Explain the
unexplained.
Poor conception, pregnancy loss, and fragile foals are not always random. We help uncover the hidden factors that may be working underneath.
How disruption works
Endocrine-disrupting chemicals interfere with hormonal signalling — mimicking, blocking, or altering the signals that govern reproduction, metabolism, and development.
Pesticides & herbicides
Applied to crops and pasture. Residues persist on forage long after application.
Industrial chemicals
PCBs and persistent organics accumulate in soil and fat tissue. Stable for decades.
Plasticisers
BPA and phthalates leach from storage containers and water infrastructure continuously.
Heavy metals
Lead, cadmium, mercury — interfere with steroidogenesis and accumulate in tissue silently.
Fungicides & flame retardants
Present in treated crops, stored forage, and barn building materials.
Mycotoxins
Produced by mould in stored forage and grain. Disrupt endocrine signalling and immune function.
Exposure Pathways
Forage & pasture
Herbicide and pesticide residues. Mycotoxins from mouldy stored forage. Persistent organics and heavy metals in soil.
Feed & grain
Mycotoxins from improper storage. Pesticide residues from crop production. What the label shows and what the feed contains differ.
Water
Horses drink large volumes daily. Agricultural runoff, groundwater contamination, and pharmaceutical residues accumulate across years.
Soil, dust & ground contact
Persistent organics settle and remain stable for decades. Horses graze at ground level and ingest soil continuously.
Neighbouring land
Herbicide and pesticide drift crosses fence lines. Shared water systems carry adjacent land's chemical use. Rarely assessed.
Farm infrastructure
Plasticisers from pipes and feed containers. Treated timber and older painted surfaces in the barn environment.
Why reproduction is particularly susceptible
Reproduction depends on precise hormonal timing. The right signal must reach the right tissue at the right moment. Endocrine disruptors don't need to shut the system down — they only need to shift it slightly to throw off the entire cascade.
The mare
Plant and synthetic estrogens can bind to hormone receptors and alter the cycle
Interference with reproductive hormones can delay or prevent ovulation — invisible on exam
Progesterone disruption in early pregnancy can increase early embryonic loss
The stallion
Pesticides, heavy metals, and synthetic estrogens can reduce sperm count, impair motility, and disrupt hormone function.
When breeding fails, the focus is on the mare. The stallion's chemical exposures are rarely tested.
Why this goes undetected
Routine evaluation was not designed to find chronic environmental chemical burden. A clean workup means the tools used found nothing wrong — not that nothing is wrong.
What is usually checked
Haematology & serology
Hormonal assays (LH, FSH, progesterone)
Ultrasound examination
Semen analysis
Standard feed testing
What is usually missed
Pesticide & herbicide residue burden
Persistent organic pollutant accumulation
Heavy metal tissue loading
Mycotoxin exposure from stored forage
Mycotoxin exposure from stored forage or grain
Infrastructure & water chemical inputs
Chronic, not acute
The relevant model is not a single event — it is repeated low-level contact across the animal's life in a given environment.
Invisible to routine panels
Standard haematology and serology are not designed to detect endocrine disruptors. A normal workup is not confirmation of a clean exposure profile.
Consequences misattributed
Irregular cycles and unexplained breeding failure are often attributed to age or management. Chemical interference may be the more accurate explanation.
Explore what we measure.
Select a category to understand some of our most requested targets — whether we're testing biological samples, feed, hay, forage, or water — and why they matter for the horse in your care.
Heavy metals
Lead, cadmium, arsenic, and mercury accumulate quietly in breeding stock. These metals can affect fertility, pregnancy outcomes, and foal development — often without obvious signs until there's a problem.
Where it comes from
Old barn paint, contaminated soil, well water, certain supplements, and forage from treated land.
Why routine care may miss it
Blood work rarely catches these. By the time you see symptoms, the burden has been building for months or years.
When testing is valuable
Older properties, well water, unexplained fertility issues, or when you just want to rule out environmental factors.
How Metaboly helps
We test biological samples (hair, urine, blood), feed, hay, forage, and water — mapping metal exposure from every angle.