More than 350 horse enthusiasts — from hobbyists to breeders — are expected to gather Oct. 13 at UC Davis to rub noses with equine experts from throughout the nation during Horse Day 2012 at the University of California, Davis.

The event, a UC Davis tradition for three decades, is designed to offer participants many hands-on opportunities. It will begin at 8 a.m. with registration and a welcome assembly in the Main Arena of UC Davis’ Cole Facility on La Rue Road. Participants will then depart to nearby venues for instructional sessions and demonstrations.

Topics for the day will include horse nutrition, emergency care, dentistry, shoeing, genetics and body conditioning.

Some of the most interactive opportunities will include draft-horse harnessing and driving, dissection of the gastrointestinal tract, and scoring of horses’ body condition.

Other lively sessions will include a mustang show, demonstration of horse rescue and emergency care, and a therapeutic shoeing presentation.

Speakers for the day will be from UC Davis’ animal science department and School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, Texas A&M, Michigan State University, University of Kentucky and the equine community.

A barbecue lunch will be available for $8 per person at noon near the arena.

Cost for the day will be $40 per person, $25 per person for groups of 10 or more and $15 each for children under age 14.

A complete schedule for the day is available at the animal science department website.

More information about Horse Day is available from Valerie Ozella in the Department of Animal Science at (530) 752-1250 or vmozella@ucdavis.edu.

Equine management and medicine are distinctive features of UC Davis’ Department of Animal Science and School of Veterinary Medicine. At the campus Horse Barn, which dates to the early 1910s, students have access to hands-on training in all aspects of equine reproduction and management. At the School of Veterinary Medicine, students are trained to diagnose, treat and prevent a host of diseases and injuries. The veterinary school also is home to the Center for Equine Health, focused on research and education benefiting horses, and to the Kenneth L. Maddy Equine Analytical Chemistry Laboratory, the primary equine drug testing laboratory for California's race tracks