Docusate promotes digestion and absorption in sheep fed a roughage-based diet

ABSTRACT Objective This research studied the effect of supplemental docusate (DOC) on digestion and absorption in the forestomach and small intestine of sheep. Materials and Methods Six adult male Small-Tail Han sheep, fitted with permanent duodenum and ileum T-type cannulas, were individually fed a basal diet containing 67% roughage. Sheep were allocated into 2 groups of 3 and fed either the basal diet or the basal diet supplemented with DOC at 0.8 g/kg of diet for 19 d (phase 1); the diets were swapped in phase 2 and fed for another 19 d. Chymes were sampled from the duodenum and ileum during the last 4 d of each phase. Results and Discussion The results showed that supplemental DOC increased the voluntary feed intake of sheep by 30.7%, and the amounts of digested DM, OM, CP, cellulose, and hemicellulose in the forestomach increased by more than 22.0%. Compared with the control values, DOC increased the amounts of DM (18.0%), OM (15.6%), CP (16.0%), microbial CP (34.4%), and by-pass protein (21.6%) entering the small intestine, as well as the total amounts of AA (18.3%), lysine (12.2%), and methionine (10.6%). Compared with control values, DOC also increased absorption in the small intestine for DM (63.7%), OM (61.9%), and CP (41.7%), as well as total AA (21.6%), lysine (17.9%), and methionine (40.5%). Implications and Applications Supplemental DOC significantly increased feed intake and nutrient digestion and absorption in sheep, so DOC can be an effective feed additive for improving sheep nutrition.