Athletic productionis what is sought from the horse. As mammary development is important to thedairy cow, skeletal development is important to horses meeting their productiongoals. As any integrative physiologist will appreciate, the variables that cometogether to result in optimal skeletal development are complex. Nutrition isone of these, and it contains two broad variables; the supply of dietary nutrientsand energy. This presentation will focus on dietary energy and its links withskeletal development. I propose that it is not simply the amount of dietaryenergy, but the way and from that that energy is supplied that impacts skeletaldevelopment. Through an understanding of how dietary energy impact skeletaldevelopment, more precise feeding management strategies can be developed toreduce the risk of skeletal abnormalities and even potentially improve skeletalintegrity.
