Livestock and horses are integral components of agricultural systems, providing resources such as meat, milk, fiber, and labor. Horses, in particular, have unique roles in agriculture, sport, and recreation, distinguishing them from other livestock. This topic explores the management, breeding, nutrition, and health of horses and other livestock species. It encompasses studies on husbandry practices, welfare considerations, and the impact of these animals on the environment and economy. The page includes peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that investigate various aspects of livestock and equine science, offering insights into their biological, ecological, and economic significance.
Mulhern FJ.There is an increasing need for the veterinary profession to meet the new challenges brought about by increased and intensified livestock production. These challenges consist of control and eradication of diseases, the humane treatment of animals and the prevention of transmission of disease from animals or animal products to man. Examples are given of the contribution which regulatory medicine activities have made to the prevention/control/eradication of screw worm, foot-and-mouth disease, Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis, Newcastle disease, bovine brucellosis, hog cholera, and certain oth...
Allsup TN.This paper deals with some recent developments in the air transportation of cattle, sheep, pigs and horses and comments on the factors involved which influence the results.
Sutie JW.Animals normally ingest small amounts of fluorides in their diet with no adverse effect. An increased ingestion of fluoride can be harmful to animals, and grazing animals can be damaged by the consumption of high-fluoride vegetation. Cattle have been the species most commonly affected, and the symptoms of excessive fluoride ingestion in that species include; lesions in the developing dentition, skeletal lesions, lameness, chemical evidence of tissue fluoride ingestion in that species include: lesions in the developing take and decrease in production. The level of fluoride which can be tolerate...
Oehme FW.Animals are constantly exposed to a wide variety of foreign chemicals, many of which are potentially toxic and some of which result in the clinical poisonings. Pesticides are applied on or around animals for the control of insects and rodents. These chemicals may be placed in areas without regard for accessibility to household pets and domestic livestock. Insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides are routinely and haphazardly applied to animal and environmental surfaces alike with apparent disregard for differences in absorptive capability. Fortunately, newer herbicides and fungicides are relat...
Goranov Kh.The alkaline phosphatase enzyme, isolated by Morton's method from leukocytes of sheep, goats, and pigs gave after agarose elctrophoresis two isoenzyme fractions moving to the positive pole at the sites of the alpha 1- and alpha 2-globulins of the blood serum. In bovine leukocytes, besides these two fractions there was a third one that moved more slowly in the zone of the beta-globulins. In horses the alkaline phosphatase of leukocytes produced a wide band within the zones of the beta-globulins and the albumins. It was established that the proportion between the individual isoenzyme fractions o...
Clutton-Brock TH, Greenwood PJ, Powell RP.Recent studies of primates have questioned the importance of dominance hierarchies in groups living under natural conditions. In a herd of Highland ponies and one of Highland cattle grazing under free-range conditions on the Isle of Rhum (Inner Hebrides) well defined hierarchies were present. The provision of food produced a marked increase in the frequency of agonistic interactions but had no effect on the rank systems of the two herds. While rank was clearly important in affecting the distribution of agonistic interactions, it was poorly related to behaviour in non-agonistic situations.
Hafs HD.Often in developing hormone assays, hormones that may interfere with the assay by cross-reaction are not available for testing the validity of the assay. For example, horse TSH was unavailable to test for cross-reaction in an LH radioimmunoassay (RIA). The authors devised an indirect means of accomplishing the same goal, and the evidence from the indirect test of cross-reaction was at least as persuasive as a direct test might have been. Other examples are given of experiments where extensive effort was devoted to validation of steroid RIA, but there were substantial quantitative differences i...
Velle W.This presentation is limited to the three groups of steroid sex hormones which alone or in combination have been shown to be anabolic when used in farm animals. It seems essential for realistic evaluation of public health aspects of use of these hormones that the discussions include naturally occurring levels of the hormones. The following topics will be dealt with for each group of hormones: 1. Types and sources; 2. Production rates; 3. Plasma levels; 4. Tissue concentrations; 5. Metabolism and excretion. Gestagens. Progesterone and 20-dihydroprogesterones are mainly produced in ovaries and p...
Young JB.An epizootic of anthrax in Eastern Falls County, Texas, killed at least 238 animals during a 6-week period ending July 31, 1974. Infection appeared to be caused by the ingestion of contaminated soil and grass in the drought-stricken central Texas area. The participation of the Texas Department of Agriculture, the Texas National Guard, and other state agencies was of great assistance to the Texas Animal Health Commission in handling the epizootic and panic stricken public. Use of the unencapsulated Sterne strain spore vaccine was credited with preventing many livestock losses in the area. Conta...
Jain NC.Comparative morphology of platelets of the dog, cat, cow, horse, sheep, and goat was studied with the scanning electron microscope and was found generally similar. Most of the platelets were slightly biconvex of flat with relatively smooth surface and even contour. Some of these platelets had few short marginal filaments, oriny protuberances on the surface. A small number of platelets exhibited surface irregularity and few long pseudopods which were thought to result from platelet activation during the processing of blood. The number os such irregular platelets increased in stored blood and in...
Goranov Kh, Ivanov V.Investigations were carried out on the alkaline phosphatase in the sera of cattle, horses, pigs, sheep, goats, and chickens, the pH value of the buffer used being 9.0-9.8-10.0-10.2-10.6 and 11.0, and the method applied--that of Richterich. The pH value at which the serum alkaline phosphatase in the various farm animals and birds was most active was found to vary to a large extent. Optimal values for the enzyme's activity usually range as follows: cattle, 10.2; pigs and goats, 10.0; sheep,--10.2; horses,--9.8; chickens,--10.6.
Abaturov BD, Dmitriev IA, Jargalsaikhan L, Omarov KZ.The amount of phytomass removed by a complex of livestock (horses, cattle, sheep, and goats) and wild ungulates (Mongolian gazelle Procapra gutturosa Pall.) grazing in plain and mountain pastures of eastern Mongolia has been estimated by taking account of feces deposited by these animals. The results show that at an animal density of up to 30 head/km2, the total annual amount of feces reaches 140 kg/ha (dry weight), with the greater part (up to 90 kg/ha) being deposited by horses. The contribution of Mongolian gazelles in some pastures reaches 20-40 kg/ha per year. Decomposition of feces proce...
Suminda GGD, Ghosh M, Son YO.For more than a decade, next-generation sequencing (NGS) has been emerging as the mainstay of agrigenomics research. High-throughput technologies have made it feasible to facilitate research at the scale and cost required for using this data in livestock research. Scale frameworks of sequencing for agricultural and livestock improvement, management, and conservation are partly attributable to innovative informatics methodologies and advancements in sequencing practices. Genome-wide sequence-based investigations are often conducted worldwide, and several databases have been created to discover ...
Schneider ST, Isbrandt R, Gehlen H, Langkabel N, Meemken D.The 'positive list for equines' (Regulation (EC) No 1950/2006) was implemented in the European Union in 2006. The drugs listed are approved for use in slaughter equines under certain conditions, although those drugs are not approved for use in livestock and are not listed in Table 1 of the annex to Regulation (EU) No 37/2010. The usage of such drugs has to be documented in the equine passport and a withdrawal period of six months must be adhered to before the equine can be slaughtered for human consumption. Since the withdrawal period is long, correct documentation is particularly important. T...
Perdomo-González DI, Id-Lahoucine S, Molina A, Cánovas A, Laseca N, Azor PJ, Valera M.Transmission Ratio Distortion (TRD) is a genetic phenomenon widely demonstrated in several livestock species, but barely in equine species. The TRD occurs when certain genotypes are over- or under-represented in the offspring of a particular mating and can be caused by a variety of factors during gamete formation or during embryonic development. For this study, 126 394 trios consisting of a stallion, mare, and offspring were genotyped using a panel of 17 neutral microsatellite markers recommended by the International Society for Animal Genetics for paternity tests and individual identification...
Siede C, Komainda M, Tonn B, Wolter SMC, Schmitz A, Isselstein J.Horses can contribute to the maintenance of grassland. To determine the potential contribution of grassland to horse nutrition, we investigated the seasonal variation of herbage on offer and its nutritional quality in an inventory on six practical horse farms in Central Germany during 2019. On all horse-grazed pastures compressed sward height (CSH) was measured monthly and converted into aboveground herbage (AGH) to allocated short and tall grass sward areas (area-specific) via calibration cuts. In addition, four focus pastures were selected for monthly obtained area-specific herbage quality s...
Alruhaili MH, Marzok M, Gattan HS, Salem M, Kandeel M, Selim A.Cryptosporidium is an intestinal protozoan that cause diarrhea in livestock all over the world and have zoonotic importance. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in horses in Egypt and evaluate the associated risk factors. A total of 420 fecal samples were collected from three governorates (Giza, Kafr ElSheikh and Qalyubia) and examined microscopically using Ziehl-Neelsen staining method. The overall prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. was 29% and Kafr ElSheikh governorate had the highest rate in comparison to other areas. The prevalence of Cryptosporidium...
Pratt-Phillips SE, Liburt NR.In the United States, there is little clarity on the qualifications and availability of equine nutritionists. Currently, no regulatory body exists for formal credentialing outside of veterinary medicine. Most equine nutritionists are not veterinarians but do have advanced scientific degrees (Master of Science and/or Doctor of Philosophy) in the field of Animal Science. However, not all reporting to be equine nutritionists have formal education in the field of equine nutrition. To discuss this, a workshop was held at the 2023 Equine Science Society (ESS) meeting. The purpose of this discussion ...
Emmerich IU.In 2023, no new active pharmaceutical ingredients were released on the German market for horses and food-producing animals. Two established veterinary active pharmaceutical ingredients became available for additional species: The phosphorus compound butafosfan was also approved for horses, dogs, and cats and the mineral sodium chloride as an isotonic sodium chloride solution was also approved for rabbits and guinea pigs. In addition, for small animals, there were new releases of an agent (pergolidmesilate) in a novel pharmaceutical formulation and a lower content of the active ingredient, one ...
Green de Freitas M, Gonçalves Lino Borges D, Henrique Conde M, Takemi Muchon Nakatani M, Francieli Tutija J, Fuzaro Scaléa GO, Reckziegel GH....The aim of the present study was to validate methods of stool sample conservation for the egg hatch test (EHT). This study involved the use of a bovine naturally infected predominantly by Cooperia spp. and one equine naturally infected predominantly by cyathostomins characterized as susceptible to benzimidazoles in the EHT. Fecal samples were submitted to three treatments: aerobic methods (anaerobic storage in plastic bottles, anaerobic storage in vacuum-sealed bags or aerobic storage in plastic bags), under two temperature conditions (room temperature and refrigeration) analyzed at four diffe...
Data in briefJune 10, 2024
Volume 55 110603 doi: 10.1016/j.dib.2024.110603
Groot M, Schmidtová D, Fernandes R.This paper presents an archaeozoological dataset listing numbers of identified fragments for domestic cattle, sheep/goat, pig and horse from archaeological sites in the Netherlands dating from the Bronze Age to the Early Medieval period (c. 2000 BC - AD 1050) [1]. In addition to fragment numbers per species, the geo-referenced dataset includes chronological information, site descriptions, and bibliographic references. Data were collected from tables listing numbers of bone fragments per animal species as found in published and unpublished reports. Number of identified bone fragments per animal...
Bampidis V, Azimonti G, Bastos ML, Christensen H, Durjava M, Dusemund B, Kouba M, López-Alonso M, López Puente S, Marcon F, Mayo B, Pechová A....Following a request from the European Commission, EFSA was asked to deliver a scientific opinion on the safety and efficacy of sodium ferrocyanide and potassium ferrocyanide as technological feed additives for all animal species. In its previous opinion on the safety and efficacy of the additives, the FEEDAP Panel concluded that the use of sodium ferrocyanide and potassium ferrocyanide is safe, when added to sodium chloride at a maximum content of 80 mg ferrocyanide anions (anhydrous)/kg for turkeys for fattening and laying hens and other laying/breeding birds, all porcine species and categori...
McGill S, Coleman R, Hayes M.Indoor arenas do not always include mechanical ventilation or stirring fans and occupancy by horses and humans can be sporadic and inconsistent, which creates a challenging space for understanding and predicting variations in temperature, moisture, and airflow. To understand the interior environment within indoor arenas, monitoring was conducted at 15 facilities within 200 kilometres of Lexington, KY. Environmental monitoring of dry bulb temperature, relative humidity, dew point temperature, air speeds, and solar radiation took place over 7 days in the winter and summer to examine temporal var...
Jung H, Yoon M.Spermatogonial stem cells originate from gonocytes and undergo self-renewal and differentiation to generate mature spermatozoa via spermatogenesis in the seminiferous tubules of the testis in male mammals. Owing to the unique capacity of these cells, the spermatogonial stem cell transplantation technique, which enables the restoration of male fertility by transfer of germlines between donor and recipient males, has been developed. Thus, spermatogonial stem cell transplantation can be used as an important next-generation reproductive and breeding tool in livestock production. However, in large ...
Anandu S, Tanuj GN, Vijayasarathi MK, Manjusha KM, Samanta S, Bandyopadhyay S, Sankar M.Ocular setariasis is an ectopic infection caused by a parasite under the genus Setaria. Adult worms belong to the Setariidae family and typically reside in the peritoneal cavity of ungulates. However, immature forms of these species may aberrantly migrate to the eyes of cattle, buffalo, goats, horses and several other hosts, leading to corneal opacity and blindness. Here, we have distinguished the Setaria digitata collected from both equine and buffalo hosts based on the morphology, molecular profiling of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (Cox1), cytochrome c oxidase subunit 3 (Cox3...
Springer RW, Cherry NM, Muir JP, Raub RH, Wellmann KB, Jones TN.Recent changes in legislation have put hempseed meal (Cannabis sativa L.; HSM) under consideration as a potential livestock feedstuff. Digestibility of HSM has been researched in other species, however, there are little data in horses. The study objective was to determine the in vitro true digestibility (IVTD) of HSM compared to common equine feedstuffs. An in vitro split-split plot design used four geldings (8.5 ± 3.9yr; 558.4 ± 31.0kg; 6.0 ± 0.4 BCS) to investigate the IVTD of HSM compared to alfalfa hay (ALF), Coastal Bermudagrass hay (CBH), soybean meal (SBM), rice bran pellets (RBP), a...
Villa RE, Azimonti G, Bonos E, Christensen H, Durjava M, Dusemund B, Gehring R, Glandorf B, Kouba M, López-Alonso M, Marcon F, Nebbia C, Pechová A....Following a request from the European Commission, EFSA was asked to deliver a scientific opinion on the safety and efficacy of a preparation of CNCM I-1077 as a zootechnical feed additive for several animal species. The additive, existing in a not-coated and a coated form, is currently authorised for use in feed for calves, cattle for fattening, dairy cows, dairy goats and dairy sheep, lambs, all minor ruminant species for fattening and rearing, horses and camelids for fattening and rearing. This application regards the request for the extension of use in all ruminants and camelids reared for...
Božić Jovanović V, Trailović R, Vićić I, Grković N, Radaković M, Karabasil N, Kaić A, Čobanović N.The aim of this study was to determine the effects of loading density and gender on blood welfare indicators, carcass bruises and horsemeat quality. Data were collected from twelve transports of 89 slaughter horses originating from the same collection centre. The transportation of slaughter horses at high loading densities (>200 kg/m), especially stallions, resulted in increased levels of lactate ( = 0.021), glucose ( < 0.0001), ceruloplasmin ( < 0.0001) and AOPP ( < 0.0001), but lower GSH levels ( 200 kg/m) during transport had lower levels of the aforementioned blood metabolites....
Merridale-Punter MS, Wodajo AL, Elias B, Bakos AM, Zewdu H, Tesfaye R, Hailegebreal G, Sori T, El-Hage CM, Wiethoelter AK, Hitchens PL.Working equids support the livelihoods of millions of low-income households worldwide and face several welfare challenges. Although equipment-related wounds are common, little is known about specific risk factors. This cross-sectional study surveyed equids used for cart-work in three Ethiopian towns. Number, size, severity and location of wounds were recorded for each animal, as well as work equipment characteristics and indicators of equipment fit and assembly. Questionnaires were conducted with each cart-driver focusing on equipment practices and attitudes. Logistic regression models were ge...
Mustefa A, Engdawork A, Sinke S.Ethiopian horses are multipurpose horses that have socioeconomic significance for smallholder farmers. However, studies regarding their husbandry practices have received little attention. Thus, the current study was conducted to assess the horse husbandry practices in the southwest Ethiopia. Data were collected through semi-structured questionnaires from a total of 196 randomly selected respondents. The general linear model and frequency procedures of the Statistical Analysis System (SAS 9.0) were used to analyze the quantitative and qualitative data, while indices were calculated using Micros...
Silva RC, Coelho GJ, Sousa MBF, Caldas CS, Maciel RP, Mezzomo R, Gomes DÍ, Neta ERDS, Tavares FB, Alves KS, Oliveira LRS.In this study, we analyzed the effects of including açaí kernel, in the experimental diets fed to horses on the intake and digestibility of their nutrient and the resultant effects on the behavior of horses. The experiments were conducted in Federal Rural University of Amazonia. Five mares with no defined breeds, were allocated to five treatments (the replacement of Mombaça grass (Megathyrsus maximus) with crushed açaí kernel at 0, 18.75, 37.50, 56.25, and 75% levels of dry matter), in a 5 × 5 Latin square design. The animals were housed in covered stalls with concrete floors, equipp...
Akbari H, Basaki M, Imani Baran A, Akbarzadeh Z.Anaplasmosis, a tick-borne disease with worldwide distribution, impacts ruminants, equines, carnivores, and humans. This study aimed to investigate Anaplasma phagocytophilum in horses from Ardabil province and Anaplasma ovis in small ruminants from East Azerbaijan province using the Nested Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) method. Blood samples were taken from the jugular vein of 100 healthy horses in the Ardabil province and 156 healthy sheep and goats (116 sheep and 40 goats) in the East Azerbaijan province during the spring and summer seasons of 2016 in northwest Iran. The collected blood sam...
Chatha MA, Ahmad N, Abbas MA, Saadullah M, Khan JA.This study was designed to explore the impact of intrinsic (breed of foal, age of dam, and age of foal at weaning) and extrinsic (season of birth and housing type) factors on the growth and survival of foals in the subtropical conditions of Pakistan. For the growth study, retrospective data analysis of foals (n = 150) born from purebred brood mares of Thoroughbred, Arabs, and Percheron breeds (n1, n2, and n3 = 50 each) was made. Six hundred and twenty-four (n = 624) foals born between 2020 to 2022 were observed for the study of foal survival rate. The survival of these foals till the age of on...
Pipereau K, Trably E, Santa-Catalina G, García-Bernet D, Carrere H.This study focuses on thermal and non-thermal effects of microwave pretreatment on horse dung as indigenous inoculum before xylose and wheat straw fermentation, emphasizing metabolite production and microbial community changes. Two horse dung microwave pretreatments (MW40°C and MW95°C) were compared with a conventional thermal pretreatment (Th95°C) and an unpretreated condition (Ctrl). Microwave heating pretreatment (MW95°C) leads to similar production as a conventional thermal pretreatment (Th95°C) for xylose and wheat straw fermentation while MW40°C treatment was similar to the control...
Martins AS, Romanowski TNA, Campos JS, Vieira RC, Silva TA, Borsanelli AC.Brucellosis is a zoonosis caused by bacteria of Brucella genus, which affects domestic and wild animals and humans. In horses, the infection can be caused by Brucella canis, Brucella suis or Brucella abortus, through the ingestion of contaminated food, contact of bacteria with skin wounds or through the respiratory tract, manifesting with signs such as fistulous withers and reduced performance. The present study aimed to evaluate the seroprevalence of Brucella abortus infection in equids in the state of Goiás. Sampling was carried out on 299 farms across 132 municipalities, with a total of 89...
Kaštovská E, Mastný J, Choma M, Čapek P, Jirků M, Bitomský M, Konvička M.Based on a growing understanding of the role of wild megafauna in the functioning of natural ecosystems, trophic rewilding by large herbivores is increasingly used as a nature-based solution to mitigate biodiversity loss and climate change in Europe and beyond. Despite the growing interest in implementing nature-based approaches to restore key non-productive ecosystem services, there is relatively little data available to assess the benefits and risks of rewilding projects. We therefore investigated the effects of year-round grazing by large ungulates on plant biomass characteristics and their...
Aldayarov N, Tulobaev A, Madumarov A, Risvanli A.While modern veterinary medicine offers effective treatments, traditional ethnoveterinary practices persist among many farming communities, reflecting centuries-old knowledge and cultural beliefs. This study aimed to document ethnoveterinary remedies and their methods of preparation and application, for treating various parasitic diseases in domestic animals used by Kyrgyz farmers. Data on plant, animal and mineral-based remedies, as well as chemicals used for these purposes, were collected through interviews with 173 dialogue partners (DPs). A total of 3403 use reports (URs) were recorded, in...
Bihon A, Amognehegn D, Derbew G, Yirsa T.Working equines play a crucial role in human livelihoods globally, yet their management is often inadequate. Objective: To assess the welfare and management practices of working equines. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from December 2022 to April 2023 in and around Debre Markos, Northwest Ethiopia. Methods: Physical examination and structured interviews were used as data collection tools. A total of 384 equines (186 donkeys, 144 horses, and 54 mules) and their owners were selected through a purposive sampling method. Results: The results showed that 60.4% of the equines were use...
Matinpour M, Zettner N, Neumann K, Bäumer L, Burkovski A.Horses have close interactions with humans and are important as working animals and livestock. In contrast to smaller companion animals like cats and dogs, there is only little information available about their skin microbiome. The objective of this study was to identify and characterize the culturable cutaneous microbiome of healthy horses. Samples were taken from 14 horses from Southern Germany which were randomly enrolled in this study. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) was used as a method to detect the culturable microorganisms of ...
Thulin CG, Chen Y, Garrido P.European grasslands and their biodiversity are declining rapidly due to land use changes, which highlight the need to develop effective restoration strategies. This study investigates the impact of reintroducing the Swedish national horse breed (the Gotland Russ) on grassland plant diversity and evenness in abandoned agricultural landscapes in Southeast Sweden. Twelve horses were introduced into three 10-13-hectare enclosure replicates (four horses per enclosure) in a three-year (2014-2016) rewilding experiment. Plant species richness, evenness, and diversity were investigated in both grazed a...
Dimuccio MM, Ceci E, Bonerba E, Celentano FE, De Marzo P, Leone R, Sportelli S, Bozzo G.The aim of this study was to evaluate cadmium (Cd) concentrations in horses imported from various European Union countries and slaughtered in Italy. In addition, we assessed the potential correlation between Cd levels in tissues and organs, and Cd-related gross and histological lesions. The animals were divided into six groups based on age and geographical origin. Among the 430 animals examined, gross renal lesions were observed in only two kidney samples from Polish horses, which also had the highest Cd concentrations: 9.1 mg/kg w/w and 8.23 mg/kg w/w, respectively. Further histological a...
