News from EAAP Davos: Horse Tour

Visits to an innovative boarding stable, a breeder of the indigenous Freiberger breed and the Equine Sports Medicine Unit of the Vetsuisse Faculty in Zurich are on the attractive programme on the “Horse – Tour.” The Ponyhof Letzau is situated in the Rhine valley, a region known for its generous riding paths. The boarding stable offers an innovative active stable/ exercise stable for 20 active and retired sport and leisure horses of mixed breeds and ages. The owners will present their intentions and the implementation in their stables and there will be an opportunity to discuss advantages and problems encountered, particularly in relation to the challenge of integrating new horses in groups. Then Tonis Fribyhof is a good example of how the traditional Freiberger horses (affectionately called Friby) find their place in the modern world. Some foals are born on the farm each year. The owners will present some of their breeding horses and explain their breeding goals. Youngsters are trained on the farm and either sold as leisure horses or used for the different farm activities. Equine Sports Medicine Unit of the Vetsuisse Faculty: The research focus of the Sports Medicine Unit is on examinations of the horse under stress. The
unit examines respiratory mechanics of the upper airways under stress, the saddle fit and its influence on back health; influence of sport-specific use and different saddle designs and positions on the back. The focus of our visit will be on gait analysis and biomechanical investigations of lameness, shoeing and use-related aspects (rider influence) and we will see a test performed on a high-speed treadmill.
Tour sponsor: UFA AG produces Hypona horse feed and specialities for healthy and speciesappropriate feeding since 1985. In 35 years, Hypona has established itself as “The Swiss No. 1 horse feed”