Martin Nielsen, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVM, recently completed a sabbatical in New Zealand where he worked to improve the understanding of equine parasites in that country. | Photo: Courtesy University of Kentucky

Martin Nielsen, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVM, associate professor within the University of Kentucky (UK) Gluck Equine Research Center, in Lexington, recently completed a sabbatical in New Zealand where he worked to improve the understanding of equine parasites in that country.

Nielsen worked with AgResearch and Massey University, as well as other equine practitioners and horse farm managers in New Zealand. In addition to conducting research, he also provided secondary education about parasite control through seminars and meetings around the country.

His sabbatical was an extension of a well-established research collaboration with Dave Leathwick, PhD, at AgResearch Grasslands, in Palmerston North, New Zealand.  Leathwick, a world-renowned ruminant parasitologist with expertise in disease modelling and predicting parasite transmission and drug resistance development, has worked with Nielsen to develop unique computer models of two major equine parasites: cyathostomins (small strongyles) and ascarids (large roundworms). The pair’s collaboration has led to several peer-reviewed research papers and conference abstracts