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would provide more evidence in favor of enhanced control and surveillance programs (see below the
discussion regarding anemia). In the case of T.
equi, confirming this correlation could in turn gen-
erate two different hypotheses: 1) that the active
form of the disease causes poor body condition,
and/or 2) that the horse’s ability to control T. equi
parasitemia is dependent upon having adequate
overall body condition. The second hypothesis leads to the topic of nutri-
tion, which was not addressed in this study. Com-
mon sense suggests that malnutrition is likely to be
the single most significant factor influencing body
condition score in this population. Malnutrition
may also directly contribute to anemia. Barriers to
improving nutrition for these horses include lack of
resources, lack of owner knowledge, and the dry-
tropical climate. Methods of feeding horses using
local, rather than imported feedstuffs, especially
during the dry season, is a topic that has great
potential to improve the welfare of these animals; it
is unfortunately beyond the scope of this paper. A high incidence of anemia (94%) was demon-
strated in all four locations. EIA, whereas only
found in 11% of samples, is likely to have significant
effect on infected horses, as suggested by the lower-
than-average PCV and BCS of the four positive
horses. A larger sample size would be required to
confirm this correlation. The local variation in EIA
prevalence rates should encourage locally specific,
evidence-based recommendations. In Granada,
which had the highest incidence of EIA in this study,
additional testing is essential. If Granada is con-
firmed to have an EIA prevalence rate greater than
30%, it provides solid evidence justifying the imple-
mentation of control measures, which could range
from tabanid traps to an enhanced surveillance plan
sponsored by the local government. Officially, Ni-
caraguan policy requires the humane destruction of
horses confirmed to be infected, but in practice there
is no mandatory testing or enforcement of this rule.
The AGID test is available only in Managua, and it
is prohibitively expensive for owners of working
horses, even if they were motivated to test their
Fig. 1. Packed cell volume graphed according to body condition score.
Fig. 2. Serological survey of EIA and piroplasmosis in working horses in Nicaragua, by community.
340 2015fiVol. 61fiAAEP PROCEEDINGS
EQUITARIAN SESSION

Link
https://pubs.aaep.org/0A4370h/61stAnnCon2015/html/index.html?page=366