
carbohydrates are the body's preferred energy source.

During competition, when energy demands are high, it becomes obvious that 
carbohydrate supplementation will further elbow out other energy sources, 
including VFAs. It's the preferred fuel. 

Lewis also states, "In all species, as the fiber content of the diet 
increases, the digestibility of diet organic matter generally decreases, but 
the reduction in digestibility is greater for horses than for cattle."

So, if you want to go all-fiber for feeding for an endurance race, better be 
riding a cow.

ti 


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