
Are The Mitochondria Of Your Horses Helping Them Thrive? - The Horse's Advocate Podcast #165
From The Horse's Advocate Podcast by Geoff Tucker, DVM
March 18, 2026 · 23 min · Season 2026 · Episode 165
About this episode
This episode discusses the role of mitochondria in horse health and how their efficiency affects overall well-being.
Horses have tiny engines within almost every cell of their bodies, and each of these runs on fuel that comes from the food they eat. These engines are called mitochondria. This podcast describes these engines and what happens to our horses when they stop working efficiently. One thing is for certain: adding more fuel doesn't help them run better. The only way to improve the health of horses is to improve the way their mitochondria work. But is producing power the only thing mitochondria do? Research into mitochondria shows that these powerhouses of the cell were once bacteria with their own DNA, and they communicate with each other and insert snippets of their DNA into the human DNA. They also need time to clean up and repair themselves. They can operate on two different fuels, but exhaust themselves when running on only one, becoming stuck and unable to switch to the other. This leads to poor health, breakdowns, and premature death. ********** Community.TheHorsesAdvocate.com is a place to learn about horses, barns, and farms. Its information is free, and a membership option lets horse owners attend live meetings to ask questions and deepen their understanding of what they have…
People in this episode
Host: Geoff Tucker, DVM
Topics covered
- mitochondria
- horse health
- cellular function
- equine nutrition
- animal science
Keywords
- mitochondria
- horse health
- cellular energy
- equine nutrition
- bacterial DNA
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Community.TheHorsesAdvocate.com, The Equine Practice, Inc.
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