The Essentials of Horse Nutrition: An Intelligent Approach to Equine Feeds and Feeding

The Essentials of Horse Nutrition unlocks the secrets of a healthier, happier horse by helping readers understand the foundations of equine nutritional care. The book is an important resource toolkit containing the basic feeding considerations for horses, and introduces issues for minis, ponies and donkeys.

This comprehensive guide offers the following features:

- A Historical Perspective: Discover how horses have evolved and how their unique digestive system affects their health and dietary needs.
- Digestion Fundamentals: Explore the complex world of nutrient processing, from absorption to assimilation. The result is the production of the essential building blocks of life.
- Feeding Fundamentals: Uncover the science behind different feed types, including growing, harvesting, storage, and laboratory assay for nutrients.
- Supplement Fundamentals: Build an understanding of the roles of these ration add-ons for enhancement of performance and wellness, or to top up nutrient deficiencies.
- Personalized Feed Plan Formulation: Learn how to design a plan to support optimal growth, maintenance, performance, reproductive health, and for aging and geriatric horses. Develop feeding practices based on your horse's unique needs, lifestyle, environment, and feed availability.
- Individualized Care Fundamentals: Explore the care of special needs horses. Prevention and management of select nutrition-related conditions is briefly covered.

Dr. Kathleen Crandell holds an MS in Equine Nutrition and Exercise Physiology and a PhD in Equine Nutrition and Reproduction from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech). Kathleen has been working in the equine nutrition industry for over thirty years, striving to improve the industry's understanding of optimal equine feeding management. She was Superintendent of the Middleburg Agricultural Research and Extension Center (MARE Center). She is a nutritional consultant to Kentucky Equine Research (KER), working with feed mills with feed formulation, and horse farms and individual horse owners with feeding programs. She has written articles for popular equine publications, scientific journals and book chapters, and has been an invited speaker for local horse meetings, and national and international equine and veterinary conventions. She is the instructor for the Advanced Equine Nutrition course at Equine Guelph/University of Guelph, OpenEd. Kathleen was awarded three John H. Daniels Fellowships by the National Sporting Library in Middleburg, Virginia to research historical equine nutrition management and metabolic disease. Kathleen is a member of the Equine Science Society and the American Academy of Veterinary Nutrition. She has bred Thoroughbreds and Arabian horses as well as enjoyed competing in Endurance and Competitive Trail Riding. Currently, she takes pleasure in trail riding her retired endurance horses.

Dr. Kathleen Cavanagh holds a Bachelor of Science (Hon. Specialized Genetics), Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, (Retired, Emeritus), and Master of Educational Technology. Kathleen was a licensed veterinarian in Ontario, Canada and the United States (New York State). She taught Equine Nutrition for many years in the Equine Science program at Equine Guelph/University of Guelph, OpenEd. A recipient of the George Rankin Equine Memorial Scholarship, she owned and managed horse facilities, taught riding (including co-managing an all-abilities riding program) and trained and showed horses. Kathleen founded a media company that produced learning materials for thirty years. She applied her educational technology training as developer and project manager, writer, and editor for both public outreach and veterinarian continuing education projects.

Shirley ("Shirle") Ternan holds a Master of Education in Distance Learning and has been a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Management Accountant for over thirty years. She also earned an Equine Studies Diploma and an Equine Science Certificate from Equine Guelph/University of Guelph OpenEd, graduating with distinction and has studied Advanced Equine Nutrition with Dr. Crandell. Shirle worked as a Peer Helper in Equine Nutrition and several other equine courses at Guelph and served as an online Guest Speaker in financial management for Guelph's Equine Business Management course. Shirle is an active volunteer in her community and, for many years, has engaged in equine therapeutic riding and handling programs. Shirle continues to ride her 21-year-old spotted draft mare in Western Pleasure as well as the mare's foal, who is now 11 years old. Shirle enjoys carriage driving her draft mare, a calm and solid-minded horse. In addition, she has a 32-year-old thoroughbred (ex-jumping partner) as well as a miniature horse. Shirle continues to be a proactive advocate and steward committed to her horses' wellness, each presenting unique challenges regarding their nutritional management.