Training

There is a lack of evidence‐based practices in current equine conditioning programmes, the review team says.

Being a veterinary surgeon specialising in the mouths and heads of horses is not your run-of the-mill profession.

The culture clash between horses and humans can trigger defence or flight responses that can leave us badly injured.

Results of study dispel industry belief that feeding high levels of fiber to foals will produce pot bellies and not sustain growth rates.

A rapid swap from hay to grass may present a higher risk of gut problems compared to an abrupt switch from grass to hay, researchers found.

“With so many Thoroughbreds breaking their legs this way, we thought there must be a way to predict and prevent it.”

Overall, novice riders showed a more chaotic muscle distribution in their riding, researchers reported.

Colic responsible for more than a third of such callouts, followed by wounds, then lameness.

“It is time we brought some of the developments in safety and new technology that we have in other vehicles to horse transport.” 

Researchers focused on foals from the 2014 Australian Thoroughbred foal crop who had not started training or racing as 4-year-olds.

New regulations to strengthen New Zealand’s animal welfare system have been approved by Government.

Standardbred horses in the Italian study underwent a carefully controlled treadmill test involving increasing speeds, during which blood was taken to measure lactate levels.

Some of the mares in the study had ovarian cancer; for others it was a last-ditch attempt to solve major issues.

“As the technology improves, hopefully this is something that anyone could have at home,” one of the researchers says.

“The equine biological passport program is a tool that will enable us to rapidly identify new drugs and measure the physiological effect on the equine athlete.”