Animal & Avian Sciences Theses and Dissertations
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2741
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Item CHARACTERIZING THE USE OF BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND MEASUREMENTS OF PASTURE AND SOIL QUALITY ON MARYLAND HORSE FARMS(2010) Fiorellino, Nicole; Burk, Amy O.; Animal Sciences; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Agricultural operations, including horse farms, have the potential to negatively affect the environment when managed improperly. The use of best management practices (BMPs) by horse farm operators are important for reducing their farms' environmental impact. Through the use of a mailed survey and field assessment, the use of BMPs on Maryland horse farms was characterized. In general, some BMPs were being used, especially restricting horses from surface water and maintaining vegetative cover. However, BMPs such as correct manure storage and rotational grazing had low adoption rates. A major finding was that soil erosion was a serious problem for most farms and topography, use of compacted materials, and maintenance of vegetative cover can predict occurrence of soil erosion. Results from these studies can aid in the development of future educational events designed to educate horse farm operators about adopting BMPs and preventing pollution of surface water.Item Effects of Diet and Weight Gain on Subcutaneous Body Fat Accretion Patterns and Adipocytokine Production in Thoroughbred Geldings(2007-05-08) Suagee, Jessica K; Burk, Amy O; Animal Sciences; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Fifteen Thoroughbred geldings on an eight month weight gain study were used to evaluate 1) the effects of weight gain and diet on body area (neck, withers, shoulders, ribs, loin, tailhead) condition scores, and 2) the effects of weight gain, diet, and exercise on serum concentrations of tumor necrosis factor-α. The body condition scoring system developed in Quarter horse was slightly modified for use Thoroughbred geldings and involved developing prediction equations that utilized a smaller subset of the body areas. Horses at a BCS of 4 were found to be at a higher risk of inflammation that horses at a BCS of 7. The degree of inflammation was similar between horses fed either a high starch and sugar diet or high fiber and fat diet, indicated by similar TNF concentrations. Restricting daily exercise for two weeks was associated with increased inflammation.