Saving a threatened breed – Conditions for maintenance and habitat selection of extensively kept Gotland Russ (Equus caballus)

Abstract

Gotland Russ is a native Swedish horse breed and one of the oldest horse breeds in Europe. The numbers of Gotland Russ are however relatively few and it is difficult for breeders to find buyers. To aid preservation of this breed, we evaluate if Gotland Russ can be used to manage open landscapes and biodiversity. In May 2014, twelve one-year-old Gotland Russ stallions were released outside Uppsala, Sweden, into three enclosures of 10 ha each, consisting of 3 ha lay and 7 ha forest, respectively. Each enclosure was provided with a man-made shelter and a water trough, but no supplementary feeding was offered. Here, we report preliminary results from the first year (May 2014 - April 2015) of the experiment on nutrient and energy status and habitat preferences. Body condition was scored (9 degree system) weekly and fecal crude protein (CP) contents were analyzed monthly. Horses with BCS

Published in

Title: Grazing in a changing Nordic region - Book of Abstracts
Publisher: NordGen – The Nordic Genetic Resource Center

Conference

Grazing in a Changing Nordic Region

SLU Authors

• Thulin, Carl-Gustaf

  • Department of Wildlife, Fish and Environmental Studies, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Ringmark, Sara

  • Department of Applied Animal Science and Welfare, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Dahlborn, Kristina

  • Department of Animal Biosciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Jansson, Anna

  • Department of Animal Biosciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

• Skarin, Anna

  • Department of Applied Animal Science and Welfare, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
    

UKÄ Subject classification

Environmental Sciences and Nature Conservation
Ecology
Animal and Dairy Science

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/79900