Cortisol and haematochemical variables of horses during a two day trekking event: effects of preliminary transport.

The research explores how a combination of exercise and transport stress affects the cortisol and haematochemical levels in horses participating in a 2-day trekking event. It was found that preliminary transportation induced significant changes in these biological markers following the trekking activity.

Study Methodology

• The study involved the participation of twenty-nine healthy horses. From this cohort, twenty-four were transported over 70 kilometers a day prior to the trekking event and the remaining five stayed in stable at the starting place.
• Sampling blood tests were taken at several intervals: the day before trekking, before and after the first day of trekking, before and after the second day of trekking. The timings of these samples were detailed specifically in the text.
• Levels of cortisol and haematochemical variables were measured from the blood samples using commercial test kits.
• The numerical data collected was processed using a One-way analysis of variance for repeated measures (RM-ANOVA) to determine whether trekking and transport had any effects.

Study Findings

• Trekking significantly affected several haematochemical markers and cortisol changes in horses that were transported. The affected markers included total protein, albumin, urea, Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST), Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT), and Packed Cell Volume (PCV).
• In the case of untransported horses, only urea and PCV showed significant changes.
• Analysis also showed that untransported horses had lower basal total protein and albumin concentrations, higher urea concentrations on the second day, and lower cortisol levels after both days of trekking than the ones that were transported.

Study Conclusions

• The research concludes that preliminary transport stress induces additional significant changes of cortisol and haematochemical patterns in horses during a trekking event.
• This implies that transport stress could potentially amplify the body’s physiological responses to exercise in horses, which might necessitate appropriate measures to mitigate the combined action of both stressors in practical settings.