The equine hoof is often manipulated in purpose to achieve a better stride or to reduce the weight on damaged tissue. The living tissue in the hoof can?t store energy as glycogen and is therefore depending on a continuous supply of glucose for its energy production. The purpose of the study was to determine if wedging (i.e. elevating) the heel could influence the hooves glucose and lactate consumption/production. Five Standardbred horses were trained to trot on a treadmill without getting physical or mentally tired.

Horses are made to eat mainly roughage and it is essential for optimal health to offer them an appropriate amount of roughage with good hygienic and nutritional qualities. To produce good hay at the right time and be able to keep the hygienic quality until next summer is a problem. This has the effect that horse owners today choose haylage and silage to a larger extent. Science in this area is scarce, i.e. if the change from hay to silage has any effect on the horse.

Retrospective data from two stud farms, in this study named stud farm A and B, including 742 mares, was statistically analysed. Parameters included in the analysis were type of insemination, date of the first insemination, number of inseminations, the age of the mares, if the mares had a foal or not, foaling date, result of pregnancy examination (if it was done), twin pregnancy and treatments given to the mares. The pregnancy results and the treatments where compiled into a number of frequency tables in which the mares where arranged according to age, month of first insemination, foal or not and type of insemination. There was a significant difference in pregnancy result between the years at both stud farms (2001 better than 2002). At stud farm A, in year 2001, month (at start of insemination) significantly influenced the pregnancy result.

The aim of this study was to investigate if the botanical composition of haylage affects pH, dry matter content and microbial composition of the faeces in horse and pig and ileal environment in pigs. Two separate studies were conducted where pigs and horses were fed two diets containing haylages with different botanical composition. The first haylage was from a tilled land dominated by timothy and meadow fescue and the other haylage came from a meadowland with a large inclusion of dandelion, 25 % and common couch. The dry matter content (70.8 % and 73.0 % respectively) and the pH-value (5.7) were similar in both feeds. The first study was made as a three-periods switch-back study with 7 Standardbred horses. In the first and the third period, 7 and 9 days long respectively, the diet consisted of the haylage from the tilled land, oats, sugar beet pulp, soy bean oil meal, lucerne pellets and brewers yeast.

A nonsense mutation in the DMRT3 gene has been shown to have a large impact on pattern of locomotion in horses. Horses that can perform several other gaits in addition to the normally occurring gaits, walk, trot and canter, are often hetero (CA)- or homozygous (AA) for this nonsense mutation. Horses that only can perform walk, trot and canter are often homozygous for the wild-type gene (CC). For example the Icelandic Horse is a gaited breed. Five-gaited Icelandic horses can perform both flying pace and tölt, except for the normally occurring gaits, walk, trot and canter, and are often homozygous for this nonsense mutation (AA).

When performing studies that test the reactions of horses in different situations, important information may be available about the horse?s reactivity level. With information from these tests, accidents and dangerous situations may be prevented. When the behaviours from tests are compared with race performance it may be possible to evaluate if some behaviours are more desirable at the race track than others. The aim of this study was to see if behavioural responses correlated with physiological parameters (heart rate, cortisol), the trainer?s opinions and actual race performance.

Wounds on horses are common and sometimes difficult to treat. The wounds are often big and could be discovered too late for primary sutures, which have to be applied within 8 hours from time of accident, before bacteria has been able to infiltrate the surrounding tissue. The healing is often complicated by delayed healing and wound infection with consequences like phlegmone, fistulation and proud flesh formation.To avoid these consequences, the traditional practice has been to administer systemic antibiotics alone, systemic antibiotics in combination with topical antibiotics or topical antibiotics alone. Because few antibiotics can be used in horses, is it important to household with the few substances that are available. In veterinary medicine today, the increasing resistance amongst pathogenic microbes such as MRSA presents a growing problem.

Weaning is a standard procedure at most studs, and the methods of weaning varies greatly. The method used at the stud in this particular study is supposed to decrease stress. The purpose of the study was to compare the behaviour of foals in group before and after stepwise removal of their mares. Standardbred foals with their mothers were kept in three different groups at pasture (12, 11 and 11 foals, respectively, mixed sexes). They had free access to silage and the foals were fed concentrate in a creep-feeding area. By the time the foals were 5 months old, the mares were stepwise removed from the pasture.

According to the basic values of the Swedish Trotting Association the horse and its welfare should always be held in highest consideration. One part of the animal welfare work in the organization is to ensure good horse management practices by controlling all active trainers through the local licensing committees situated at the Swedish racetracks. The Swedish Board of Agriculture stated that high quality animal welfare assurance programs used by the industry organizations can be used in the risk assessment of the official animal welfare control to make the official control work more effective and the ambition of the Swedish Trotting Association is to establish an animal welfare assurance program which may be approved by the Swedish Board of Agriculture. Racehorses are exposed to welfare hazards both in their management as well as during training and racing and factors like handling, training, feedstuff, stable environment, medication and the possibility to express natural behavior all affect the welfare of the horses. The aim of the project is to investigate and evaluate the animal welfare work performed by the licensing committees and to give advice on how to improve the industry?s animal welfare control.

Background Research concerning footing and its contribution to injuries has been conducted primarily in racing Thoroughbreds. Studies in UK and Japan indicate that some specific factors could be responsible for an increase in performance-associated injuries. Researchers in Sweden have performed studies on Standardbred trotters. More research is needed to be done on equestrian sports since requirements on footing are not exactly the same in riding and trotting horses. The lack of scientific evidence on the construction of equestrian surfaces has lead to anecdotal validation of designs.

Organisationen Svensk Travsport driver ett omfattande arbete för att öka hästvälfärden i Sverige. Som en del av det stora välfärdsarbetet har även problematik kring hästar som dör under tävling lyfts fram. För att kunna förstå orsakerna till dödsfallen och förebygga dem, är det av största vikt att göra en uppföljning, kartläggning och analys av fallen. Syftet med studien är att få en ökad förståelse för varför dessa plötsliga dödsfall inträffar, samt att undersöka om det är möjligt att förebygga dem. Studien har omfattat de 64 hästar som omkommit under travtävlingar åren 2000-2014 i Sverige. Svensk Travsport har samlat in information om dödsfallen under en lång period, och har ett avtal med Statens Veterinärmedicinska Anstalt, SVA, om obduktion av varje enskilt fall. Hästar som dödsstörtat under en travdag i Sverige har obducerats och rapporterna har sedan funnits sparade på Svensk Travsport.