Evaluation of the effect of the use of vitamin, mineral and amino acid supplements on the quality and growth of foals hoofs

• Grant number: 22/01709-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: June 01, 2022
• End date: June 28, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Animal Husbandry - Animal Nutrition and Feeding
• Principal Investigator: Alexandre Augusto de Oliveira Gobesso
• Grantee: Ana Maria Linhares Cavalcanti
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 22/11726-1 - Evaluation of feeding practices and use of supplements among athlete horse owners in the state of Texas, USA, BE.EP.IC

Abstract

Knowing the damage caused by the poor quality of equine hooves and the possible impairment of their performance, the objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of the use of food supplements on the growth and quality of crossbred foals' hooves, in addition to their development. The experiment will be conducted on the premises of LabEqui/FMVZ/USP on Campus Fernando Costa. Eighteen crossbred foals, males and females, will be used, with an approximate age of 13 months and an average weight of 310±66 kg. The foals will receive 2.5% of the weight in dry matter, featuring a forage/concentrate ratio of 60:40, following the NRC 2007 recommendations to meet the nutritional requirements of the category. Mineral salt and water will be provided ad libitum. The experimental design used will be completely randomized, with repeated measurements over time. The treatments will be composed by: 1) Control Group; 2) Supplemented Group. The evaluation period will last six months, and monthly the growth of the hoof wall and zootechnical parameters of development will be evaluated, such as weight, height at the withers, thoracic perimeter, knee perimeter, and shin perimeter, in addition to a body condition score. To evaluate the quality of the hull, a mineralogram will be performed every two months. The results will be subjected to analysis of variance and the means compared by Tukey's test, at a significance level of 5%, using the PROC MIXED of the Statistical Analysis System (SAS, 9.0). It is hoped, with this study, to contribute to the use of food supplements in the health of the equine horny case, in addition to favoring the digestive health and agribusiness of the horse.(AU)