Prevention of Developmental Orthopedic Disease: 

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    Prevention of DOD in the horse industry is the key to reducing costly treatments as well as time consuming care and should be a high priority for horse owners [15]. Fortunately, there are a variety of recommendations for reducing the occurrence of DOD through prevention measures. Specific classifications of the disease do not have a set course of action, but the recommendations can be applied to all forms of DOD as they may be interrelated conditions. Prevention methods regularly implemented are those of nutrition and exercise as they are more rapidly applied and can be practiced by everyone. Other factors are at play for the onset of DOD however, including trauma and genetics. 

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Breeder Considerations:

Breeders play a part through monitoring the growth of the foals they produce and adjusting future breeding decisions accordingly [6]. A larger sized horse is potentially more at risk for development of DOD and so both nutrition and breeding aspects need to be considered to prevent the disease [16]. Genetic evidence indicates that specific genes are involved in the development of DOD, therefore breeder’s should ensure the dam and sire do not have histories of DOD or tendencies of rapid growth prior to breeding [17]. In another study, mares outside the 10-15 year old range had greater risk for osteochondritis dissecans (a specific form of DOD) in their foals [18]. An adjustment to these age parameters for equine breeders could reduce revenue as less foals could be produced each year, but less cases of DOD will improve the welfare for equines in the long run, thus enhancing breeder credibility in the equine community.

 

Owner Considerations:

The specific form of DOD, physitis, is seen more often in heavy-topped foals and yearlings, and increased occurrences are seen with hard or dry ground conditions [10]. Mitigating this disease could be done through limited exercise on the unforgiving ground that is hard/dry, and restricting feed rations to limit excessive weight.

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Prevention through Nutrition:

Ensuring a proper nutritional diet in young, growing horses is a key step in prevention of DOD. Providing adequate mineral rations and balanced supplements will promote healthy growth and reduce the risk of DOD. Avoid overfeeding and excess energy intake as a rapid growth rate and increased body fat in foals are key factors in the onset of the diseases [7]. When determining the underlying cause of DOD, it is vital to evaluate mixed feed formulations and supplements for potential nutrient imbalances [19]. Analyze hay and grain annually, allow nursing foals small frequent meals, avoid excess supplementation, and prevent feeding excess energy [20]. For a more detailed explanation on nutritional aspects of DOD, please see the nutrition section of this website.

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Exercise Considerations:

A regularly studied topic for reducing the occurrence of DOD is the exercise intensity of the foal. There are various aspects as to what amount of exercise should be allowed for the growing foal and at what stage. The benefit of sufficient exercise is to allow proper bone impaction and cartilage formation [21]. Therefore, unrestricted exercise in foals is recommended by one study to reduce the cases of DOD [6]. Similarly, horses confined are shown to be more prone to the disease being present than those given free-range exercise [22]. This is even seen in cases with adequate nutrition as the lack of exercise leads to poor formed bone density for these horses; However, issues with the disease are also seen if unlimited and excessive exercise is allowed [10]. Specifically, angular limb deformities and physitis are observed more often in horses less than a year old that engage in excessive exercise activities. Due to these limitations, daily pasture access is ideal to allow self-regulating exercise for limited times throughout the day. Prevention of overweight horses through monitoring excessive feeding and moderating exercise can be guided through use of body condition scoring your horse to ensure their weight is ideal. Growing horses should have access to large pastures to practice some irregular exercise but should not be over-exercised as it can cause stress on bones, joints, and growth plates [18]. For exercise related conditions, in order to reduce the risk of DOD, limiting free access to more than 1 hectare of land for foals under two weeks of age and more than 6 hectares of land for foals less than two months of age is advised [18]. Also, free exercise as opposed to sporadic periods of activity was reported to reduce the cases of osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) in the foals. These rather easy adjustments for foal caregivers can potentially offer a simple suggestion for future husbandry.

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