title: Clinical assessment of nutritional status and feeding programs in horses.
abstract: Veterinarians are a primary source of nutritional information and advice for horse owners. This article reviews methods for clinical assessment of nutritional status and feeding programs that can be applied to an individual horse or group of horses. Physical examination, including measurement of body weight and evaluation of body condition score, estimation of nutrient requirements and the nutrient content of the horse's diet, and evaluation of the feeding method are important components of the assessment. Ongoing clinical assessment of health and body condition will gauge the need for reassessment of the feeding plan. Obvious indications for prompt reevaluation of diet and feeding include changes in health status (eg, body condition), life stage or physiologic state (eg, pregnancy), or performance status.
authors.affiliation: Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, Duckond Drive, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA. ivetak@vt.edu
authors.forename: Iveta
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Becvarova
authors.forename: R Scott
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Pleasant
authors.forename: Craig D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Thatcher
mesh_terms: D000821:Animal Feed / Q000032:analysis*; D000822:Animal Husbandry; D000824:Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D000818:Animals; D001823:Body Composition; D001835:Body Weight; D004032:Diet / Q000662:veterinary; D006736:Horses / Q000502:physiology*; D009752:Nutritional Status / Q000502:physiology*; D010808:Physical Examination / Q000662:veterinary