Influence of different levels of load on the metabolic profile of horses – A review

Livestock breeding has been carried out for several millennia based on an external assessment, i.e. exterior. Especially in horses that are bred for muscular work, the relationship between the shape of the body structure on the one hand and the purpose of use or performance on the other hand is very clear. At first glance, it is obvious that good horses in pull, jump or racing have different body shapes and not every formation of a body part provides a precondition for maximum performance. This knowledge has been known since the Middle Ages and led to the search for the ideal, the most beautiful or best animal. The performance of a sport and racing horse is conditioned not only by the quality of its gene pool, but also by many external factors. Of these, nutrition, the quality of breeding, the level of zootechnical care and, finally, the quality of the sports rider and coach dominate. An important factor is the process of adaptation to the load. The use of knowledge from the physiology of horse adaptation is the first step to intensify and improve the training process. The correct composition of the degree of load induces a whole complex of positive adaptive changes in trained individuals. Load limits must be set in such a way as to maintain all animal health requirements while achieving a high level of performance.