I BLAME the evil horse food corporations: Fat horses face health problems.
As with humans, physiological adaptation can’t keep up:
Horses today are managed much differently from their evolutionary roots, indicated Dr. Pleasant. “The horse evolved as a free-roaming grazer on sparse pasture types,†he said. Later the horse served primarily as a work animal, serving as a source of transportation and draft power. Today, most horses serve as companions and light performance animals, he said.
It’s always sad when (as was the case with Barbaro) an injury or condition that would be merely painful and inconvenient for a person takes the life of a horse. Good to see the vet school and CALS working on these kinds of problems. Any added knowledge applicable to humans is a nice bonus:
Human health may also substantially benefit from this study, according to Dr. Thatcher, because humans suffering from obesity experience chronic inflammation. If obese horses are also found to suffer from chronic inflammation, the possibility would then exist for the horse to serve as an animal model for the study of obesity in people for the very first time.