Virtual Horse Shows: Participants Perspective on a Novel Alternative During COVID-19 Pandemic☆.

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the availability of virtual horse showing opportunities. The objectives of this study were to describe survey participants' personal characteristics and participation in virtual and in-person horse shows, level of satisfaction, attitude toward technology and motivation to participate, and internal and external factors influencing the decision to participate in virtual horse shows. A survey was distributed to a target audience of adult horse show participants and/or adults supporting youth horse show participants via Qualtrics (n = 251). A majority of respondents (91.2%) reported benefits to participating in virtual horse shows, and 59.8% plan to continue showing virtually when in-person shows resume. The opportunity to show virtually has resulted in 76.1% of respondents anticipating increasing their participation in showing (in-person or virtual). An improvement in attitude toward technology (M =1.6; SD = 0.4; Range = 1.0-2.3) and an increase in motivation to participate, ride and show (M = 1.4; SD = 0.4; Range = 1.0-2.8) was also reported. In addition, respondents indicated they were somewhat likely to be influenced to participate in virtual shows by internal factors such as their budget and ability to record the ride. External factors such as feedback from judges, available divisions, and awards were extremely likely to influence their decision to participate. In conclusion, virtual horse shows have provided a satisfactory outlet to keep people engaged in the industry. Additional research should be done to determine if the current popularity of virtual horse showing persists once in-person shows have fully resumed.

Early Evidence of the Economic Effects of COVID-19 on the Horse Show Industry in 2020.

The COVID-19 pandemic affected the economic status of all sectors of the global economy including the horse show industry. Reporting the impact of COVID-19 on in-person horse shows and an early assessment of its impact on the economy was the objective of this study. A Qualtrics survey instrument was disseminated to horse show participants through social media pages and email (n = 251). A majority of respondents were females (95.6%) representing a cross-section of the United States (84.0%). Participants reported planning to attend an average of 9.7 (SD = 7.15) in-person horse shows in 2020 but were unable to attend an average of 4.17 (SD = 3.11) due to COVID-19 restrictions. Participants reported spending a mean of $991 (SD = $648.26) per show on horse show-related expenses, or $9,609 annually. The American Horse Council (2018) reported that 1,227,986 horses comprise the competition sector, with each horse owner showing 1.57 horses.  This participation generates $7.5B in expenses annually. The reduced attendance at in-person shows resulted in a decrease in annual expenditures, suggesting economic losses of $3.23 billion. The quantified direct effects were used in the IMPLAN input-output model to estimate the total economic impact. The reduced attendance resulted in a reduction of $7.2 billion, and a reduction of approximately 50,000 jobs within the horse show industry. Additionally, the industry's contribution to GDP (value added) was reduced by $3.95 billion. Early assessments of the economic impact associated with a reduction of in-person horse showing is vital to understanding the long-term implications for the industry.

Rider Energy Expenditure During High Intensity Horse Activity.

Despite the fact that horseback riding is a popular sport, there is little information available on horseback riding as a physical activity. The objective of this experiment was to quantify energy expenditure of participants (n=20) during three riding tests: a 45min walk-trot-canter ride (WTC), a reining pattern ride and a cutting simulation ride while wearing a telemetric gas analyzer. Total energy expenditure (tEE), mean and peak metabolic equivalents of task (MET), heart rate (HR), respiratory frequency (RF), relative oxygen consumption (relVO2), and respiratory exchange ratio (RER) were assessed. Mean MET and HR responses were greater (P < .05) for riders during the long trot portion of the WTC (6.19 ± 0.21 MET, 152.14 ± 4.4 bpm) and cutting (4.53±0.21 MET, 146.88 ± 4.4 bpm) vs the overall WTC (3.81 ± 0.16 MET, 131.5 ± 4.2 bpm). When WTC was evaluated by gait, mean MET increased as gait speed increased. As expected, METs were greater (P < .05) for riders during long trot (6.19 ± 0.21 MET) and canter (5.95 ± 0.21 MET) than during the walk (2.01 ± 0.21 MET) or trot (3.2 ± 0.21 MET). Previous horseback riding studies have not reported METs, but the peaks of all three activities in the present study were similar to METs measured during activities like jogging, playing soccer and rugby. Riders engaged in cutting and reining experienced more intense exercise in short durations, while, as expected on the basis of the duration of the activity, WTC provided a greater overall total energy expenditure. These results suggest that it is possible for health benefits to be achieved through accumulated horseback riding exercise, particularly if riding at the more intense gaits.

Influence of diet fortification on body composition and apparent digestion in mature horses consuming a low-quality forage.

Stock-type mares (498 ± 9 kg BW; 12 ± 7 yr) were used in a completely randomized design for 56 d to test the hypothesis that concentrate fortification improves apparent digestion and enhances lean mass over the topline. Horses were stratified by age, BW, and BCS and randomly assigned to either a custom pelleted concentrate (CON; n = 13), or an iso-caloric, iso-nitrogenous pellet that included amino acid fortification, complexed trace minerals, and fermentation metabolites (FORT; n = 10). Concentrate was offered at a total 0.75% BW/d (as-fed) twice daily, and diets were designed to meet or exceed maintenance requirements for mature horses. Horses had ad libitum access to Coastal bermudagrass hay (7.4% CP, 67% NDF, and 40% ADF). Every 14 d BW and BCS were recorded, and ultrasound images were captured every 28 d. longissimus dorsi area (LDA) and subcutaneous fat thickness (FT) were measured between the 12th and 13th ribs (12th/13th) and 17th and 18th ribs (17th/18th). Intramuscular fat at the 17th/18th ribs and rump fat-thickness were also obtained. Horses were dosed with 10 g/d of titanium dioxide (TiO2) for 14 d to estimate forage dry matter intake (DMI). To account for diurnal variation, fecal samples were collected twice daily at 12-h intervals during the last 4 days, advancing by 3 h each day to represent a 24-h period. Fecal samples were composited by horse and analyzed for TiO2 to estimate fecal output and acid detergent insoluble ash was used to calculate forage DMI. To evaluate body composition, horses were infused with a 0.12 g/kg BW deuterium oxide (D2O) on d 0 and 56. Body fat percentage (BF) was determined by quantifying D2O in plasma samples collected at pre- and 4-h postinfusion via mass spectrometry. All data were analyzed using PROC MIXED (SAS v9.4). The model contained a fixed effect of diet; horse (diet) was a random effect. Horses receiving FORT gained 17th/18th FT (P < 0.01) and increased 17th/18th LDA from d 0 to 56 (P < 0.01) while 17th/18th FT and LDA were unchanged in CON. Regardless of diet, BF estimated by D2O infusion increased in all horses from d 0 to 56 (P < 0.01). Average hay DMI was 2.1% BW, but did not differ between diets. In this study, concentrate fortification did not significantly (P ≥ 0.27) affect apparent digestion. In conclusion, concentrate fortification may promote greater muscle development along the posterior topline.

Development of a mathematical model for predicting digestible energy intake to meet desired body condition parameters in exercising horses.

Maintaining optimal body condition is an important concern for horse owners and managers as it can affect reproductive efficiency, athletic ability, and overall health of the horse; however, information regarding dietary requirements to maintain or alter BCS in the horse is limited. A recently developed model had high accuracy in predicting the energy required to alter BCS in the horse. However, the model was restricted to sedentary mares, while many horses are subject to physical work. The objective of this study was to expand the scope of that model to include exercising horses by incorporating previously published estimates of exercise energy expenditure and then testing the expanded model. Stock type horses (n = 24) were grouped by initial BCS (3.0 to 6.5) and assigned to treatments of light (L), heavy (H), or no-exercise control (C). Horses were fed according to the model recommendations to increase (I) or decrease (D) two BCS within 60 d. Thus, six treatments were obtained: HD, HI, LD, LI, CD, CI. Mean DE intake Mcal/d for each group was HD = 19.3 ± 0.90, HI = 29 ± 0.84, LD = 13.2 ± 0.54, LI = 23.1 ± 1.39, CD = 12.1 ± 0.79, and CI = 21.9 ± 0.94. BCSs were evaluated by three independent appraisers, days 0 and 60 values were used to calculate the average BCS change for HD = -0.88 ± 0.24, HI = 1.13 ± 0.24, LD = -1.5 ± 0.29, LI = 0.88 ± 0.38, CD = -1.38 ± 0.13, and CI = 1.35 ± 0.14. Statistical comparison of final observed and model predicted values revealed acceptable precision when predicting BCS and BW respectively in control horses (r2 = 0.91, 0.98) but less precision when predicting body fat (BF) (r2 = 0.51). Model precision for BCS, BW, and BF respectively in lightly (r2 = 0.29, 0.85, 0.57) and heavily (r2 = 0.04, 0.84, 0.13) exercised horses was low. Model accuracy was acceptable across all treatments when predicting BW (Cb = 0.97, 0.96, 0.98). However, accuracy varied when predicting BCS (Cb = 0.82, 0.89, 0.41) and BF (Cb = 0.80, 0.55, 0.87) for the control, light, and heavy exercise groups, respectively. These results indicate that the revised model is acceptable for sedentary horses but the predictability of the model was insensitive to the exercising horse, therefore the exercise energy expenditure formulas incorporated into the model require revision. Packaging this model in a format that facilitates industry application could lead to more efficient feeding practices of sedentary horses, generating health, and economic benefit. Further investigation into energy expenditure of exercising horses could yield a model with broader applications.