Agricultural Sciences

Penn State Equine Research Team explores New York horse industry during trip

The Penn State Equine Research Team recently visited Cornell University and equine-related sites in New York.   Credit: Penn StateCreative Commons

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State Equine Research Team in the College of Agricultural Sciences recently traveled to upstate New York to present research at Cornell University while also gaining knowledge about the New York horse industry.

The trip also included a visit to the Saratoga Racetrack, a tour of Sunnyside Dairy Farm and a visit to the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame.

The team, referred to as PSERT, is a student organization that provides students from all Penn State colleges the opportunity to engage in equine research in more of an informal setting. According to club president Isabella Kruba, the group was one of the first of its kind at Penn State and has led the way for other student animal research organizations, including the Swine Research Team.

Every few years, PSERT coordinates a trip to another university where students from both schools share their respective research. While visiting a fellow university, the team also tours horse industry sites, such as farms and racetracks. Kruba said this year’s trip to Cornell University was even more valued after COVID-19 restrictions over the last two years limited travel opportunities.

Kruba credits co-advisers Danielle Smarsh, assistant professor of equine science, and Burt Staniar, associate professor of equine science, and Ag Student Council Representative Claire Twomey for planning a successful trip.

The research presented on the trip, led by graduate student Carlee Eifert, focused on how exercise affects gastric ulcer prevalence in horses. PSERT team members aided the research process by helping feed the horses and taking them to the horse exerciser.

Using the same horses from Eifert’s research, some undergraduate students branched into individual projects, including studies involving fecal pH, behavioral analysis and feeding behavior. Smarsh credits the undergraduate students for being a key part of the success of graduate students’ research.

“Most of the research here with the animals — whether it’s horses, cattle or chickens — requires a lot of undergraduates to help,” Smarsh said. “It’s common to have certain undergraduates take the lead on smaller bits of a graduate student’s project, as part of honors projects, for example. Since Carlee’s project was so large, there were many pieces that we could have students focus on. This research would not happen without the undergraduates at Penn State.”

While the trip to New York was full of activities, Kruba and Smarsh agreed that visiting the Saratoga Racetrack was the trip’s highlight. The students met renowned Hall of Fame horse trainer Bill Mott, who talked with the team.

“He was so open and took us around to see some of the barns — that was my favorite experience,” Kruba said. “It was one of the simplest ones, but I enjoy speaking with the people who work in the industry.”

Smarsh also took an interest in watching the horses on the Saratoga Racetrack due to her research expertise in this area. “My background and research are in exercise physiology,” Smarsh said. “To watch the horses galloping on a track early in the morning is a cool experience you never get tired of seeing.”

Kruba noted that the trip’s most rewarding part was celebrating PSERT’s hard work after such a long research process and school year.

“I got to see a different side of everyone, and it improved team bonding,” Kruba said. “I feel like when we come back in the fall, everyone is going to be hyped up from the trip and want to do it again because they see the effects of what happens after you do the research and see all that you can do with it.”

Smarsh added that having Penn State students get out of the classroom and partake in real-world experiences after not being able to travel in the last two years due to COVID-19 was rewarding to witness.

“To see all these different equine industry settings and talk to different people in the industry, I think it opened students’ eyes to the different possibilities of things they could do in the future,” she said.

 

Last Updated July 4, 2022

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