102 Detecting coprophagy in foals and its relationship with foal gut health

Abstract Consumption of maternal feces is commonly observed in foals; however, the role of this activity in foal health is unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the occurrence of coprophagy in foals and how it relates to foal gut health. Milk samples and foal feces were collected from 12 mare-foal pairs at 12 h, 3, 5, 7, 10, 14, and 21 d after foaling. Milk yield was estimated after muzzling foals for 2 h intervals at 7 and 14 d postpartum. To detect coprophagy in foals, nine mares were fed chromic oxide (10 g/d) with their concentrate in nosebags twice daily. Mares had ad libitum access to forage. Fecal samples were collected immediately after defecation and used to enumerate cellulolytic bacteria, lactobacilli, and lactate-utilizing bacteria using culture-based techniques. Enumeration data were log10 transformed before statistical analyses. Frozen feces were used to analyze neutral detergent fiber (NDF) using a Fiber Analyzer (Ankom Technology, NY, USA), then ashed and digested to analyze chromic oxide via atomic absorption. Fecal scores were recorded daily to monitor for signs of diarrhea. Changes over time were evaluated using repeated measures ANOVA and relationships between variables were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation coefficient (SAS 9.4). Coprophagy was detected as early as 3 d after birth and detected in all foals by 7 d of age. Peak coprophagy occurred at 14 d after birth. Milk yield was negatively related to fiber and chromic oxide in foal feces (r = -0.64 and -0.70, respectively; P < 0.05). Chromic oxide in foal feces was positively related to the number of cellulolytic bacteria and NDF (r = 0.97 and 0.79, respectively; P < 0.05). Bouts of diarrhea tended to be negatively related to chromic oxide (r = -0.59; P = 0.0928). Maternal feces is likely an important source of fiber and microbial inoculum for foals, aiding in colonization of beneficial microbes.