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Archarcharch, the Thoroughbred colt that suffered a lateral condylar fracture (a fracture of the outer half of the condyle--the bottom or distal end of the cannon bone that fits into the fetlock joint) one occurring on the outer half of the bone) in his left foreleg during the May 7 Kentucky Derby, underwent successful surgery to repair the bone May ...
Monday, May 09, 2011Your equine athlete's performance hasn't been blue ribbon-worthy as of late. Or maybe your broodmare's gaits are looking a little off kilter. Could long toes on the hind feet be to blame? According to the results of a recent study, the answer in some cases is yes and sometimes the solution can be very simple.
Tuesday, May 03, 2011Gastric ulcers can affect horses of all breeds, ages, shapes, and sizes. Weanlings are among these: They are transitioning from a diet of milk to one of forages and concentrates, while also experiencing the stress of separation from their dams. So, what type of feed should an owner provide to ease the transition's impact on a weanling's GI tr...
Saturday, April 16, 2011Two horses are dead following the 2011 running of the Grand National, the famed British steeplechase held annually at Aintree Racecourse near Liverpool, England. The race spans four-and-a-half miles and includes 30 jumping efforts.
Monday, April 11, 2011When owners think of potentially or ultimately fatal horse health conditions, colic, laminitis, or rabies are some common ailments that might come to mind. A less common eventually fatal condition is bone fragility syndrome (BFS). There's no known cause or cure, and researchers are just working to understand the debilitating disorder. Recently, a rese...
Friday, April 08, 2011Horse owners are often warned about the dangers of equine obesity and encouraged to help overweight horses drop a few pounds. But to solve this problem they must be able to acknowledge it in the first place. According to the results of a recent study completed by a group of researchers in the U.K., one of the biggest challenges posed by equine obesity cou...
Thursday, April 07, 2011The Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine's equine hospital is under a voluntary quarantine after confirming a case of the neurologic form of equine herpesvirus (EHV-1). The quarantine began March 20 and will continue indefinitely.
Monday, April 04, 2011Now more than two weeks after the devastating earthquake and tsunami struck Japan on March 11, the equine industry in the country is beginning to rebuild. New details continue to surface about the extent of the damage, but the industry as a whole is working to move forward.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011Lasko Products Inc., manufacturer of home appliances such as fans and heaters, is recalling approximately 4.8 million box fans (similar to those frequently used in barns by horse owners) after an electrical problem in the fan's motor has caused some of these fans to catch fire, reportedly causing several house fires and a barn fire.
Thursday, March 24, 2011Now a week after a devastating earthquake and tsunami struck Japan, new information is slowly surfacing about the equine population in the areas heavily damaged by the natural disasters.
Friday, March 18, 2011One of the American Association of Equine Practitioners' (AAEP) ongoing goals is to address the welfare issues that many horses and their owners face. During a presentation at the 2010 AAEP Convention, held Dec. 4-8 in Baltimore, Midge Leitch, VMD, of Londonderry Equine Clinic in Pennsylvania, described the steps that the AAEP has taken--and continues...
Wednesday, March 09, 2011When it comes to a mare's uterus, ultrasound examination and cytology (examination of cells under a microscope) can give a veterinarian a pretty good picture of what's going on inside that could be confounding conception. However, comparing these results to culture (testing of samples for pathogens) helped researchers on a recent study link specif...
Friday, March 04, 2011Foal owners need to be especially mindful of Parascaris equorum, commonly known as ascarids, the most dangerous worms found in these youngsters, according to D. Craig Barnett, DVM, senior equine technical services veterinarian for Intervet-Schering Plough Animal Health (ISPAH). He reported that ascarid populations at several breeding farms have developed ...
Thursday, March 03, 2011Although about 30% of foals that develop Rhodococcus equi foal pneumonia do not survive, the majority of foals can be treated successfully and proceed with a normal life. But why is it that only foals are affected by this respiratory disease? According to M. Julia B. Felippe, DVM, MS, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, of Cornell University's College of Veterinary Med...
Tuesday, March 01, 2011Responsible ownership is one of the keys to addressing the country's equine welfare problems, said Scott Palmer, VMD, of the New Jersey Equine Clinic. He noted in a presentation at the at the 2010 American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Convention, held Dec. 4-8 in Baltimore, Md., that racing is one segment of the horse industry that regul...
Sunday, February 27, 2011Most breeders meticulously plan out every detail of breeding a mare. But sometimes things don't go quite according to plan. Suppose, for example, as breeding season approaches, the clinically breeding-sound mare is anestrus (she doesn't show an estrous cycle and, thus, she's difficult to impregnate). What now?
Friday, February 25, 2011According to a report from Horse and Hound, a European Union equine border inspection post at Manston Airport scheduled to open in April will allow more horses to fly in and out of Great Britain, bringing the number of equine-friendly airports in the country to four.
Saturday, February 19, 2011Stallions are commonly known to be feisty, fresh, and sometimes difficult to handle, largely attributable to the testosterone coursing through their bodies. But when mares begin to display aggressive or stallionlike behavior, the reason for the atypical behavior can be less obvious.
Saturday, February 19, 2011One of the major foal diseases in the United States is Rhodococcus equi foal pneumonia. Responsible for the deaths of up to 30% of infected foals, it is a serious problem at many large breeding farms. Noah Cohen, VMD, MPH, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, professor of Large Animal Clinical Sciences at Texas A&M University's College of Veterinary Medicine & B...
Friday, February 18, 2011An epiglottic entrapment is an upper airway abnormality that can cause poor performance in athletic horses. A team of researchers from the University of Montreal recently developed a safer instrument for surgically correcting an entrapped epiglottis.
Sunday, February 13, 2011Equine Guelph is seeking respondents for its 2011 Equine Industry Survey now through March 31. The survey is available online and in a printable PDF.
Friday, February 11, 2011According to a report from Horse and Hound, the Russian donkey Anapka--who was once the center of an international welfare controversy after she was attached to a parasail and flown over a beach as part of an advertising stunt--has died of suspected heart failure. Veterinarians believe the stress of parasailing might have led to the donkey's eventual ...
Tuesday, February 08, 2011It isn't every day that a new disease or ailment is discovered, as many of the most common equine health problems have been around for several decades, if not centuries. But within the past decade a new disease has emerged that appears most frequently in weanlings. The disease is equine proliferative enteropathy (EPE), a gastrointestinal disease that ...
Tuesday, February 08, 2011According to a report from the International Society for Infectious Diseases (ISID), there recently has been a rise in the number of equine rabies cases diagnosed in the Corrientes province of Argentina. Officials believe the horses were infected with the disease via vampire bats.
Monday, February 07, 2011More than 100 million horses, donkeys, and mules around the world spend their days working for a living: not necessarily working on their sliding stops, tempi changes, or jumping technique, but working to provide their human families with a means of transportation and a source of livelihood. These equids represent not only the family horse but also an ani...
Saturday, February 05, 2011More than 100 items, including horses and stallion seasons, have been donated to an auction benefiting equestrians that were affected by the recent flooding in Australia, according to a report from Horsetalk.co.nz.
Friday, February 04, 2011When it comes to managing the carbohydrates in a horse's diet, knowing the basics of how horses digest food is half the battle. Laurie Lawrence, PhD, an equine nutritionist from the University of Kentucky's Department of Animal and Food Science who gave a presentation at the University of Kentucky's Breeders' Short Course, held Jan. 22 in ...
Friday, February 04, 2011Some people view Facebook as little more than a communication tool for keeping in touch with friends and family. But Lynn Boggs recently turned to the social media platform to find homes for 52 Ohio Thoroughbreds in need. The message she posted on Facebook gained international attention within hours, and all of the horses were placed in new homes within f...
Thursday, February 03, 2011"The use of medication in horses competing at equestrian events is a very polarizing topic," said Marjorie W. Miller, DVM, an equine veterinarian from Bradenton, Fla., with 20 years experience in performance horse practice."Some people believe that medication has no place in equestrian sports, and others believe that the judicious use of me...
Wednesday, February 02, 2011A vaccine for Rhodococcus equi, the common bacteria that affects foals, often causing severe infections, pneumonia, and sometimes death, is in the final stages of development. Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health (ISPAH) said on Jan. 27 that a candidate vaccine for R. equi would be tested in a field trial in Germany in the near future.
Wednesday, February 02, 2011The University of Kentucky's Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (VDL) has noted an increase in the number of abortions reported in Kentucky's 2011 foal crop, especially those caused by nocardioform placentitis. The VDL, which reported 19 cases from July to Dec. 2010, saw 34 cases of abortion caused by nocardioform placentitis from Jan. 1 to Jan. 24.
Tuesday, February 01, 2011In many states, snow and winter go hand in hand. Unfortunately, the freezing temperatures that accompany them can lead to some serious problems for the horse owner: frozen water pipes, slippery turnout conditions, and even building collapse. Last week an indoor arena and a horse barn both collapsed under the stress of snow in Connecticut. No people were i...
Tuesday, February 01, 2011Is your horse obese? Has he ever tested positive for insulin resistance? Does he suffer from intermittent bouts of laminitis? If you answered 'yes' to any or all of these questions, your horse might be suffering from equine metabolic syndrome (EMS). But according to Ray J. Geor, BVSc, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, professor and Chair of the Department of Larg...
Monday, January 31, 2011While a mare with twins by her side is rare and sometimes celebrated, twinning in horses is actually dangerous for the mare, especially during delivery. More often than not, one of the twins, generally the smaller and weaker of the two, will die before birth. In fact, the chances of a mare carrying twins to term and delivering them successfully are about ...
Sunday, January 30, 2011The horse industry in the United States is not the only one dealing with an equine welfare problem. Some European countries are also facing challenges in assuring all horses have a good quality of life, according to Joe Collins, MVB, PhD, MRCVS, CertEP, CertVR, who recently conducted his PhD study at University College Dublin's Veterinary Sciences Cen...
Thursday, January 27, 2011For years foal owners have struggled with controlling the bacterium Rhodococcus equi and the infections it causes--some farms manage cases annually, despite following strict farm management strategies to reduce risk of infection. Resulting pneumonia and diarrhea can be deadly for foals, and treating survivors is costly and labor-intensive.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011In the Midwest there are several racetracks--featuring both Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing--that sometimes slide under the radar of the mainstream racing community. But like all other tracks around the nation, these venues see wins, losses, and, unfortunately, catastrophic musculoskeletal injuries. Andrea L. Beisser, BA, and her colleagues analyzed...
Monday, January 24, 2011Researchers at the University of California, Davis, have recently identified a genetic mutation associated with the disorder cerebellar abiotrophy (CA). This debilitating neurologic disorder causes the degeneration of the cerebellum, and mainly affects Arabian horses.
Sunday, January 23, 2011How much impact does a racing surface have on the horse's body and which parts are stressed most during work? According to Abigail N. Dimock, DVM, MS, of the University of California, Davis, who in collaboration with Kurt Hoffman, DVM, and other colleagues completed a study on the subject recently, track surface has more of an impact on bone stre...
Friday, January 21, 2011The Kentucky Equine Health and Welfare Council (EHWC) met January 19 in Frankfort to discuss the future of the unwanted horse in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Rusty Ford, chairman of the council,, presided over the meeting that included members from different aspects of the equine industry and Kentucky government.
Thursday, January 20, 2011The bacterium Rhodococcus equi has been a known cause of life-threatening pneumonia in foals for many years. But the ideal treatment for R. equi infection remains debatable because of the lack of research comparing the efficacy of each possible treatment in foals. However, according to Steeve Giguère, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVIM, a University of Georgia ...
Thursday, January 20, 2011About 2% and 6% of all racetrack fatalities in Thoroughbreds and Quarter Horses, respectively, are the result of scapular fractures, according to Stuart A. Vallance, BVSc (Hons), who, with Susan Stover, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACVS, and a research team at the JD Wheat Veterinary Orthopedic Research Laboratory at the University of California, Davis, has investigat...
Monday, January 17, 2011Dozens of horses have been killed by the floods that continue to trouble Australia, according to the New Zealand-based website Horsetalk. About 80 Standardbred horses at the prominent Cold Mountain Stud, located near Moore in Queensland, perished in the flood.
Monday, January 17, 2011According to reports from the British equestrian magazine Horse and Hound, a horse dealer from North Wales is facing prosecution for failing to properly quarantine a horse that was recently imported to Great Britain from Ireland.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011Laminitis is not a modern condition--it has been recognized for well over 2,000 years. The Greek philosopher Aristotle even referred to it around 350 B.C. as 'Barley Disease,' presumably because it was associated even then with excessive grain consumption. However, according to Patricia Harris, MA, PhD, Dipl. ECVCN, VetMB, MRCVS, there has recentl...
Tuesday, January 11, 2011In the first study of its kind performed on 2-year-old Thoroughbred racehorses, Daniel T. Meagher, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVS, of Valley Equine Associates, in Ranson, W.Va., set out to determine the prevalence of radiographic lesions and their effect on race performance. A similar study was previously carried out on radiographic abnormalities in yearlings, but M...
Tuesday, January 11, 2011Before purchasing a yearling it's important to review his health records to ensure he is healthy and sound enough for a successful racing career. Jennifer L. Higgins, DVM, gave potential buyers insight into specific lesions that could reduce a horse's career earnings when she presented a retrospective study on the subject at the 56th Annual Conven...
Monday, January 10, 2011Equine piroplasmosis (EP), which is classified as a foreign animal disease, has made several appearances in the United States over the past few years, and it's causing concern at racetracks around the nation--the main locations at which EP has been diagnosed. But horse owners should be happy to know that their horses are likely not at risk for contrac...
Friday, January 07, 2011The extreme flooding in Queensland, Australia, has reached what some reporters are calling "biblical proportions." The still-rising water now covers an area as large as France and Germany combined, according to a report on the ABC Brisbane website. The damage from the water (which could rise to 30 feet or more) is expected to exceed $1 billion, ...
Monday, January 03, 2011The horse racing industry is continuously working to make the sport safer for all parties involved, and in 2008, the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) mandated the use of synthetic track in an attempt to reduce the number of catastrophic injuries that took place on California racing surfaces. To see if the switch was a success, Rick Arthur, DVM, the eq...
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