by Adam Lusher

The breed that inspired War Horse and George Orwell is in danger of disappearing from Britain, a conservation charity warns. Having served faithfully in peace and war, they have become probably Britain’s three favourite breeds of working horse. Now, however, the Shire Horse, Suffolk Punch, and Clydesdale are in danger of becoming extinct in the UK.

The Rare Breeds Survival Trust (RBST), a charity dedicated to the conservation of farm animals, has warned that unless urgent action is taken, all three varieties of working horse could disappear from the British landscape within ten years.

Read more: Is the Great British Shire Horse About to Go Extinct?

by Sarah Nash

Dim red light or darkness at night is required to facilitate rest and recovery and, for the nightly rise in the circadian regulating hormone melatonin. Firstly, it is important to understand the role of the hormone melatonin. Melatonin is a protein hormone produced in the brain by the pineal gland at night and it is commonly referred to as the Hormone of Darkness. In the horse, melatonin is produced primarily during the dark hours and is turned off when light of the correct intensity and wavelength enters the eye. Low levels of melatonin by day and high levels at night time are important for a strengthened immune system and regulation of internal timing. White light at night disturbs this melatonin production and reduces rest, immune function and daytime performance capacity.

Ideal lighting facilitates rest and regeneration at night while permitting visibility for management routines. The low intensity red light at night provided by the Equilume Stable Light permits the nightly rise in melatonin, stabilising circadian rhythms while facilitating night time monitoring, management and feeding of horses while avoiding the negative consequences of white light at night.

Read more: Red Light at Night Facilitates Recovery and Rest