OCALA, FL—Kentucky Equine Research and Ocala Breeders’ Sales will present a seminar on March 24 entitled Beat the Heat: Feeding and Managing Performance Horses in Ocala. The seminar will be held at Golden Ocala Golf and Equestrian Club in Ocala starting at 6:00 p.m. EDT with Hors d’oeuvres and drinks at 5:30.

Admission is free and you can register here. 

Ocala/Marion County is the Horse Capital of the World® with more than 75,000 horses representing many different disciplines. While Ocala traditionally has been thought of as a seasonal venue for sport horses, it is now the year-round base for Thoroughbreds and for horses involved in many English and Western disciplines.

During much of the year, Ocala has ideal weather for horse-related activities, but it can be a challenging environment to manage competition horses during periods of higher temperatures and humidity. Heat stress can be a serious health issue for horses. Understanding how much heat a horse produces and how quickly the horse can dissipate it is important in deciding how to manage performance horses.

At this seminar Joe Pagan, Ph.D., founder and president of Kentucky Equine Research, will present important information related to feeding and managing performance horses in hot environments. He will also share some exciting studies from the company’s Ocala research facilities that will help horsemen better understand how heat and humidity affect horses during exercise and which cooling methods help horses most quickly recover after exercise.

There will also be a roundtable at 6:45 p.m. with special guests Aaron Vale with Thinkslikeahorse; and Jimbo Gladwell, who owns and operates Top Line Sales with his wife Torie.

Thinkslikeahorse is a full-service training facility in Williston, Fla., where Vale, a top Grand Prix rider, manages a stable of quality jumpers, hunters and equitation horses.

Top Line Sales is a national leading Thoroughbred consignment company located in Reddick, Fla., that provides a full array of Thoroughbred services. 

Return to the March 13 issue of Wire to Wire