A recent study of wild horses in New Zealand has found that broodmares that are healthiest at the time of conception are more likely to have colts.
The study, conducted by researchers Elissa Cameron, MSc, PhD, and Wayne Linklater, PhD, foun
The body condition of a mare and the sex of her foal will determine how much the foal plays, according to a new study by researchers at the Mammal Research Institute at the University of Pretoria in South Africa.
The group, led by Elissa
Obese horses should be taken off pasture, except for very short (30-minute) turnout periods two or three times a day for
Insulin sensitivity and insulin resistance in horses have become increasingly important areas of research in equine medicine over the past several years, as evidenced by the timely and popular presentations at this year’s American College of
Does your horse have a favorite flavor?
Eight research horses in England did. Deborah Goodwin, BSc, PhD, research director of Applied Animal Behaviour Programmes at the University of Southampton, set out to discover what flavors horses
The economy is hurting and many horse owners have lost their jobs, homes, and, in some cases, their horses. Drought, pressure to raise grain rather than hay, and rising fuel costs have pushed hay prices to unprecedented highs. In an ideal world,
How is feeding carbohydrates related to gastrointestinal (GI) disease? The propensity to feed high-grain and high-concentrate diets instead of relying on high-fiber diets has increased the incidence of colic.
Horses evolved to eat a lot of fiber, spending up to 17 hours a day grazing various forage plants. But not all fiber is created equal, especially when it comes to hay.
Hay carries a few challenges compared to living forages. One, compared t
Thin body condition of a horse might represent true “weight loss,” or, more likely, it might be secondary to inadequate calorie intake over a period of time. The identification of a thin horse is usually not difficult–the horse’s owner, stable
Caretakers of the horses seized in a recent South Carolina abuse case got some good news last month, when one of the mares delivered a full-term foal.
“She’s just beautiful,” said Kelly Graham, director of public relations for the Richland
Does your horse have a cresty neck? Does he gain weight on air? Does he develop laminitis at the mere sight of spring grass? If so, your horse could have insulin resistance. Lydia F. Gray, DVM, MA, medical director/staff veterinarian for SmartPa
Officials removed a herd of 100 horses from a farm near Edmonton, Alberta, Feb. 26, after the Alberta Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) received complaints about the animals allegedly being without food or shelter. The
The International League for the Protection of Horses (ILPH) has a new podcast (a downloadable audio file) available on the group’s Web site as part of its Right Weight Road Show. The fat scoring podcast offers owners the opportunity to listen to
Is my mare’s lack of energy due to the low weight? What are the other possible causes?
Insulin resistance is a part of equine metabolic syndrome (EMS). There are three criteria for identifying the horse with EMS: Insulin resistance, prior (founder lines) or current laminitis, and general obesity or regional adiposity (areas of abnormal
What exactly does stored fat do to a horse’s body? It wreaks serious havoc on at least 11 vital body functions. Nat Messer, DVM, Dipl. ABVP, an associate professor of equine medicine and surgery at the University of Missouri (UM), presented a
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