Long distance transport of horses to compete in races has increased in recent years. The effect of transport on behaviour and the immune system of horses has been studied however the effect of transport on the skeleton is less well understood. In the current study we investigated the effect of international transportation on bone turnover. International horses (IH; n=69) transported by air to participate in races in Melbourne and local horses trained in Melbourne (LH; n=79) were sampled. Two blood samples were obtained at 3-5 days post-arrival and 14 days later from IH, and at a 14-day interval from LH. Serum biomarkers - OCN and CTXI, cortisol, serum amyloid A, melatonin and bisphosphonates were measured. The relationships of the biomarkers and horse groups were determined using linear regression models. Entire males were over represented in the IH group, which also tended to be older than the local horses. IH had a higher cortisol than LH at the first sample (138.46 ± 162.14 nmol/L vs 84.81 ± 37.62 nmol/L; P<0.001) but were not different to LH after a further 14 days. IH had lower OCN and CTXI compared to LH but when adjusted for age and gender, only OCN was lower in IH than LH at timepoint 2 (15.85 ± 7.12 ng/mL vs 20.02 ± 7.98 ng/mL; P<0.001). The majority of measurable effects of international transportation in the current study had resolved at two weeks post transport. Differences in bone markers could mostly be explained by differences in age and gender between international and local horses, however post transport, IH show lower levels of bone formation than LH two weeks after arrival.