Some Genetic and Environmental Effects on Equine Asthma in Polish Konik Horses

Current knowledge of the genetic and environmental backgrounds of equine asthma seems to be insufficient, especially for primitive horse breeds. The main objectives of this study were to estimate the effects of sex, birth period, stud, parentage line and inbreeding on asthma morbidity in Polish Konik horses. Records of 274 horses (housed in two studs) were analysed. These animals were allocated to maternal and paternal lines. Individual inbreeding coefficients were extracted from the additive relationship matrix. Horses underwent diagnosis based on observation of the basic symptoms (high frequency of coughing and excessive nasal discharge). Subsequently, some horses (28 individuals) were clinically examined to confirm the earlier observations. Generally, no significant effects of parentage line on heaves morbidity were identified by the use of logistic regression, although the Pearson's chi-squared test had shown that individuals of some maternal and paternal lines had a predisposition to severe equine asthma. It was concluded that the individual inbreeding level is not associated with the incidence of EA, but a significant effect of the maternal inbreeding coefficient may be observed. It was also found that there is some variability in the incidence of this disease between studs.