PARIS STUDENT FINISHES EQUINE RESEARCH WITH PURINA'S HELP

For Immediate Release/05-01-07/Kate Holt

COMMERCE, Texas - Lindsey Johnson, a Texas A&M University-Commerce agricultural sciences student from Paris who will graduate on May 12, has completed a two-month study that determined a more efficient way to breed mares out of season.

Her experiment for her master's thesis was made possible by a donation she garnered from Purina Mills for feed.

"Equine studies are usually impossible without feed donations due to the cost of feeding animals," Johnson said. "Purina made a huge donation by feeding 12 horses for our long trial."

The donation proved to be good for the horses as well. Purina Horseman's Edge 4 percent protein sweet feed actually increased all of the horses' body condition by at least one point on a 1-9 scale, Johnson said.

The two-month long trial involved using light emitting diode (LED) lights, a less expensive and more energy efficient light, instead of fluorescent or incandescent lights to bring mares into early ovulation.

This is important because many breed associations have set Jan. 1 as the official birth date for all foals born that year. This gives foals born closer to that date the advantage when competing.

Mares are seasonal breeders, and they tend to breed in the spring and summer. With a gestation period of 11 to 12 months, mares would give birth later in the year than desired. The use of lights can bring them into ovulation out of season. This has been done for years using fluorescent and incandescent lights, but Johnson found a new source of light that worked.

"The results were that the LED light did work just as efficiently as the fluorescent lights," said Johnson. "They can be used as a new source of lighting to bring mares into early estrus with more energy efficiency."

Since LED lights result in a cheaper electricity bill because of their energy efficiency, Johnson's research could be significant for the equine community.

After graduating with her master's degree, she hopes to pursue a career in the agricultural field as a teacher or a sales representative.


PURINA MILLS HELPING WITH EQUINE RESEARCH

HELPING WITH RESEARCH - Troy Lopez, district manager of Purina Mills (right), and Will Sherwood (next to Lopez) of Big Country Farms Center in Paris have helped with an equine research project at Texas A&M University-Commerce. Also pictured are Dr. David Crenshaw, interim head of the Department of Agricultural Sciences, and Paris graduate student Lindsey Johnson. Johnson conducted research on the reproduction of mares and Purina Mills donated the feed for the horses during the research trial.



(A&M-Commerce photo/Craig Buck)