1 – Equine Industry Flashcards
What is the lifespan of a horse?
- 25-30+ years
Mare
- Mature female horse, greater than 4 years
Stallion
- Mature male horse, intact, greater than 4 years
Gelding
- Castrated male horse
o Usually done between 6 months to 2 years
Filly
- Immature female horse, less than 4 years
Colt
- Immature male horse, less than 4 years
Hands high (HH)
- Measurement of horse from ground to withers
- 1 hand=4 inches
Broke
- Horse is trained to be ridden
Green
- Horse is inexperienced
Lungeing/longeing
- Exercise or training technique where horse is moved around a handler in a circle on a long line
Horse breeds and categories
- More than 200 breeds
o Hot blood, cold blood, warm blood
o Heavy horses/draft and light horses
o Ponies, miniature
o Saddle horses, harness horses
o Registered, grade horse
Draft horse/heavy horses characteristics and height
- Tall
- Muscular
- Broad back
- *feathered distal limbs
- *16-19 HH
- Ex. Clydesdale, belgian
Draft horse/heavy horses uses
- Bred to pull
o Farming, log carts, wagons, sleigh, showing - Riding in a variety of sports
- Harness may be used as a single or a team
Warmblood/medium weight horses characteristics and height
- More refined features than draft horses w/o feather
- 15-18 HH
- Ex. Hanoverian, trakehner
Warmblood/medium weight horses ‘classification’ and uses
- ‘open studbooks’
o Do not require 2 pure blood parents
o Accept animals of similar phenotypes to improve the breed - Bred to excel at competitive English riding (dressage and jumping)
Light horse characteristics and height
- Specific characteristics
- Generally small/lighter in build
- *greater 14.2 HH
- Ex. Arabian, WH, throughbred, paint horse
Light horse uses
- Specific sport or used or pleasure
o Track racing, cow horse/western sports
o Halter
o Harness
Pony phenotypically distinct features and height
- Thicker coat, mane, tail
- Short/stocky legs
- Wider barrels
- Shorter/thicker neck
- Broad forehead
- *shorter than 14.2HH
- Ex. Shetland, welse
Pony uses
- Riding
- Sport
- Pull carts
- *sure-footedness (backcountry riding)
Miniature horse characteristics
- Legs longer than body is deep
- More refined structure than small ponies
- *less than 8.2 HH
- Ex. American miniature horses
Miniature horse uses
- Companion animals
- Harness
- In-hand sport
What makes up 2/3rds of the worlds equid population?
- Donkeys and mules
- *working animals
What are the 3 common sizes of donkeys and mules?
- Miniature
- Standard (small and large varieties)
- Mammoth
What is a mule?
- 63 chromosomes=INFERTILE
- Highly versatile
o Strength, endurance and surefootedness of donkey
o Athletic ability and speed of a horse - *used for work and sport
Jack and jenny
- Jack: male donkey
- Jenny: female donkey
Mule and hinny
- Mule: horse dam, donkey sire
- Hinny: donkey dam, horse sire
Mare/molly
- Female mule
Horse mule/john mule
- Male mule
Hule and jule
- Hule: Horse sire, mule dam
o Example in class - Jule: donkey sire, mule dam
- *BOTH ARE RARE (don’t normally have a fertile mule)
What are the different wild equids?
- Feral horses
- Mustangs
- Prezwalski’s horse
- Zebra (32-46 chromosomes)
- Wild assess
Feral horses
- Multiple populations in Canada (AB, BC, SK, Sable Island)
Mustangs
- Free roaming horses (feral) in Western US
o Descended from Spanish Horses - Managed by Bureau of Land Management
Prezwalski’s horse
- Endangered horse native to central Asia
- 66 chromosomes
- 12-14 HH (shorter), 300 kg
- *Dun markings (light sandy colour with dark dorsal stripe on back and distal limbs, mane and tail)
- stocky
What are the ID methods of equids?
- Hot iron or freeze brand
- Microchip (in lip)
- Tattoo (but often fades with time)
- *registration papers
- DNA or Coggins (EIA) test papers
- passports
Breed registries
- many breeds represented by national or international breed registry/association
- qualification is usually based on parents
o closed stud book
o open stud book - some have genetic, conformational or height requirements
Closed stud book
- 2 pure bred parents
- No outside bloodlines accepted
- Ex. thoroughbreds, trakenhner
Open stud book
- Animals may be registered even if parents are not
o Most warmbloods
o Semi open for quarter horses
Genetic testing for breed registry (Arabian, American Quarter Horse, Friesian)
- Arabian: parentage test but test for common diseases
- American Quarter horse: 5+ test for breed stock
- Friesian: DNA test stallions for breeding, mares and foals need parentage verification
What are some breed specific disorders that are genetically tested for?
- Connemara pony hoof wall separation disease
- Equine familial isolated hypoparathyroidism (throughbred)
- Junctional epidermolysis bullosa (Belgians)
- Warmblood fragile foal syndrome type 1
Colour genetics
- Some testing is done if want a specific colour
- Some colours are linked to genetic diseases
Overo lethal white syndrome associated with what gene?
- Homozygous for overo coat colour pattern gene
o Mostly dark but some white over them (‘paint horse’)
what is silver dilution associated with?
- Multiple congenital ocular anomalies
What is the grey gene associated with?
- Increased risk of melanoma
What is leopard complex associated with?
- Congenital stationary night blindness in appaloosas
Walk
- 4 beat gait with each foot hitting ground independently
Trot
- 2 beat diagonal gait with contralateral limbs moving synchronously
Canter
- 3 beat gait
- L lead: left is inside the circle
o RH, LH+RF, LF
Gallop
- 3-4 beat gait
o Same as canter, except diagonal hind foot hits ground slightly before front foot
Gaited horses
- Unique gait specific to certain breeds
- Claimed to be a ‘smoother rid’
- Ex. American standard bred: trot or pace (2 beat unilateral gait)
What are the uses of horses in the equine industry?
- Sport
- Recreation
- Companionship
- Breeding
- Labour (mounted police, ranch, logging, transport)
- Teaching and research
- Equine therapy
- Production: PMU and meat
- Entertainment
- Tourism
What breeds are used for flat racing?
- Thoroughbred
- Quarter horse
- Arabian
What breeds are used for harness racing?
- Standardbreds
o Pacer, trotters
What are the different English disciplines?
- Dressage
- Jumper
- Hunter
- 3-day eventing
- Polo
- Polo cross
- Endurance
What is judged in dressage?
- Ability to perform graceful dancelike movements that seem effortless
What is judged in jumpers?
- How quickly a course can be completed with as few faults as possible
What is judged in hunters?
- Accuracy, grace and elegance of completing a set out course
What is 3-day eventing?
- Single horse and rider compete in dressage, show jumping and cross country
What are the breeds for pulling (weighting) competitions?
- Draft breeds
o Shire
o Clydesdale
o Percheron
o Belgian
What is driving (6-horse hitch)?
- Showcase ability to work in team and at different paces in show ring
- Turnout (appearance) is important
What is combined driving?
- 4 horses of lighter breeds, similar appearance, working well together
- 3 phase event
o Dressage, cross country and timed obstacle course
What is chuckwagon racing?
- Team of 4 horses perform a figure 8 around 2 barrels and then race around tack against multiple other teams
- Each team supported by 2-4 outriders
o 24-32 horses on track at once - Breeds: usually TB (can have pony chucks)
Rodeo
- Timed events that have stemmed from different aspects of ranch work and life
- Ex. bronc riding, barrel racing, pick up horses)
Western show ring
- Classes and disciples that emphasize horsemanship and skills and movements adapted from working cattle
Ranch horse work and competitions
- Competitive disciplines based on practical skills that horses working with cattle are expected to perform
What is halter classes or ‘competitions’?
- Show off breed specific characteristics
- Judged on conformation
- Halter horses: ‘epitome’ of what the breed should look like
Vaulting
- Acrobatic gymnastics on back of moving horse
- horse is controlled by lunger
- horse wears a surcingle with hand grips and stirrup loops for vaulter to grasp
Horses as production animals
- manure: fertilizer
- leather
- meat
- hair: violine strings, jewellery
- serum: culture media
- hormones: Premarin
- glue and milk
Pregnant mares urine
- used as estrogen source in the drug Premarin (Pfizer)
o hormone replacement therapy for post-menopausal women - commonly draft horses (get more urine from a bigger horse, but byproduct=foals had little use)
- *most now raise QH foals
o Sold as weanlings
o Performance and ranch horse prospects - Not as much of an industry now
