Tag: study

Study Provides Information On Fate Of Australian Racehorses

Scientists at the University of Melbourne created a study to determine why some Australian Thoroughbreds did not enter race training. Drs. Meredith Flash, Adelene Wong, Mark Stevenson and James Gilkerson examined the records of Thoroughbreds born in 2014 to determine how many horses had not entered race training by the end of their 4-year-old season (August of 2018).

They discovered that 13,677 Thoroughbreds were born in 2014. Of those, 66 percent started training and 51 percent had raced before the beginning of their 4-year-old season in Australia. The scientists chose a geographically diverse sample of 4,124 horses to use as part of a study. Of those, 1,275 horses had not entered race training.

Breeders of the 1,275 horses that had not entered race training were sent an online survey, then received a follow-up call to discover what happened to the horses. Fifty percent of the breeders responded. The researchers discovered that each horse fell into one of four categories:

  • Alive and active within the Thoroughbred racing industry
  • Alive and active outside of the Thoroughbred racing industry
  • Exported
  • Deceased

The scientists discovered that 154 horses were actively training or racing and 84 horses had been sold at a public or private sale. Many breeders indicated that they were not sure what happened to the horse once it sold. Only one horse was reported as exported.

There were 83 horses reported as retired or rehomed, with 61 percent of these never having any official training. Illness or injury and then poor performance were cited as the main reasons for retirement.

The reports discovered that 239 horses had died, with just over half dying in the first year of their lives of reported congenital malformation. In total, 73 percent of the horses that died passed before they turned 2 years old; these horses were not eligible to start in a race when they died.

Twenty horses had owners that were still intending to race them; the fate of the final 35 horses was unknown, meaning the owners stated they could not remember, did not know or did not choose a response.

The scientists extrapolated the results and concluded that most Thoroughbred deaths in the 2014 foal crop were related to non-training illnesses or injuries. They suggest that research into farm design and infrastructure might provide information to lower the fatality risk to horses. They also note that while official race records indicate the number of horses that start, data underestimates the percentage of foals that enter training.

Read more at HorseTalk.

Read the study here.

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Equine Recurrent Uveitis And Appaloosas: What’s The Correlation?

Every Appaloosa over the age of 12 should have an eye exam to ensure the horse isn't suffering from equine recurrent uveitis (ERU) or moon blindness, a disease that disproportionately affects the breed. As the disease progresses, it can lead to blindness.

A study by Drs. Sandmeyer, Nicole Kingsley, Cheryl Walder, Sheila Archer, Marina Leis, Rebecca Bellone and Bianca Bauer completed a retrospective study using horses that were referred to the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Canada.The research team found that ERU occurred 13 percent more often in Apps than in other breeds; of all horses at the hospital who had ERU, Appaloosas made up 62.5 percent of the ERU cases.

The study team then had board-certified ophthalmologists examine 145 Appaloosas on 11 farms in Western Canada to determine what risk factors Appaloosas have that may be relevant to ERU development. They sought to study if coat pattern correlated at all with ERU risk: Specifically, if Appaloosas that had extensive white were more at risk to develop ERU.

Horses were categorized as having no signs or mild, moderate or severe signs of ERU. Of the 145 horses examined, 20 (14%) were confirmed with ERU. The research team determined that:

  • ERU occurred 11 percent of the time in horses with few spots; 29 percent of the time in Apps with white blankets and no spots (called snowcap); 15 percent in leopard apps, which are white with spots all over; 11 percent on Apps with a white rump that has spots and 13 percent of the time in Apps with no patterning over the topline
  • There was no association between gender or base coat color and ERU
  • Age is a significant risk factor; 12.3 years old being the mean age of affected horses. For each year older, the odds of ERU increased 1.15 times
  • The study did not find ERU in horses that had white-flecked coats, lace blankets or solid coloration that does not roan with age
  • Apps with leopard spotting are at increased risk for ERU
  • A common ancestor was identified in 83 percent of affected horses within eight generations, and five were inbred to that ancestor

The scientists determined that many horses have chronic, low-grade clinical signs of ERU that go undetected until the condition worsens. Because of this, it's imperative that owners of Appaloosas have their eyes checked yearly, specifically after 12 years old.

Read more at EquiManagement.

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