Veterinary science and horses encompass the study and application of medical, surgical, and therapeutic practices to maintain and improve the health and welfare of equines. This field addresses a wide range of topics, including disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, as well as nutrition, reproduction, and behavior. Research in veterinary science for horses often involves understanding the pathophysiology of equine-specific diseases, developing advanced diagnostic techniques, and improving treatment protocols. This page gathers peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore various aspects of veterinary science related to horses, providing insights into the latest advancements and methodologies in equine healthcare.
Schurer J, Davenport L, Wagner B, Jenkins E.Fecal samples from wild and domestic carnivores are routinely frozen for three days at -80°C to kill eggs of Echinococcus spp., following recommendations from the World Health Organization (WHO) and World Organization for Animal Health (OIE). This is done to decrease the risk of zoonotic infection with these pathogenic cestodes. In addition, it is often necessary to freeze fecal samples collected for research prior to batch processing by a limited number of personnel, especially large numbers of samples or those collected in remote locations. The effect of freezing on the recovery of endopara...
Na W, Hong M, Yeom M, Kim S, Kim JK, Song D.We analyzed the complete genome sequence containing the 3' and 5' noncoding regions (NCRs) of the Korean H3N8 equine influenza virus (EIV), which will provide a better understanding of the pathogenesis, transmission, and evolution of EIV.
Bockenstedt MM, Fales-Williams A, Haynes JS.The placenta from an embryo transfer-recipient mare and live foal was examined. The placenta was effaced by multifocal masses, which ranged from less than 1 cm to 14 cm in diameter. The foal represented at 52 days for lethargy, ataxia, and urine dribbling; due to a poor prognosis, the foal was euthanized. At necropsy, the liver was effaced by multifocal, pale, irregular nodules. The lumbar vertebrae and other skeletal sites had multifocal lytic lesions. The placenta had 4 populations of neoplastic cells, including a spindle cell population, tall columnar and transitional epithelial cell popula...
Choi YH, Ritthaler J, Hinrichs K.Cloned animals possess mitochondria derived from the host ooplast, which typically differ genetically from those of the donor. This is of special concern to horse breeders, as maternal lines are prized and athletic performance is a key factor in genetic value. To evaluate the feasibility of producing mitochondrial-identical cloned foals, we collected oocytes from immature follicles of two mares, BL and SM, maternally related to the donor stallion. In vitro matured, enucleated oocytes were treated with roscovitine-synchronized donor cells and blastocysts were transferred transcervically to reci...
Cecchini S, Paciolla M, Caputo AR, Bavoso A.In order to counteract harmful effects of oxidative stress due to pathological conditions or physical exercise, horses are often administered dietary supplements having supposed high antioxidant activities. The aim of the present study was to identify the in vitro antioxidant potential of "ImmuPlus", a polyherbal formulation (Global Herbs LTD, Chichester, West Sussex, Great Britain), containing three medicinal plants (Withania somnifera, Tinospora cordifolia, and Emblica officinalis), known in Ayurveda for their use in human disease treatment. Extracts obtained by different solvents (water, me...
De Sordi N, Bombardi C, Chiocchetti R, Clavenzani P, Trerè C, Canova M, Grandis A.The objective of the present study was to verify if polyurethane foam is a suitable material to make accurate casts of vessels and viscera, and to develop a method based on its use for anatomical studies. This new technique has been tested primarily on the lungs of different animals, but also on the renal, intestinal and equine digital vessels. It consisted of three steps: specimen preparation, injection of the foam and corrosion of the cast. All structures injected with foam were properly filled. The bronchial tree and the vessels could be observed up to their finer branches. The method is in...
Bujacz A, Zielinski K, Sekula B.Serum albumin, a protein naturally abundant in blood plasma, shows remarkable ligand binding properties of numerous endogenous and exogenous compounds. Most of serum albumin binding sites are able to interact with more than one class of ligands. Determining the protein-ligand interactions among mammalian serum albumins is essential for understanding the complexity of this transporter. We present three crystal structures of serum albumins in complexes with naproxen (NPS): bovine (BSA-NPS), equine (ESA-NPS), and leporine (LSA-NPS) determined to 2.58 Å (C2), 2.42 Å (P61), and 2.73 Å (P2₁2₁...
Matsuo K, Kamai R, Uetsu H, Goto H, Takashima Y, Nagamune K.The presence of antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii in livestock and poultry was investigated by latex agglutination tests; samples that agglutinated at dilutions of 1:64 or higher were regarded as positive. Sera were collected from fattening beef cattle (102 Japanese black, 105 crossbreeds and 114 castrated Holstein), culled dairy cattle (101 Holstein), 100 horses, 115 fattening pigs and 235 chickens (163 free-range and 72 broilers) at abattoirs in Gifu Prefecture, Japan, from August 2012 to August 2013. Antibodies to T. gondii were found in 7.3% (31/422) in cattle, 5.2% (8/155) in pigs, but not ...
de Oliveira FS.Anatomical specimens used in human or veterinary anatomy laboratories are usually prepared with formaldehyde (a cancerous and teratogenic substance), glycerin (an expensive and viscous fluid), or ethanol (which is flammable). This research aimed to verify the viability of an aqueous 30% sodium chloride solution for preservation of anatomical specimens previously fixed with formaldehyde. Anatomical specimens of ruminant, carnivorous, equine, swine and birds were used. All were previously fixed with an aqueous 20% formaldehyde solution and held for 7 days in a 10% aqueous solution of the same ...
Takahashi T, Mukai K, Ohmura H, Aida H, Hiraga A.The purpose of this study was to create a lower forelimb model of the Thoroughbred horse for measuring the force in the superficial and deep digital flexor tendons (SDFT and DDFT), and the suspensory ligament (SL) during a trot. The mass, centers of gravity, and inertial moments in the metacarpus, pastern, and hoof segments were measured in 4 Thoroughbred horses. The moment arms of the SDFT, DDFT, and SL in the metacarpophalangeal (fetlock) and distal interphalangeal (coffin) joints were measured in 7 Thoroughbred horses. The relationship between the fetlock joint angle and the force in the SL...
Moens Y, Schramel JP, Tusman G, Ambrisko TD, Solà J, Brunner JX, Kowalczyk L, Böhm SH.The use of alveolar recruitment maneuvers during general anaesthesia of horses is a potentially useful therapeutic option for the ventilatory management. While the routine application of recruitments would benefit from the availability of dedicated large animal ventilators their impact on ventilation and perfusion in the horse is not yet well documented nor completely understood. Methods: A healthy 533 kg experimental horse underwent general anaesthesia in lateral recumbency. During intermittent positive pressure ventilation a stepwise alveolar recruitment maneuver was performed. Results: Anae...
Pilarczyk B, Tomza-Marciniak A, Stankiewicz T, Błaszczyk B, Gaczarzewicz D, Smugała M, Udała J, Tylkowska A, Kuba J, Cieśla A.The aim of this study was to determine serum selenium concentrations in Polish Konik horses residing in the Odra Delta Nature Park (Poland) and to evaluate the activity of glutathione peroxidase and Se content in testes of this horse breed. In over 95% of cases, serum Se concentration was below the optimal range, and none of the horses examined was deficient in this trace element. The lack of Se deficiency in the animals examined suggests however, that the Polish Konik horses have a natural ability to the optimal use of nutrients available in their life area. Testicular content of Se and GSHPx...
McCarty CA, Thomason JJ, Gordon K, Burkhart T, Bignell W.We wished to add to the existing baseline data on impact loading of the distal limb as a precursor to assessing the potential role of impact in injury and joint disease. Objective: To examine the effect of 3 hoof-strike conditions (toe first, flat and heel first) and 2 specimen masses (with and without a ballast of ∼2% body mass) on impact deceleration and vibration frequencies and energies at the hoof, first phalanx and third metacarpal. Methods: Biomechanical experiments in cadaver material. Methods: Eight cadaver limbs were subjected to randomised, repeated controlled trials, in which the...
Giese C, Gerber V, Howald M, Bachmann I, Burger D.In order to investigate stress responses of horses in walkers with and without electricity, 12 horses were trained during 3 weeks in a horse walker with and without the use of electricity (3.7 kV). To evaluate the stress response, cortisol levels in the blood were measured, the heart rate was monitored using the Polar® system and the behaviour was evaluated. Neither the cortisol levels nor the heart rates showed any relevant statistically significant difference between horses moved in the horse walker with or without the use of electricity. The highest cortisol levels and heart rates were rec...
Marqués FJ, Waldner C, Reed S, Autet F, Corbeil L, Campbell J.The primary objective of this study was to investigate whether rider experience influences the assessment and grading of lameness in horses based on under-saddle gait analysis. Thirteen adult sports horses in active training were included in the study. After a baseline lameness and neurologic examination by the principal investigators, horses were videotaped while being ridden by an experienced and a less experienced rider. A 3-minute video was made for each horse and rider and 26 videos were randomly ordered and compiled on a DVD. Veterinarians with different levels of experience in evaluatin...
Kim MC, Lee SW, Ryu DY, Cui FJ, Bhak J, Kim Y.The role of microRNAs (miRNAs) as a post-transcriptional gene regulator has been elucidated in a broad range of organisms including domestic animals. Characterization of miRNAs in normal tissues is an important step to investigate the functions of miRNAs in various physiological and pathological conditions. Using Illumina Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology, we identified a total of 292 known and 329 novel miRNAs in normal horse tissues including skeletal muscle, colon and liver. Distinct sets of miRNAs were differentially expressed in a tissue-specific manner. The miRNA genes were dis...
Whitworth DJ, Ovchinnikov DA, Sun J, Fortuna PR, Wolvetang EJ.In this study we have reprogrammed dermal fibroblasts from an adult female horse into equine induced pluripotent stem cells (equiPSCs). These equiPSCs are dependent only on leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF), placing them in striking contrast to previously derived equiPSCs that have been shown to be co-dependent on both LIF and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF). These equiPSCs have a normal karyotype and have been maintained beyond 60 passages. They possess alkaline phosphatase activity and express eqNANOG, eqOCT4, and eqTERT mRNA. Immunocytochemistry confirmed that they produce NANOG, REX1,...
Haeger-Eugensson M, Ferm M, Elfman L.The interest in equestrian sports has increased substantially during the last decades, resulting in increased number of horse facilities around urban areas. In Sweden, new guidelines for safe distance have been decided based on the size of the horse facility (e.g., number of horses) and local conditions, such as topography and meteorology. There is therefore an increasing need to estimate dispersion of horse allergens to be used, for example, in the planning processes for new residential areas in the vicinity of horse facilities. The aim of this study was to develop a method for calculating sh...
González-Iglesias P, Scortti M, MacArthur I, Hapeshi A, Rodriguez H, Prescott JF, Vazquez-Boland JA.The pathogenic actinomycete Rhodococcus equi causes severe purulent lung infections in foals and immunocompromised people. Although relatively unsusceptible to R. equi, mice are widely used for in vivo studies with this pathogen. The most commonly employed mouse model is based on systemic (intravenous) infection and determination of R. equi burdens in spleen and liver. Here, we investigated the murine lung for experimental infection studies with R. equi. Using a 10(7)CFU intranasal challenge in BALB/c mice, virulent R. equi consistently survived in quantifiable numbers up to 10 days in the lun...
Schemann K, Toribio JA, Taylor MR, Ward MP, Dhand NK.To evaluate the level of biosecurity training among Australian equine veterinarians and to assess their perceptions of biosecurity and infectious disease risk and their opinions about the management of the 2007 equine influenza (EI) outbreak. Methods: Cross-sectional study. Methods: A survey was conducted among equine veterinarians attending the 2010 annual conference of the Equine Veterinarians Australia (EVA) in New South Wales, Australia. Data were collected using a self-completed questionnaire and analysed using Fisher's exact tests to assess veterinarians' levels of biosecurity training, ...
Sánchez Guerrero MJ, Cervantes I, Valera M, Gutiérrez JP.The most popular use of the Pura Raza Español horse in sport is for dressage competitions. Tests on young sport horses were first established in 2004 in Spain to collect data for the genetic evaluation of this breed's suitability for dressage. The aim of this study was to compare eight different models to find out the most appropriate way to include the rider in the genetic evaluation of dressage. A progressive removal of systematic effects from model was also analysed. A total of 8867 performance records collected between 2004 and 2011 from 1234 horses aged between 4 and 6 years old were use...
McKendree MG, Croney CC, Olynk Widmar NJ.To address escalating concerns about livestock animal care and welfare it is necessary to better understand the factors that may predispose people to develop such concerns. It has been hypothesized that experiences with, beliefs about, and emotional connections to animals may influence level of perceived obligation toward and therefore concern for animals. However, the extent to which people's classifications of animals and their status as pet owners may impact their views on food animal care and welfare practices remains unclear. An online survey of 798 U.S. households was therefore conducted...
Dejmal M, Lisá L, Fišáková Nývltová M, Bajer A, Petr L, Kočár P, Kočárová R, Nejman L, Rybníček M, Sůvová Z, Culp R, Vavrčík H.A multi proxy approach was applied in the reconstruction of the architecture of Medieval horse stable architecture, the maintenance practices associated with that structure as well as horse alimentation at the beginning of 13th century in Central Europe. Finally, an interpretation of the local vegetation structure along Morava River, Czech Republic is presented. The investigated stable experienced two construction phases. The infill was well preserved and its composition reflects maintenance practices. The uppermost part of the infill was composed of fresh stabling, which accumulated within a ...
Stoppini R, Tassan S, Barachetti L.An 8-year-old Hanoverian mare was presented for chronic mucopurulent discharge in the left eye, which was responsive to topical antibiotic therapy. Results: The nasolacrimal orifice was absent in the left nasal meatum, and anterograde irrigation of left nasolacrimal duct was not possible. Dacryocystorhinography was performed and revealed about 4-6 cm of distal nasolacrimal duct atresia. Unassigned: A novel technique was attempted with the horse under standing sedation using an urinary catheter and a 980 nm diode laser with a 600 μm diameter flexible bare quartz fiber. A nasolacrimal orifice w...
Domino M, Borowska M, Zdrojkowski Ł, Jasiński T, Sikorska U, Skibniewski M, Maśko M.As obesity is a serious problem in the human population, overloading of the horse's thoracolumbar region often affects sport and school horses. The advances in using infrared thermography (IRT) to assess the horse's back overload will shortly integrate the IRT-based rider-horse fit into everyday equine practice. This study aimed to evaluate the applicability of entropy measures to select the most informative measures and color components, and the accuracy of rider:horse bodyweight ratio detection. Twelve horses were ridden by each of the six riders assigned to the light, moderate, and heavy gr...
Fairbanks EL, Brennan ML, Mertens PPC, Tildesley MJ, Daly JM.African horse sickness (AHS) is a vector-borne disease transmitted by Culicoides spp., endemic to sub-Saharan Africa. There have been many examples of historic and recent outbreaks in the Middle East, Asia and Europe. However, not much is known about infection dynamics and outbreak potential in these naive populations. In order to better inform a previously published ordinary differential equation model, we performed a systematic literature search to identify studies documenting experimental infection of naive (control) equids in vaccination trials. Data on the time until the onset of viraemia...
Schrenzel MD, Watson JL, Ferrick DA.Genes encoding the horse (Equus caballus) T-cell receptor beta chain (TCRB) were cloned and characterized. Of 33 cDNA clones isolated from the mesenteric lymph node, 30 had functionally rearranged gene segments, and three contained germline sequences. Sixteen unique variable segments (TCRBV), 14 joining genes (TCRBJ), and two constant region genes (TCRBC) were identified. Horse TCRBV were grouped into nine families based on similarity to human sequences. TCRBV2 and TCRBV12 were the most commonly represented horse families. Analysis of predicted protein structure revealed the presence of conser...
Ammer H, Henschen A.The major stallion protamine was isolated from sperm cell nuclei by extraction with 6M guanidine/5% mercaptoethanol, alkylation with 4-vinylpyridine and subsequent reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. The primary structure of stallion protamine was determined by N-terminal sequencing of the intact protein and of the fragments obtained from thermolysin cleavage of the S-pyridylethylated and from endoproteinase Lys-C cleavage of the S-aminoethylated protein. Stallion protamine consists of 49 amino-acid residues and shows 49% identity with all other sequenced mammalian type 1 pr...
Liu X, Seguin-Orlando A, Chauvey L, Tressières G, Schiavinato S, Tonasso-Calvière L, Aury JM, Perdereau A, Wagner S, Clavel P, Estrada O, Pan J....Age profiling of archaeological bone assemblages can inform on past animal management practices, but is limited by the fragmentary nature of the fossil record and the lack of universal skeletal markers for age. DNA methylation clocks offer new, albeit challenging, alternatives for estimating the age-at-death of ancient individuals. Here, we take advantage of the availability of a DNA methylation clock based on 31,836 CpG sites and dental age markers in horses to assess age predictions in 84 ancient remains. We evaluate our approach using whole-genome sequencing data and develop a capture assay...
Santos WB, Pereira CB, Maiorano AM, Arce CDS, Baldassini WA, Pereira GL, Chardulo LAL, Neto ORM, Oliveira HN, Curi RA.With the advent of genomics, significant progress has been made in the genetic improvement of livestock species, particularly through increased accuracy in predicting breeding values for selecting superior animals and the possibility of performing a high-resolution genetic scan throughout the genome of an individual. The main objectives of this study were to estimate the individual genomic inbreeding coefficient based on runs of homozygosity (F ), to identify and characterize runs of homozygosity and heterozygosity (ROH and ROHet, respectively; length and distribution) throughout the genome, a...
Goyache F, Alvarez I, Fernández I, Pérez-Pardal L, Royo LJ, Lorenzo L.Empirical evidence of the usefulness of different molecular-based methods to estimate the effective population size (N(e)) for conservation purposes in endangered livestock populations is reported. The black-coated Asturcón pony pedigree (1,981 individuals) was available. Additionally, a total of 267 Asturcón individuals born in 1998, 2002, and 2008 were typed for 15 microsatellites. These yearly cohorts (cohort(1998, 2002, 2008)) included almost all individuals kept for reproduction at the end of the corresponding foaling season. The genealogical realized N(e) was estimated for each cohort ...
Brazil TJ, Dixon PM, Haslett C, Murray J, McGorum BC.The aim of this study was to characterise constitutive apoptosis in equine peripheral blood neutrophils, including assessment of factors that potentially modulate neutrophil survival through alteration of the rate of constitutive apoptosis. Cells underwent spontaneous time-dependent constitutive apoptosis when aged in culture for up to 36 h, developing the structural and functional features of apoptosis observed in many cell types, including human neutrophils. Neutrophils undergoing apoptosis also had diminished zymosan activated serum (ZAS)-stimulated chemiluminescence, but maintained respo...
Cothran EG, Canelon JL, Luis C, Conant E, Juras R.Various horse populations in the Americas have an origin in Spain; they are remnants of the first livestock introduced to the continent early in the colonial period (16th and 17th centuries). We evaluated genetic variability within the Venezuelan Criollo horse and its relationship with other horse breeds. We observed high levels of genetic diversity within the Criollo breed. Significant population differentiation was observed between all South American breeds. The Venezuelan Criollo horse showed high levels of genetic diversity, and from a conservation standpoint, there is no immediate danger ...
Huntley NF, Naumann HD, Kenny AL, Kerley MS.The domestic horse is used as a nutritional model for rhinoceros maintained under human care. The validity of this model for browsing rhinoceros has been questioned due to high prevalence of iron overload disorder (IOD) in captive black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), which is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Iron chelators, such as tannins, are under investigation as dietary supplements to ameliorate or prevent IOD in prone species. Polyphenolic compounds variably affect microbial fermentation, so the first objective of this experiment was to evaluate the effects of grape seed ext...
Uniacke-Lowe T, Chevalier F, Hem S, Fox PF, Mulvihill DM.Rennet-induced coagulation of bovine milk is a complex mechanism in which chymosin specifically hydrolyzes κ-casein, the protein responsible for the stability of the casein micelle. In equine milk, this mechanism is still unclear, and the protein targets of chymosin are unknown. To reveal the proteins involved, the rennetability of equine milk by calf chymosin was examined using gel-free and gel-based proteomic analysis and compared to bovine milk. RP-HPLC analysis of bovine and equine milks showed the release of several peptides following chymosin incubation. The hydrolyses of equine and bov...
Yousefi-Mashouf N, Mehrabani-Yeganeh H, Nejati-Javaremi A, Bailey E, Petersen JL.The present research aimed to characterize the Persian Kurdish horse population relative to the Persian Arabian and American Thoroughbred populations using genome-wide SNP data. Fifty-eight Kurdish, 38 Persian Arabian and 83 Thoroughbred horses were genotyped across 670,796 markers. After quality control and pruning to eliminate linkage disequilibrium between loci which resulted in 13,554 SNPs in 52 Kurdish, 24 Persian Arabian and 58 Thoroughbred horses, the Kurdish horses were generally distinguished from the Persian Arabian samples by Principal Component Analyses, cluster analyses and calcul...
Verdegaal EJMM, Howarth GS, McWhorter TJ, Delesalle CJG.Hyperthermia is a performance and welfare issue for exercising horses. The thermoregulatory stressors associated with exercise have typically been estimated by responses in the laboratory. However, monitoring surface skin temperature (T ) coincident with core temperature (T ) has not previously been investigated in horses exercising in the field. We investigated the suitability of monitoring surface T as a metric of the thermoregulatory response, and simultaneously investigated its relationship with T using gastrointestinal (GI) temperature. We evaluated T in 13 endurance horses competing...
Almadhidi J, Seralini GE, Fresnel J, Silberzahn P, Gaillard JL.Estrogens are the major steroids produced by equine gonads. To identify the cells responsible for estrogen synthesis, an antiserum against purified equine testicular cytochrome P450 aromatase was produced in rabbits. The reactivity and specificity of the antiserum were assessed by ELISA, immunoblot analysis, and immunoneutralization studies. Immunofluorescence microscopy demonstrated that in the male gonad, cytochrome P450 aromatase (P450arom) was localized in the interstitial tissue, whereas, under the experimental conditions used, the Sertoli and germ cells did not show any specific staining...
Valentine BA.Gross and histopathologic evaluation of skeletal muscle was performed in 229 equids (217 horses, 8 ponies, 3 donkeys, and 1 mule) 1 year of age or older undergoing postmortem examination at Oregon State University in a 2.5-year period. Animals were evaluated for grossly evident muscle lesions, and muscle samples were fixed in formalin, processed routinely, and stained with hematoxylin and eosin (HE) and periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) for glycogen. Muscle lesions were detected in 149 animals (65%). Chronic myopathic change (excessive fiber size variation and internal nuclei) was evaluated in horses...
Lanovaz JL, Clayton HM, Watson LG.This study was designed to test the impact characteristics of the equine digit in vitro with the objective of providing a better understanding of the role of the digital structures in the attenuation of impact shock. Uni-axial accelerometers were mounted on cadaver digits on the distolateral hoof wall, the proximolateral hoof wall, the dorsal surface of the second phalanx, and the mid-lateral first phalanx. The hoof-mounted accelerometers were aligned with the hoof tubules while the bone-mounted accelerometers were oriented along the longitudinal axis of the bone. Each digit was mounted in a t...
Sanders RE, Kearney CM, Buckley CT, Jenner F, Brama PA.To evaluate knot security for 3 knot types created in 3 commonly used 5 metric suture materials incubated in physiological and pathological fluids. Methods: In vitro mechanical study. Methods: Knotted suture loops (n = 5/group). Methods: Loops of 3 different suture materials (glycolide/lactide copolymer; polyglactin 910; polydioxanone) were created around a 20 mm rod using 3 knot types (square [SQ], surgeon's [SK], and triple knot [TK]) and were tested to failure in distraction (6 mm/min) after tying (day 0) and after being incubated for 14 and 28 days in phosphate buffered saline (PBS...
Doube M, Firth EC, Boyde A.Combined backscattered electron scanning electron microscopy (BSE SEM) and confocal scanning laser microscopy (CSLM) have been used to put tissue mineralization data into the context of soft tissue histology and fluorescent label information. Mineralization density (Dm) and linear accretion rate (LAR) are quantifiable parameters associated with mineralizing fronts within calcified tissues. Quantitative BSE (qBSE) may be used to determine Dm, while CSLM may be used to detect label fluorescence from which LAR is calculated. Eighteen-month old Thoroughbred horses received single calcein injection...
Welsh CE, Parkin TDH, Marshall JF.As antimicrobial resistant bacterial strains continue to emerge and spread in human and animal populations, understanding prescription practices is key in benchmarking current performance and setting goals. Antimicrobial prescription (AP) in companion veterinary species is widespread, but is neither monitored nor restricted in the USA and Canada. The veterinary use of certain antimicrobial classes is discouraged in some countries, in the hope of preserving efficacy for serious human infections. Objective: The aim of this study was to ascertain the rate of prescription of a number of 'reserved'...
Holt D, St George LB, Clayton HM, Hobbs SJ.Previous studies have validated methods for determining kinematic gait events using threshold-based techniques. However, a simple method that can be successfully applied to walk, trot and canter is yet to be identified. Objective: To develop a simple kinematic method to identify the timing of hoof contact (hoof-on), peak vertical force and lift off (hoof-off), which can be applied in walk, trot and canter. Methods: In vivo method authentication study. Methods: Horses (n = 3) were ridden in walk, trot and canter down a runway on which four force plates were arranged linearly. Three-dimensional ...
Sluyter FJ.The accelerated speed of animal transport and the existence of complex and intricate movement systems have created an equine population in motion. This ease in the international movement of horses has an impact on the risk of introduction or spread of disease, specifically in relation to competition horses. Facilitating trade in Equidae, whilst simultaneously safeguarding the health status of the receiving country is a major challenge. To date, the international regulatory bodies are prepared to consider movement of registered horses as a relatively 'low risk' occurrence and thereby apply the ...
Nolte W, Alkhoder H, Wobbe M, Stock KF, Kalm E, Vosgerau S, Krattenmacher N, Thaller G, Tetens J, Kühn C.In horses, parentage control is currently performed based on an internationally standardized panel of 17 microsatellite (MS) markers comprising 12 mandatory and five optional markers. Unlike MS, single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) profiles support a wider portfolio of genomic applications, including parentage control. A transition to SNP-based parentage control is favorable, but requires additional efforts for ensuring generation-overlapping availability of marker genotypes of the same type. To avoid double genotyping of either parents or offspring for changing to SNP technology and enable ef...
Ohmura H, Hiraga A, Jones JH.There is no good method for measuring net anaerobic power in exercising horses to allow accurate estimates of total metabolic power. Objective: The increase in VO2max when breathing hyperoxic (HO) gas should be accompanied by a stoichiometrically equal (in terms of ATP turnover, i.e. energy equivalents) decrease in plasma lactate accumulation rate (Mlactate). Methods: Six 3-year-old Thoroughbreds were trained on an equine treadmill wearing a semi-open flow mask for measurement of VO2. After 4 months the horses ran with reproducible specific VO2max (VO2max/kg bwt). The mask design allowed mixin...
Frippiat T, Art T, Tosi I.Airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) and inflammation are both observed in human and equine asthma. The aim of this study was to assess the timeline and relationship of both features at the subclinical onset of severe equine asthma (SEA). First, the repeatability of the pulmonary function test (PFT) using impulse oscillometry system, and the methacholine bronchoprovocation test (BPT) were assessed at a 1-day interval on six SEA horses in clinical remission and six control horses. Then, clinical and ancillary tests were performed before and after a 1-week low-dust environmental challenge, including...
Scholler D, Zablotski Y, May A.Stress has a significant impact on equine welfare. There are some studies on the stress response in horses ridden with tight nosebands, but little is known about other stress parameters than cortisol, which potentially could address an emotional component. In this study, blood samples of a total of 74 warmblood horses were used to establish reference values for plasma substance P (SP) concentrations. Moreover, 16 of these warmblood horses were included in a stress model. Four different stress levels (level 1: horses ridden with loose noseband, level 2: tight noseband, level 3: loose noseband a...
Collinet A, Grimm P, Julliand S, Julliand V.In horses, abrupt changes from high-fiber (HF) to high-starch (HS) diets can affect the cecal and colonic microbiota. This study investigated modifications and recovery of fecal microbiota after two consecutive abrupt dietary changes. Twelve horses fed HF for 2 weeks were changed to HS for 5 days then returned to HF for 7 weeks. Six received lactic acid bacteria supplementation. Bacterial population diversity, structure, and activity, especially fibrolysis, were assessed to obtain an overview of alteration in hindgut microbiota. Two days after the abrupt change from HF to HS, the findings in f...
Duquesne F, Merlin A, Pérez-Cobo I, Sedlák K, Melzer F, Overesch G, Fretin D, Iwaniak W, Breuil MF, Wernery U, Hicks J, Agüero-García M....The accurate identification of Taylorella equigenitalis strains is essential to improve worldwide prevention and control strategies for contagious equine metritis (CEM). This study compared 367 worldwide equine strains using multilocus sequence typing according to the geographical origin, isolation year and equine breed. The strains were divided into 49 sequence types (STs), including 10 described for the first time. Three major and three minor clonal complexes (CCs), and 11 singletons, were identified. The genetic heterogeneity was low (0.13 STs/strain) despite the wide diversity of geographi...
Thirstrup JP, Bach LA, Loeschcke V, Pertoldi C.In this study, we performed a population viability analysis on 3 domestic horse breeds (Equus caballus) of Danish origin, namely, the Frederiksborg, the Knabstrupper, and the Jutland breeds. Because of their small population sizes, these breeds are considered endangered. The Vortex software simulation package was used for the population viability analysis. First, we investigated the future viability of these breeds based on present demographic and environmental parameters. Second, a sensitivity analysis revealed the most important variables for the viability of these breeds. Third, we examined...
Much ML, Leatherwood JL, Zoller JL, Bradbery AN, Martinez RE, Keegan AD, Lamprecht ED, Wickersham TA.Stock-type mares (498 ± 9 kg BW; 12 ± 7 yr) were used in a completely randomized design for 56 d to test the hypothesis that concentrate fortification improves apparent digestion and enhances lean mass over the topline. Horses were stratified by age, BW, and BCS and randomly assigned to either a custom pelleted concentrate (CON; = 13), or an iso-caloric, iso-nitrogenous pellet that included amino acid fortification, complexed trace minerals, and fermentation metabolites (FORT; = 10). Concentrate was offered at a total 0.75% BW/d (as-fed) twice daily, and diets were designed to meet or exce...
Dorey NR, Conover AM, Udell MA.The ability of many domesticated animals to follow human pointing gestures to locate hidden food has led to scientific debate on the relative importance of domestication and individual experience on the origins and development of this capacity. To further explore this question, we examined the influence of different prior training histories/methods on the ability of horses (Equus ferus caballus) to follow a momentary distal point. Ten horses previously trained using one of two methods (Parelli™ natural horsemanship or traditional horse training) were tested using a standard object choice tas...
