Life force
BLOOD fulfils many functions in the horse’s body. Not only does it transport oxygen, but also the bloodstream functions as the body’s road network, allowing vital components to get around. It carries:
● white blood cells and immune proteins to the site of an infection
● clotting proteins and repair cells to the site of damaged tissue
● hormones from their site of production to sites(s) of action
● the products of digestion from the gastrointestinal tract to the rest of the body
Homeostasis is the mechanism by which a horse’s body maintains a consistent internal environment, and most of the components of blood are regulated to within very narrow concentrations that vary only slightly from one horse to another. This means a normal reference range exists and can be used for comparison.
Blood components often change in a predictable way with a particular disease process, so blood tests can be extremely valuable in assessing health status and disease diagnosis.
A normal adult
