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This is a Observational study (also classified as: Animal Study).

August 17, 2025Open Access

Physical assessment, Hematological and Serum Amyloid A levels Pre and Post exercise in Arabian Horses in Maiduguri and Jere, Borno State. Nigeria

Key Points

Galloping exercise significantly increased serum amyloid A levels in Arabian horses, showing a response to physical exertion.
Hematological parameters, including packed cell volume and red blood cell counts, increased post-exercise, demonstrating the exercise's impact.
Physical assessments recorded higher temperature and heart rates post-galloping, highlighting cardiovascular strain during endurance activities.
Findings suggest that exercise on sandy terrain may contribute to increased exhaustion and physiological changes in horses.

Abstract

Long-duration activities, such as endurance races, cause significant changes in hematological and biochemical components as a result of central and peripheral exhaustion. The aim of the present study was to assess the physical health status as well as hematological and serum amyloid A (SAA) levels pre- and post-galloping exercise in Arabian horses in Maiduguri and Jere, Borno State, Nigeria. Before and after the galloping exercise, the health status of 50 healthy Arabian horses was physically assessed and blood samples were collected for hematological and serum biochemistry analyses. Packed cell volume (PCV), red blood cell (RBC), haemoglobin (Hb) concentrations, white blood cell (WBC), and differential leucocytes such as neutrophils, eosinophils, basophils, monocytes, and lymphocytes were determined using ballotment methods and haematocrit cyanmethaemoglobin. SAA levels pre- and post-galloping were determined using a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit. The physical parameters such as temperature, heart, and respiratory rates values were significantly increased at p < 0.001, 0.001, 0.050, and 0.001, respectively, after the galloping exercise as compared with the pre-galloping values. Haematological parameters such as PCV, RBC, and Hb were increased significantly at p < 0.001, 0.001, and 0.015, respectively, as well as eosinophils and monocytes at p < 0.040 and 0.001, respectively, after galloping as compared with the pre-galloping values. The mean values of SAA increased significantly (p < 0.007) post-galloping. Therefore, it was concluded that the galloping type of exercise affects some physical parameters such as temperature, respiration, and heart rates as well as various hematological parameters and biochemical parameters such as SAA, and an increase in SAA could be due to resistance provided by the sandy terrain, leading to exhaustion in exercising the muscles of horses in the study area.

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