Kentucky Equine Research is an international equine nutrition, research, and consultation company serving horse owners and the feed industry. The company’s goals are to advance the industry’s knowledge of equine nutrition and exercise physiology, apply that knowledge to produce healthier, more athletic horses, and support the nutritional care of all horses throughout their life.

Kentucky Equine Research’s primary research farm in Versailles, Kentucky, encompasses 150 acres and is home to around 40 trained research horses. The facility features a high-speed equine treadmill with indirect calorimeter, six-horse walker, full laboratory, and other equipment to perform a battery of tests.

A dedicated Thoroughbred training center in Ocala, Florida, enables Kentucky Equine Research to assess equine nutrition and exercise physiology in a real racing stable.

Applying the results of its research trials, Kentucky Equine Research continually develops solutions to the health and nutritional challenges inherent in the management of the modern equine worldwide, including unique nutritional supplements, exclusive feed ingredients, and partner feeds.

Kentucky Equine Research has the laboratory capabilities, trained research horses, and experienced staff necessary to develop innovative products. Protocols can be designed and carried out to test the effect of a particular product, substance, or proposed feed ingredient on a range of equine physiologic systems. Blood tests, muscle biopsies, and precise exercise-related measurements can be conducted according to a customized plan.

A high-speed treadmill, mechanized horse exerciser, indirect calorimeter, and other mechanisms are all on site for use in research. Kentucky Equine Research studies flavor preference, feed forms, ingredient processing, and ingredient metabolism, as well as routine in vivo quality control studies to ensure all KER-affiliated feed ingredients and supplements are free from prohibited substances.