Beyond the Post: Exploring Equine Operators’ Understanding and Role in Conservation Best Management Practices

The equine industry is an established part of Maryland agriculture with 79,100 equines valued at approximately $714 million in the state; approximately 10% of these animals are housed in one county. Equine operators are a unique demographic in the agricultural realm, because they are not managing land to produce food or fiber and often are employed in other professions unrelated to agriculture. These operators tend to be unaware of land conservation practices and can have a detrimental effect on areas, like the Chesapeake Bay economy and ecosystem, if shared resources are exploited. The purpose of this study was to explore equine operators’ knowledge and connection of conservation best management practices (BMPs) and their role in being a caretaker of the land. The study was informed by the diffusion of innovations theory and gathered data through semi-structured, qualitative interviews. Equine operators in the study were found to use a variety of informational sources, had a high level of adoption of the BMPs they used, and overall, a majority of participants saw their role as caretakers of the land as an important aspect of their environmental actions. Recommendations from this research include improving communication processes to increase the spread of BMPs and adjusting specific infrastructure aspects to improve retention of equine operators practicing conservation efforts. Further research should investigate other niche areas of agriculture that could potentially be struggling with a knowledge deficit of BMPs and communication neglect between conservation offices and audiences

Microbiome of the mare and the foal at parturition

The objective of this study was to identify the microbial community in the meconium and to compare it to the microbiome of the mare’s placenta, milk, and feces at parturition. Six mares were used for this study. Mare fecal, milk, placental and foal meconium samples were collected at parturition. The mare and foal fecal matter were obtained by means of a rectal grab with a lubricated, sterile glove. Prior to nursing, a sample of the colostrum was taken after disinfecting the teats with an iodine solution. When the placenta was expelled from the mare, a sample was collected from the internal portion. All samples were frozen after collection until they were analyzed with Next Generation Sequencing techniques. The samples were run through a DNA extraction kit, followed by PCR, and then sequenced using Illumina Miseq. The sequencing data were analyzed using the QIIME bioinformatics pipeline. The foal meconium consisted of a unique microbial community that differs from the microbiome of the mare. In the meconium and placenta, the dominant phylum was Proteobacteria, however Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were also present within the microbial community at lesser relative abundancies. Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Verrucomicrobia compromised the majority of the phyla in mare feces. Proteobacteria was the dominant phylum in milk. The mare feces were significantly higher (P < 0.05) in microbial diversity when compared with meconium, milk and placental samples. Meconium was greater (P < 0.05) in bacterial diversity than milk, however there was no difference in diversity between meconium and placental samples. In conclusion, the microbial community of the foal meconium shared taxa with both the mare fecal and placental samples. This indicates the possibility that microbes were transferred between the mare and the foal during gestation, however the timing and methods of transport remain unknown

Effects of bovine serum on foal IgG levels

Studies have shown increased immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels in newborn calves after receiving bovine serum, suggesting an improved level of passive transfer. There is limited data available regarding the effects in newborn foals. Therefore, the objective of this trial is to determine if providing a bovine serum supplement will result in increased IgG concentrations in the foal. If so, it could help improve the absorption of antibodies and lessen the likelihood of an illness in the foal by providing better protection against diseases. This trial is using 15 pregnant mares, 8 of which are being provided the supplement and 7 are receiving a placebo. The supplement used is LIFELINE Elite, commonly marketed and used to reduce inflammation in performance horses, and contains the active ingredient BioThrive, which is derived from bovine serum. Lifeline is being supplemented in the mare’s grain at 115 gr twice per day beginning 60 days prior to the mare’s expected foaling date and continuing until 10 days after parturition. Once the mare foals, a 10 mL blood sample is collected from the foal within an hour and prior to the foal suckling for the first time. Blood is also collected around 30 hours post-partum. The IgG concentration in the blood samples will be tested this summer using an IgG ELISA. Colostrum samples were also collected at parturition and evaluated immediately for IgG concentrations. Two products are being used to test the colostrum. The Colostrometer, which is a hydrometer testing for specific gravity of a solution compared to distilled water, and the Brix Refractometer which measures the refractive index of a solution. Although research is still ongoing, colostrum data from 10 mares has been collected and the data is provided below. So far, the data does not appear to suggest an improvement in colostrum quality following supplementation

Investigation of exogenous GnRH and opioid antagonists, alone and in combination, on gonadotropin and ovulatory responses in transitional mares under various progesterone environments

During the spring between anestrous and the resumption of normal cyclicity, mares experience a transitional period characterized by increasing hormone concentrations and follicular development, along with the resumption of estrus behavior. Endogenous opioids have been observed to suppress GnRH in mares and therefore may play a role during anestrous and during this transitional period. Opioid antagonists and GnRH agonists have been previously used to induce mares to ovulate at the end or following the transitional period, but never in combination. This study examined transitional mares and their response to 1 of 3 treatments, as well as the conception rates after the first ovulation, with the hope to decrease time to the first ovulation and improve conception rates. Eighteen transitional mares were separated into 3 groups of 6 mares. One group received the opioid antagonist naloxone (0.5 mg/kg BW), the next received the GnRH agonist deslorelin (1 mL), and the final group received naloxone first followed by deslorelin 1 hour later. Mares in all treatment groups were first primed with exogenous progesterone (Regu-Mate) for 14 days, with blood samples collected on the 14th day of Regu-Mate treatment. This collection period represents Phase 1. Sampling for Phase 2 occurred when the mares had a follicle greater than 35mm following the cessation of Regu-Mate. Following sampling for Phase 2, all mares were bred to the same stallion the next day. Seven days post-ovulation, when endogenous progesterone was high, sampling for Phase 3 occurred, followed by a pregnancy check 14 days post-ovulation. During each phase, blood was drawn every 15 minutes from the mares, including an hour of pre-treatment baseline samples and 5 hours of post-treatment sampling. The plasma was harvested and frozen and will be analyzed for LH, FSH, and progesterone. The hypothesis is that the group receiving both treatments will have the highest LH and FSH levels, particularly at times of high progesterone levels (Phase 1 and 3). It is also theorized that this group will have a higher conception rate than the groups receiving either naloxone or deslorelin alone. Although all mares have yet to complete all phases and pregnancy checks, so far, the group receiving both treatments had fewer days on average between Phase 1 and 2 at 7 days, compared to 11.8 and 11.5 days for the naloxone and deslorelin groups respectively. The time between Phase 2 and ovulation is also shorter for the combination treatment group at an average of 3.5 days, compared to 4.4 and 6 days for the naloxone and deslorelin groups respectively

Beyond the Post: Exploring Equine Operators’ Understanding and Role in Conservation Best Management Practices

The equine industry is an established part of Maryland agriculture with 79,100 equines valued at approximately $714 million in the state; approximately 10% of these animals are housed in one county. Equine operators are a unique demographic in the agricultural realm, because they are not managing land to produce food or fiber and often are employed in other professions unrelated to agriculture. These operators tend to be unaware of land conservation practices and can have a detrimental effect on areas, like the Chesapeake Bay economy and ecosystem, if shared resources are exploited. The purpose of this study was to explore equine operators’ knowledge and connection of conservation best management practices (BMPs) and their role in being a caretaker of the land. The study was informed by the diffusion of innovations theory and gathered data through semi-structured, qualitative interviews. Equine operators in the study were found to use a variety of informational sources, had a high level of adoption of the BMPs they used, and overall, a majority of participants saw their role as caretakers of the land as an important aspect of their environmental actions. Recommendations from this research include improving communication processes to increase the spread of BMPs and adjusting specific infrastructure aspects to improve retention of equine operators practicing conservation efforts. Further research should investigate other niche areas of agriculture that could potentially be struggling with a knowledge deficit of BMPs and communication neglect between conservation offices and audiences