Horses with high energy requirements are generally fed two large concentrate meals per day, either in the form of grain or pellets. The postprandial elevation of blood glucose resulting from this type of feeding has the potential to alter production of hormones such as leptin. Leptin is an adipose-derived protein that promotes satiety in normal animals. The objective of this study was to determine if feeding large amounts of concentrate twice each day would alter serum leptin concentration. Nine horses were placed into three groups (A, B, and C) and each group was rotated through three feeding schedules (2x, 3x, and 4x) in a 3 x 3 Latin square design. Horses were fed twice per day on the 2x schedule, three times per day on the 3x schedule, and four times per day on the 4x schedule. Horses were fed the same total amount of concentrate per day throughout the study, although meal size varied with the number of times the horse was fed per day. Horses were weighed and scored for body condition on the first day of each period. Each treatment period lasted for 11 days. Blood was drawn on days one, four, and seven of each period and leptin concentration was determined by radioimmunoassay. On the afternoon of the tenth day of each period, horses were fitted with jugular catheters and blood was drawn every two hours for 24-hours to determine the circadian rhythm of leptin secretion. Additionally, blood was taken 30 minutes prior to and every 30 minutes after the morning meal to determine postprandial plasma glucose concentrations. Mean and peak glucose values were higher on the 2x schedule than the 3x or 4x schedules (P < 0.05). Leptin concentration was highest in horses on the 3x schedule, although when these data were normalized to baseline (day one) values, leptin was highest on the 2x schedule (P < 0.05). Serum leptin concentration was highly correlated with body condition score (P < 0.01), but not gender (P = 0.82), and leptin increased throughout the study (P < 0.05). Data from the 24-hour collection showed that serum leptin concentration varied with time in horses on the 2x but not the 4x schedule (P < 0.05). Linear regression of data from the 2x schedule indicates that the pattern of change may be modeled by a quadratic equation (P < 0.05). This study demonstrates that feeding horses large carbohydrate meals twice per day disrupts the normal pattern of leptin in the horse, possibly affecting appetite and other physiological processes.

Horses with high energy requirements are generally fed two large concentrate meals per day, either in the form of grain or pellets. The postprandial elevation of blood glucose resulting from this type of feeding has the potential to alter production of hormones such as leptin. Leptin is an adipose-derived protein that promotes satiety in normal animals. The objective of this study was to determine if feeding large amounts of concentrate twice each day would alter serum leptin concentration. Nine horses were placed into three groups (A, B, and C) and each group was rotated through three feeding schedules (2x, 3x, and 4x) in a 3 x 3 Latin square design. Horses were fed twice per day on the 2x schedule, three times per day on the 3x schedule, and four times per day on the 4x schedule. Horses were fed the same total amount of concentrate per day throughout the study, although meal size varied with the number of times the horse was fed per day. Horses were weighed and scored for body condition on the first day of each period. Each treatment period lasted for 11 days. Blood was drawn on days one, four, and seven of each period and leptin concentration was determined by radioimmunoassay. On the afternoon of the tenth day of each period, horses were fitted with jugular catheters and blood was drawn every two hours for 24-hours to determine the circadian rhythm of leptin secretion. Additionally, blood was taken 30 minutes prior to and every 30 minutes after the morning meal to determine postprandial plasma glucose concentrations. Mean and peak glucose values were higher on the 2x schedule than the 3x or 4x schedules (P < 0.05). Leptin concentration was highest in horses on the 3x schedule, although when these data were normalized to baseline (day one) values, leptin was highest on the 2x schedule (P < 0.05). Serum leptin concentration was highly correlated with body condition score (P < 0.01), but not gender (P = 0.82), and leptin increased throughout the study (P < 0.05). Data from the 24-hour collection showed that serum leptin concentration varied with time in horses on the 2x but not the 4x schedule (P < 0.05). Linear regression of data from the 2x schedule indicates that the pattern of change may be modeled by a quadratic equation (P < 0.05). This study demonstrates that feeding horses large carbohydrate meals twice per day disrupts the normal pattern of leptin in the horse, possibly affecting appetite and other physiological processes.

Dietary omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids have shown substantial benefits in humans including lowered serum cholesterol, blood pressure and indices of stress. The caloric and extracaloric benefits of feeding fat supplemented diets to performance horses are well documented (Webb et al., 1987; Meyers et al., 1989; Julen et al., 1995). However, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids have not been studied to any great extent. This study was conducted to determine the efficacy of feeding omega-3 fatty acids on indices of stress and serum cholesterol in horses. Nine three- and four-year old horses were assigned to diet treatments according to sex, age and athletic ability. Concentrate diets consisted of: control (A), fatsupplemented diet with corn oil (B) and fat-supplemented diet with extruded/expelled soybean oil (C; N-3). Overall, heart rates were lower in horses fed the fat-supplemented diets compared to the control diet. On reining and cutting exercise days, heart rates were lower (P<.05) in horses fed fat-supplemented diets vs. the control diet. There were no differences (P>.05) in heart rates during exercise on reining and cutting days between horses fed the two fat-supplemented diets. Recovery heart rates following the SET from the end of exercise to 60 minutes recovery (R), were significantly quicker in horses fed diet C. Plasma cortisol concentrations were lowest in horses fed the soy oil-supplemented diet and highest in horses fed the corn oil-supplemented diet. Across treatments, plasma cortisol concentrations during the SET rose due to the onset of exercise and remained significantly higher (P<.05) than baseline during the SET. Serum cholesterol concentrations were higher in horses fed corn oil-supplemented diets than in the control or the soy oil-supplemented diets. There was no significant change (P>.05) in body weight between horses consuming these three diets. However, when compared to consuming diets B and C the horses fed diet A had higher (P<.05) concentrate intakes. There was no significant difference in hay intake (P>.05) between horses consuming the three diets.

Thesis (M.S. in veterinary science)--Washington State University, December 2009. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Jan. 14, 2010). "College of Veterinary Medicine." Includes bibliographical references (p. 12-13).

Thesis (M.S.)--California Polytechnic State University, 2009. / Title from PDF title page; viewed on February 2, 2010. Major professor: Matthew A. Burd, D.V.M. "Presented to the faculty of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo." "In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree [of] Master of Science in Agriculture." "December 2009." Includes bibliographical references (p. 47-52).

Inaug.-diss.-Gottingen. / Issued also in this series. Lebenslauf. "Literaturangabe": p. [131].

Thesis (M.Sc.(Agric.))(Genetics)--University of Pretoria, 2000. / Summary in English and Afrikaans Includes bibliographical references.

This thesis is a research-focused work on a study of alternative materials for horseshoes. Within this thesis the objectives and functions of a compliant horseshoe are identified, based on a literature study of the work of previous researches, and they are linked to the properties of material. After identifying these objectives, a number of methods are implemented with the aim of detecting the most suitable materials for horseshoes taking into account the properties linked with the objectives. In order to determine whether the selected material is suitable or not, a comparison with a traditional forged steel horseshoe is carried out. Whenever an appropriate material is found, a most exhaustive study is performed and finally, a decision is elected based on the further investigation. The last chapter of this thesis is comprised of a document destined for future researches where suggestions about how to get more reliable results in the field are explained.

No description available.

This dissertation is a fusion of three grand passions that invigorate my life - a love of books and reading; a love of words and writing; and a profound and enduring love of horses. I am particularly attracted to the stories of other horsewomen, and while I identify with much that is written about women and horses, my own story and that of most contemporary Australian recreational horsewomen, is largely missing. Australia has a long tradition of horsemanship, a culture which in recent decades has become largely feminised and mostly recreational. Despite this reorientation, horses continue to be associated with such durable tropes as the outback, and 'the race that stops a nation', yet these masculine discourses are no longer representative of modern equestrian culture. The profound changes in what was once a vital sector of Australian society have been overlooked by scholars and creative practitioners alike, and it is only now that Australia's contemporary horsewomen have become a topic of academic inquiry. By examining the nature of the relationships between women and horses, I illuminate this unique culture, and in doing so extend our understandings of what it is to be Australian. I conducted the research using a combination of traditional and creative paradigms that allow multiple readings of what it is to be a horsewoman. The exegesis contains the data from which two interpretations of horsewomen emerge: an insider's view told by the women themselves; and an outsider's view constructed from an interpretive analysis of the data. My own subjective experiences are recorded in the collected essays, poems and visual material of the creative work. Taken as a whole the dissertation is a unique multi-layered account of modern Australian recreational horsewomen and they way operate in the world.