Lower shedding of strongylid eggs by Warmblood horses with recurrent airway obstruction compared to unrelated healthy horses.

The researchers conducted a study to determine if Warmblood horses with recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) showed a lower incidence of shedding strongylid eggs compared to healthy horses who were not affected by RAO. It was found that unrelated RAO-affected Warmblood horses were 2.5 times less likely to shed these eggs than healthy horses.

Research Methodology and Sample

• The study conducted faecal worm egg counts on faecal samples from three groups of horses: 63 from a family with a high incidence of RAO (F), 86 unrelated RAO-affected Warmblood horses (UA), and 149 unrelated healthy pasture mates (PM).
• The environmental conditions were kept constant for all the groups.

Findings

• The investigation found that, contrary to the study hypothesis, there was no difference between the worm egg counts in the faecal samples of the family-affected RAO horses (F) and the healthy pasture mates (PM).
• However, the unrelated RAO-affected Warmblood horses (UA) were found to be 2.5 times less likely to shed strongylid eggs compared to the healthy horses (PM).

Research Implications

• The findings suggest that RAO-affected Warmblood horses might have an increased resistance to strongylid nematodes compared to unrelated healthy horses.
• The assosiation between RAO and resistance to strongylid nematodes is not influenced by family history. Therefore, having a family history of RAO does not necessarily provide protection against helminth infections.