Transporting Horses: How to Minimize the Stress
Written By: Dr. Jay Altman
As our society has become more and more mobile over the past few decades, so have our horses. The fact that more and more horse owners use their horses for competitive events and that these events have shifted into more and larger regional, national and international events, has lead to increased road and air time for our horses. Most horse owners that have transported their horses any distance have at some point thought of the stress that might be imposed on their companion and teammate. But, the fact is, historically we have not spent much time, effort or money analyzing or studying the types of stress and physiologic impact that long transport has on the health and performance of our athletes. Even worse, many of our methods of transport have just been taken as "a given", not being questioned or reviewed, simply being followed.
The following discussion is centered on ground transport by truck, van or trailer and although air transport does create very similar stresses, it will not be addressed here. Within the past few years there has been some effort to embark on scientific studies of the effect of transport on horses. Furthermore there have been efforts made to compare the configuration of different traditional stall configurations with an eye toward improving the design of transport vehicles, and reducing pressures and stress on the horses. Hopefully, as the research continues and people adjust transport to benefit from the new information, we can limit the consequences of sick and injured as well as poorly performing horses.
For many horses transport is a necessary and frequent part of their life. Horses will vary in their ability to adapt to and endure the stress of transportation. For many horses transportation is a highly stressful event. Factors that contribute to stress include physical factors such as confinement, motion, noise, jarring of the road, withholding of food and/or water, muscle fatigue, and changes in climatic factors such as temperature and humidity. Additionally there are psychological stresses such as separation from the herd and exposure to unfamiliar environments and or animals. For these reasons, horses being transported are more susceptible to acute injuries and diseases including colic, diarrhea, pneumonia, laminitis and soft tissue as well as orthopedic fatigue and inflammation.
In a study conducted by researchers from both California State University and the University of California, numerous physiologic responses to long distance transport were investigated. 15 mature, healthy horses that were experienced travelers were studied. The horses underwent 24 hours of road transport, during the heat of summer, followed by a 24-hour rest and recovery period. Through both the transit and the recovery phase, horses were monitored for general health parameters including body weight, rectal temperature, and white blood cell count. Dehydration, muscle fatigue and stress were also monitored through blood parameters.
Horses in the study lost an average of about 6% of body weight, most likely due to heat dissipation, sweat loss and decreased water intake during transit. These horses did recover 50% of their weight loss within 24 hours after transport.
