The Importance of a Horse’s Spleen
A horse’s spleen weighs about 15 to 20 lbs. One of its roles is to store red blood cells when a horse is at rest. Red blood cells deliver oxygen to other organs and tissues. When a horse’s flight-or-flight response is triggered, or when he is asked to perform strenuous exercise, the spleen contracts and releases the extra red blood cells into circulation. The red blood cell volume can be increased by as much as 50% from splenic contractions. The increased supply of red blood cells delivers critical oxygen to hard-working organs and muscles.
Article written by KPP staff.
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3 Comments
Hi I don’t think a spleen weighs that much. I have dissected a few and they are maybe closer to 3-5 lbs – could that be the fact that it is coming out of the body fairly fast and maybe those in the 20 lb zone have swollen?
Thanks for your question. The 15 to 20 pound weight is referencing a spleen at rest, which can contain up to a third of a horses’ red blood cell volume or up to 12 liters. An empty spleen weighs closer to three to five pounds. Of course, spleen weights at rest will also vary considerably between breeds and level of fitness correlating to blood volume. – Veronica, Kentucky Performance Products
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