American horses at high risk of obesity

Washington : Boffins have found that horses in America are facing serious health risks because of obesity.

The study, conducted by a team of veterinary researchers led by Craig Thatcher and Scott Pleasant at Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine (VMRCVM) and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) at Virginia Tech examined 300 horses, ranging from 4 to 20 years old from 114 farms, chosen randomly.

Researchers studied the horses between 6 a.m. and 12 noon, prior to any food consumption that could alter glucose and insulin levels.

Each horse was checked for signs of laminitis and blood was drawn to assess glucose and insulin levels as well as other hormones, cytokines, and oxidative biomarkers. A questionnaire was also completed by each horse's owner to gather background information on breed, gender, health history, feed, and exercise.

Researchers found that fifty-one percent of the horses evaluated were overweight or obese and might be subject to serious health problems like laminitis and hyperinsulinemia.

"Laminitis is a failure of the connective tissue bond between the horse's hoof and the bone within the hoof. When that bond fails, and the hoof and bone start to fall apart, it is extremely painful to the horse. Laminitis is one of the most devastating and debilitating problems that we see with the horse," Dr. Pleasant said.

The study suggested that equine obesity might result from natural grazing behaviour like improved forage and lack of exercise, instead of the overfeeding of grains and other feed supplements, which defies conventional thinking on equine weight matters. (ANI)