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Dr. Getty Notes: Cecum Exit Defies Gravity

For digested material to exit the cecum, it has to actually defy gravity! To do this critical digestive function, forage needs to be flowing through the digestive system at all times.

Aug. 15, 2013 — Little known fact: The cecum in a horse has both its entrance and its exit at the top.

And you should pay attention to this because for digested material to exit, it has to actually defy gravity! To process food, the cecum contracts to push the contents out the top. To do this critical digestive function, forage needs to be flowing through the digestive system at all times.

Picture a full toothpaste tube that is open. If you squeeze the bottom of the tube, toothpaste will come out the top because it is full. Picture a half empty toothpaste tube, with the paste at the bottom. Squeeze the tube and no toothpaste comes out the top because there isn’t enough inside.

Without enough food matter to “fill the tube” (cecum), sand, dirt and undigested material can remain at the bottom, leading to colic. Avoiding this is simple: Feed your horse a continuous supply of forage–all day and all night. This will keep the cecum full enough to push the content up to the exit and send it along the digestive/elimination chain.

Worried about weight gain? No need. Feed a low-calorie, low-NSC hay free choice, and your horse will let you know how much he needs to maintain his weight.

Read articles on the easy keeper by Juliet M. Getty, PhD, in the library at www.gettyequinenutrition.com or read the Easy Keeper, part of the Spotlight on Equine Nutrition book series, available now at Dr. Getty’s website and on Amazon.

Getty will be appearing at Equine Affaire, Eastern States Exposition, Nov. 7–10, 2013, in West Springfield, Massachusetts. Contact Getty directly at gettyequinenutrition@gmail.com.

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