Welfare assessment of Thoroughbred horses naturally infected with gastrointestinal parasites in Southern Brazil: Quantifying the host-parasite relationship.

The research explores the relationship between the welfare of Thoroughbred horses and their infections with gastrointestinal parasites, focusing on the analysis of fecal egg count (FEC). The results indicate that despite differing FEC levels, no significant impact was observed on behavioral indicators. This implies that FEC alone cannot be used to gauge horse welfare when adequate nutritional and health management practices are in place.

Study Design

• The study involved a total of 90 Thoroughbred horses, that were naturally infected with gastrointestinal parasites.
• The horses were divided into 3 groups: 30 mares, 30 foals aged between 13 and 16 months (referred to as ‘G2013’), and 30 foals aged between 2 months and 1 year (referred to as ‘G2014’).
• Over a 12 month period, these horses were evaluated for individual welfare indicators and FEC on a monthly basis.
• A horse welfare protocol was developed for the study, and 1024 assessments were done by 5 trained personnel.

Results

• Fecal egg count (FEC) among the horses varied from 0 to 5,760, with 98.8% of the horses showing the presence of small strongyle eggs.
• Most horses demonstrated ideal body condition scores, accounting for 94.4% of the evaluations (n=967).
• It was noted that 95.8% of all horses displayed good clinical and behavioral indicators.
• Despite the varying FECs, the data did not indicate any significant relationship between FEC and the displayed behavioral indicators, pointing out that FEC alone cannot be considered as a determinant of horse welfare.

Conclusion

• The results of the study suggest that when horses are managed with good nutritional and health management practices, fecal egg count (FEC) should not be used as the sole determinant factor for assessing their welfare.
• The implication is that while FEC can provide information about the parasite load in a horse, it does not necessarily correlate to the overall well-being of the animal. Other factors such as nutrition and general healthcare contribute significantly to a horse’s welfare.