The current study investigated how the addition of either finely or coarsely ground oat hulls (as an insoluble fiber source) at 15% affected gastrointestinal development and function during the immediate post-weaning period. We observed improvements in parameters related to gastrointestinal development and function. These include, heavier stomach and colon weights, increased total volatile fatty acid production in stomach, cecum, and colon, and numerically high goblet cell counts particularly when the oat hulls were included in coarse form. Overall, oat hulls in the piglet diet appeared to support gastrointestinal development and function, without impacting growth negatively.

Read the full article in the Journal of Animal Science.