Equine Guelph, the horse owners’ and care givers’ Centre at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, will offer a 12-week equine genetics course in the fall of 2013.

In a statement on the Equine Guelph website, course instructor Diane Winkleman-Sim, PhD, said students will learn about topics including:

• The biologic basis of genetics;
• Mendelian genetics and how traits controlled by only one or two genes are inherited;
• Single gene genetic disorders that have been identified in horses, including widespread disorders such as hyperkalemic periodic paralysis (HYPP), hereditary equine regional dermal asthenia (HERDA), and severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID);
• Multigenic determination of coat color;
• Gene action pertaining to performance traits and nature (genetic) vs. nurture (environment) aspects of performance traits; and
• How to select animals when breeding for performance.

According to the Equine Guelph website, the equine genetics is part of the Equine Science Certificate continuing education program and will be included in Equine Guelph’s Fall 2013 online lineup.

Registration for the course, which will run Sept. 9 to Dec. 1, 2013, is now open. Interested individuals can contact Open Learning and Educational Support at info@OpenEd.uoguelph.ca or 519/767-5000 for more information, or they can visit equinestudiesdiploma.com