Effects of Knotweed-Enriched Feed on the Blood Characteristics and Fitness of Horses
The aboveground biomass of dry knotweed was administered daily to large groups of young (1- to 3-year-old) stallions of the Czech Warmblood, Czech-Moravian Coldblood and Silesian Norik breeds, fed individually for 4 and 6 months in two successive winter experiments. Their fitness was compared with c...
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MDPI AG
2022-01-01
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| Series: | Agriculture |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/12/1/109 |
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| author | Marcela Kovářová Petr Maděra Tomáš Frantík Jan Novák Štěpán Vencl |
| author_facet | Marcela Kovářová Petr Maděra Tomáš Frantík Jan Novák Štěpán Vencl |
| author_sort | Marcela Kovářová |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The aboveground biomass of dry knotweed was administered daily to large groups of young (1- to 3-year-old) stallions of the Czech Warmblood, Czech-Moravian Coldblood and Silesian Norik breeds, fed individually for 4 and 6 months in two successive winter experiments. Their fitness was compared with control groups consisting of equally numerous subgroups comparable in age, breed, body mass and initial blood parameters. The effects of knotweed on the horses’ fitness were evaluated based on changes in blood characteristics. Even if administered in small amounts, 150 g per day, knotweed could (1) increase the thrombocyte numbers, (2) increase the globulin content (thus improving the horses’ immunity, which is desired in large groups of animals), (3) stimulate lipid metabolism in cold-blooded horses and (4) decrease the concentration of cholesterol. The long-lasting effect of knotweed on both the urea and triglyceride–cholesterol ratio presumably reflected, between the two experiments, the temporary protein starvation of horses on pastures with poor quality of grass in a dry summer. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:09:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e43ab714b741431a8d6f70469377adf3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-0472 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T03:09:01Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
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| series | Agriculture |
| spelling | doaj.art-e43ab714b741431a8d6f70469377adf32023-11-23T12:36:23ZengMDPI AGAgriculture2077-04722022-01-0112110910.3390/agriculture12010109Effects of Knotweed-Enriched Feed on the Blood Characteristics and Fitness of HorsesMarcela Kovářová0Petr Maděra1Tomáš Frantík2Jan Novák3Štěpán Vencl4Department of Forest Botany, Dendrology and Geobiocoenology, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1665/1, 613 00 Brno, Czech RepublicDepartment of Forest Botany, Dendrology and Geobiocoenology, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1665/1, 613 00 Brno, Czech RepublicDepartment of Forest Botany, Dendrology and Geobiocoenology, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1665/1, 613 00 Brno, Czech RepublicDibaq, Helvíkovice 90, 564 01 Žamberk, Czech RepublicVeterinary Laboratory, Jirchářská 217, 517 41 Kostelec nad Orlicí, Czech RepublicThe aboveground biomass of dry knotweed was administered daily to large groups of young (1- to 3-year-old) stallions of the Czech Warmblood, Czech-Moravian Coldblood and Silesian Norik breeds, fed individually for 4 and 6 months in two successive winter experiments. Their fitness was compared with control groups consisting of equally numerous subgroups comparable in age, breed, body mass and initial blood parameters. The effects of knotweed on the horses’ fitness were evaluated based on changes in blood characteristics. Even if administered in small amounts, 150 g per day, knotweed could (1) increase the thrombocyte numbers, (2) increase the globulin content (thus improving the horses’ immunity, which is desired in large groups of animals), (3) stimulate lipid metabolism in cold-blooded horses and (4) decrease the concentration of cholesterol. The long-lasting effect of knotweed on both the urea and triglyceride–cholesterol ratio presumably reflected, between the two experiments, the temporary protein starvation of horses on pastures with poor quality of grass in a dry summer.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/12/1/109stallionbioactive compoundsimmunitylipidscholesterol |
| spellingShingle | Marcela Kovářová Petr Maděra Tomáš Frantík Jan Novák Štěpán Vencl Effects of Knotweed-Enriched Feed on the Blood Characteristics and Fitness of Horses Agriculture stallion bioactive compounds immunity lipids cholesterol |
| title | Effects of Knotweed-Enriched Feed on the Blood Characteristics and Fitness of Horses |
| title_full | Effects of Knotweed-Enriched Feed on the Blood Characteristics and Fitness of Horses |
| title_fullStr | Effects of Knotweed-Enriched Feed on the Blood Characteristics and Fitness of Horses |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of Knotweed-Enriched Feed on the Blood Characteristics and Fitness of Horses |
| title_short | Effects of Knotweed-Enriched Feed on the Blood Characteristics and Fitness of Horses |
| title_sort | effects of knotweed enriched feed on the blood characteristics and fitness of horses |
| topic | stallion bioactive compounds immunity lipids cholesterol |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/12/1/109 |
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