Managing horses requires an understanding of their behavioral and physical needs. The PEI horse population consists of around 4,000 horses on 720 properties. Horse owners have a varied level of knowledge, education, experience and understanding of horses’ needs, which affects their choice of husbandry and management practices.

Animal diseases surveillance activities are driven by a range of societal needs, such as the early detection and management of emerging infectious diseases, the prevention of animal production losses, or the protection of public health and animal health and welfare.

Data on colostrum management practices, pre-weaning nutrition (growth) and calf health events (morbidity and mortality) has been collected as part of a project conducted in New Brunswick. A comprehensive calf diary was designed to gather extensive information about the animals, blood samples were collected for health and immunity, and nutrition, weight gain and disease incidents were documented over time.