Equine gastric ulcer syndrome (EGUS) has been reported to occur in 40% to over 90% of horses across multiple equestrian disciplines. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of trace mineral supplementation on gastric ulcers in exercising yearling horses. Twenty-one Quarter Horse yearlings, 15 to 18 mo of age, were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 treatment groups. The control group received no supplemental trace minerals, the inorganic group received supplemental sulfated trace minerals, and the organic treatment received supplemental amino acid complexed trace minerals. The trial consisted of 3 consecutive 28-d periods, separated by 5 d of diet acclimation. The basal ration included a 14% CP textured concentrate, with coastal Bermudagrass hay fed in Periods 1 and 3 and alfalfa consumed in Period 2. In Periods 1 and 2, horses were exercised on a mechanical horse-exerciser, but were lunged or underwent training in an undergraduate course in Period 3. At the end of each period, horses were transported for 6 h, 5 d before being endoscopically examined to assign ulcer scores. Data were analyzed as repeated measures using the mixed procedure of SAS, with the model including fixed effects of treatment, period, and their interaction (SAS 9.2). All P-values < 0.05 were considered significantly different. Baseline EGUS scores were not different among treatment groups, with a mean of 2.1. There was no effect of treatment in any period, or a period by treatment interaction. There was a significant period effect (P < 0.01). Mean ulcer scores in Periods 1, 2, and 3 were significantly lower than baseline, with mean scores of 1.5, 1.0, and 1.5, respectively. There was a tendency (P=0.06) for mean ulcer scores to be lower in Period 2 than in Periods 1 and 3, which were not different. Average daily intakes of Zn, Mn, Cu, and Co were significantly higher in the organic and inorganic than control horses (P < 0.0001). Under the conditions of this study, trace mineral supplementation did not affect gastric ulcer appearance and severity. However, it is possible that dietary and management alternatives, such as hay and concentrate types, could be anti-ulcerogenic.

Sixteen horses (2 to 4 yr; 357 to 439 kg BW) were utilized in a randomized complete block design for a 140 d trial to determine effect of omega 3 PUFAs (n-3) supplementation on markers of inflammation in young horses in training. Horses were fed treatments consisting of a control diet (n = 8) fed at 1% BW (as fed) or a treatment diet (n = 8) of concentrate fed at 0.75% BW (as fed) and 350 g of a marine n-3 supplement formulated to provide 15 g of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and 20 g of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Body weight and body condition scores (BCS) were obtained biweekly and concentrate adjusted accordingly. Horses were exercised 5 d/wk by students in an equine training course. Type of activity and duration was monitored, along with heart rate to quantify workload. Exercise protocol was divided into 2 phases: phase I (d 0 to110) consisted of ground work and early training under saddle, and phase II (d 111 to 140) consisted of advance maneuvers and moderate workload. Synovial fluid was obtained from right radial carpal joint by arthrocentesis every 28 d and was analyzed for white blood cell count (WBC), total protein (TP), and specific gravity (SG). Serum concentrations of carboxypeptide type II collagen (CPII) and chondroitin sulfate 846 (CS-846) were analyzed by ELISA kits. Dietary treatment did not affect synovial WBC, TP, or SG. Also, concentrations of WBC and TP also did not differ over time. SG increased over time (P < 0.001) as horses moved from phase I to phase II of the trial. Dietary treatment did not influence concentrations of CPII or CS-846. CS-846 tended to increase over time (P = 0.09) and CPII concentrations also increased (P < 0.001) in response to changes in exercise. Furthermore, all horses gained BW and BCS throughout the trial (P < 0.001), but values were not influenced by treatment. This data indicates further studies are needed to determine the efficacy of n-3 supplementation as a preventative measure against development of osteoarthritis.

Equine laminitis is a debilitating disease that causes extreme sufferring in afflicted horses and often results in a lifetime of chronic pain. The exact sequence of pathophysiological events culminating in laminitis has not yet been characterized, and this is reflected in the lack of any consistently effective therapeutic strategy. For these reasons, we used a newly developed 21,000 element equine-specific whole-genome oligoarray to perform transcriptomic analysis on laminar tissue from horses with experimentally induced models of laminitis: carbohydrate overload (CHO), hyperinsulinaemia (HI), and oligofructose (OF). Samples were collected during the developmental (DEV) and Obel grade 1 (OG1) stages of laminitis for the CHO model. For the HI model, samples were collected at the Obel grade 2 (OG2) stage. For the OF model, samples were collected at the 12 h and 24 h time points. Appropriate control samples were obtained for all models. This is the first genome-wide transcriptome analysis of laminar tissue using an equine 21,000 70-mer long oligoarray approach in CHO, HI and OF induced laminitis. Overall, we identified the differential expression of genes encoding S100 calcium binding proteins, extracellular matrix proteins, glycoproteins, transporters, olfactory receptors, genes involved in signal transduction, body‟s homeostasis, apoptosis, and immune response. Between CHO and OF models of laminitis, there were more shared genes. We discovered several common differentially expressed genes (i.e., ADAMTS1, CYCS and CXCL14) among all three models that are likely important to the pathogenesis of equine laminitis. We also discovered what appear to be central roles of apoptosis, inflammatory response, and intracellular ion homeostasis molecular processes in CHO and OF models of laminitis. Pathway analysis detected the NOD-like receptor signaling pathway, which is involved in recognition of intracellular bacteria in both the CHO and OF models of laminitis. Genetic network analysis indicated convergent pathway core molecules present in equine acute laminitis: p38 MAPK and NF-κB. Most importantly, our results of overexpression of anti-microbial genes (i.e., DEFB4, PI3, and CXCL14) suggest the central involvement of these genes in the progression of early equine laminitis and will allow refinement of current hypotheses of disease pathogenesis.

A discussion of the theory and methodology for creating believable quadrupedal locomotion for computer animation applications. The study focuses on a variety of issues related to producing realistic animal gait animations and includes a case study for rigging and animating the various gaits of a horse. Visualization of unnatural gaits for the horse will also be discussed and animated. The process of rigging involves setting up the character control system in a high-end 3d computer animation program such as Maya which is used extensively by the computer graphics industry.

The primary purpose of this study was to identify the Horse Theft Awareness and Prevention Initiative (HTAPI) participants and the theft prevention practices used in Texas. The secondary purpose was to evaluate the educational effectiveness of the HTAPI on the first three of Kirkpatrick’s levels, namely learner satisfaction, knowledge acquired, and change in behavior. The third purpose was to examine relationships between the rate of adoption of HTAPI recommended practices and the following demographic variables: gender, age, equine discipline, number of horses owned, and size of investment in the equine business. Survey instruments were used to gather data. Due to sampling constraints, the Solomon four step research design method was modified by removing one group following Seger’s (1998). The sample groups consisted of a pre/only test group, pre/post test group, post/only test group minus the control pre/post test group. The pre/only sample group data was collected in Denton and Montgomery Counties and yielded 56 usable instruments. Using Dillman’s (2000) procedures, data from participants of the HTAPI programs were collected using two mailed survey instruments. One hundred ninety two participants of the 2004 Mare Foal, Basic Horse Management 101, and the Performance Horse workshops were mailed a post/only instrument; 96 were returned for a 49% response rate. Thirty two pre-test instruments were administered in Hopkins and Polk County and thirty days later these participants were mailed a post/only instrument. A response rate of 66% and 63% in the respective sample groups. The sample population can be described as mainly women (68.3%) 43 years of age who owned 7.3 horses each. The average investment in horses totaled $31,658. The most frequently owned breed was the Quarter Horse (f=133), and the most frequently listed discipline was for breeding purposes (f=121). There were no relationships detected between gender or age and theft prevention practices or innovativeness. Positive relationships were found between the breeds of horses owned and the type of permanent identification of horses and the theft prevention practices used. Additionally, positive relationships were detected between breeding and riding discipline of horses, the types of permanent identification, the theft prevention practices used, and owner innovativeness.

Studies in other species indicate high protein diets increase urinary calcium (Ca) excretion and may lead to negative calcium balance and reduced bone density. As overfeeding of protein is commonplace in the horse industry, this study was undertaken to determine the effects of excess dietary protein on growth, physiologic response, mineral balance, bone density, and bone geometry in immature horses. Sixteen 10-month-old American Quarter Horses were blocked by age and sex into two dietary treatments. The control diet was formulated to provide the NRC (1989) recommended concentration of crude protein, while the high protein diet provided 130% of NRC (1989) recommendations. All other nutrients were formulated at or slightly above NRC (1989) recommendations. Blood samples, feces, and urine were collected during the 116-day study to determine any diet effect on pH and mineral balance. Radiographs were made of the left third metacarpal (MCIII) to determine bone density via radiographic bone aluminum equivalence (RBAE), and bone geometry was determined metrically from the radiographs. Urine pH decreased over time (p < 0.001), but there were no diet effects on blood pH or urine pH. Conversely, when normalized to day 0 values, fecal pH was reduced by feeding the high protein treatment (p < 0.02). Density of dorsal and palmar cortices increased over time (p < 0.001), but no differences were observed between diets. But, normalized total medial-lateral (ML) width of the MCIII was higher in the control diet (p < 0.05). Fecal Ca loss was greater in horses fed the high protein diet (p < 0.005), while Ca absorption and retention were lower for horses on the high protein treatment (p < 0.02). Phosphorus (P) balance was not different between diets, although feeding the high protein diet resulted in higher P intake overall (p < 0.001). While excess dietary protein may decrease fecal pH, increase fecal Ca excretion, and decrease Ca absorption and retention, there was no consistent effect of the high protein diet on bone density over the course of this study. Further research is necessary to determine if feeding high-protein diets is detrimental to bone quality in the growing horse.

High-resolution physically ordered gene maps for the horse (Equus caballus, ECA) are essential to the identification of genes associated with hereditary diseases and traits of interest like fertility, coat color, and disease resistance or susceptibility. Such maps also serve as foundations for genome comparisons across species and form the basis to study chromosome evolution. In this study seven equine chromosomes (ECA6, 7, 10, 15, 18, 21 and X) corresponding to human chromosomes (HSA) 2, 19 and X were selected for high-resolution mapping on the basis of their potential involvement in diseases and conditions of importance to horses. To accomplish this, gene- and sequence-specific markers were generated and genotyped on the TAMU 5000rad horse x hamster RH panel. Additionally, screening of a BAC library by overgoes and subsequent STS content mapping and fingerprinting approaches were used to assemble and verify a BAC contig along a ~5 Mb span on ECA21. Dense gene maps were generated for each of the seven equine chromosomes by adding 408 new markers (285 type I and 123 type II) to the current maps of these chromosomes, thereby greatly improving overall map resolution to one mapped marker every 960kb on average (range: 700 kb – 1.3 Mb). Moreover, the contig on ECA21 contained 47 markers (42 genes and 5 microsatellites) as well as 106 STS markers distributed along 207 BAC clones. Comparisons of these maps with other species revealed a remarkably high level of horse-human X chromosome conservation, as well as two evolutionary breakpoints unique to Perissodactyls or Equids for the equine homologues of HSA19 and HSA2, one of which has been more precisely localized by the ECA21 contig. Thus, high resolution maps developed for these chromosomes i) provide a basis to map traits of interest rapidly to specific chromosomal regions, ii) facilitate searches for candidate genes for these traits by fine comparisons of the equine regions with corresponding segments in other species, and iii) enable understanding the evolution of the chromosomes. Expansion of this work to the entire equine genome will be important for developing novel strategies for diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of equine diseases.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Bowling Green State University, 2009. / Document formatted into pages; contains viii, 231, [13] p. : 1 col. ill. Includes bibliographical references.

This essay aims to show how anthropomorphism, and also to some extent zoomorphism, is created in Nicholas Evans’s novel The Horse Whisperer.  Through parallel events and the usage of the concepts horse whisperers and horse whispering, a special connection is created between Grace, the main human character, and Pilgrim, the main horse character. This essay argues that their connection grounds for the reader to see the horse anthropomorphically and the human to some extent zoomorphically. With the use of Daston and Mitman’s notions of anthropomorphism and zoomorphism, this essay analyses how the concepts manifest themselves in the novel. The definition of horse whisperers and horse whisperering within this essay derives from the work of Brannaman and Parelli, this due to their theoretical value and knowledge about horse whispering.

The aim of this proposed study is to explore whether participation in a three day intervention involving horseback riding in nature– a program specifically designed for autistic children and their families called “Horse Boy Camps” – leads to improved outcomes for participants. It is hypothesized that children will demonstrate significant increases in language and communication skills after camp participation, as well as enhanced social, cognitive and sensory functioning. It is also hypothesized that attendance at a Horse Boy Camp will have an impact on the parents and siblings of the child with autism. Specifically, it is anticipated that camp participation will significantly decrease the anxiety, stress, depression and social isolation experienced by parents. It will also result in significant improvements in the relationship between the autistic and their siblings as well as family functioning in general. Participants will include 20 families attending a three-day Horse Boy Camp. There will be one autistic child per family who attends the camp, and at least one parent. The proposed study will help determine if Horse Boy Camps appear to be a promising intervention for children with autism and their families. / text