Sommaire pour Summer 2023 de Equus

Head off dehydration by adopting these four habits You’re probably familiar with the skin-pinch test for dehydration. It’s simple to do: Grab a fold of skin at the point of your horse’s shoulder and pull it away from his body. Release the skin and count how long it takes for it to flat-ten. If it takes longer than two seconds, your horse is dehydrated. While the skin-pinch test is useful, it is a late-stage indicator of a problem. By the time skin doesn’t snap back, the horse is already feeling pretty lousy due to dehydration. He’s also at immediate risk of colic and muscle damage. It’s far better to prevent a horse from getting de-hydrated in the first place. To ensure your horse drinks enough during the summer months, as…

Researchers in Colorado are investigating whether acetaminophen—a unique anti-inflammatory medication—can help manage uveitis and other painful equine eye conditions. “There are actually several groups exploring potential uses of acetaminophen in horses,” says Kathryn L. Wotman, DVM, of Colorado State University. “Acetaminophen itself isn’t new or unusual—it’s the active ingredient in the Tylenol you probably have in your own medicine cabinet—but it’s not used very much in equine veterinary medicine.” The drug, however, may prove to be a viable alternative to traditional NSAIDs, like phenylbutazone (bute) and flunixin meglumine (Banamine). “It works on different pain pathways than other drugs, so it could potentially work better for different types of pain,” says Wotman. “It also isn’t associated with some of the side effects we see with other NSAIDs, so it might be…

In my 33 years as an equine nutritionist, I’ve fielded a wide variety of questions about what horses can and should eat. My answers, of course, are grounded in science and research. However, when the editors of EQUUS contacted me to ask about the practice of feeding meat to horses, I drew information not only from those fields of inquiry but another adjacent one: history—specifically, historical research I conducted at a very special place: the National Sporting Library & Museum (NSLM) in Middleburg, Virginia. Nestled in the foothills of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, the NSLM is dedicated to preserving books, documents and art that chronicle and celebrate traditional “country pursuits.” In addition to activities like shooting and fly-fishing, these pursuits include many equestrian sports, such as steeplechasing, foxhunting and polo.…

SENIOR CARE Do aging rescue horses have special health challenges? Q: I adopted a rescue horse nearly 10 years ago. She was a very malnourished, unhealthy mare when I first met her, but with care and patience she has blossomed into a cherished family horse. She’s now 17 years old and very healthy. I’m worried, however, that her rough patch in life has left her vulnerable to problems as she ages. Are rescue horses who have been rehabilitated at higher risk of health complications as they age? Is there anything we should be on the lookout for? Anything we can prevent? A: It’s wonderful that you were able to successfully rehabilitate this mare and now have a great family horse. There is no scientific data on long-term complications in rescue…

A survey of Canadian horse owners about equine housing practices reveals a disconnect between perceptions of “equine welfare” and “standard of care.” Researchers at Atlantic Veterinary College at the University of Prince Edward Island visited horse farms and conducted a questionnaire with 76 local horse owners who care for a total of 212 horses. In addition to collecting basic demographic information, the survey explored perceptions about how horses are housed (outdoors, indoors, alone or in groups) and how that might affect various aspects of their well-being. Keeping horses turned out does not mean providing a lower standard of care. The data showed that nearly all the horses owned by study participants had out-door access for at least part of the day, with 79 percent kept outdoors full-time in herds, and…

A large outbreak of equine coronavirus (ECoV) on a North Carolina horse farm has provided valuable information about factors that put horses at risk of developing the disease. ECoV usually causes fever, loss of appetite and lethargy, but diarrhea, colic and neurological signs have also been reported. The virus is primarily transmitted via manure, although there have been a few documented cases of horses shedding ECoV in nasal secretions. In the early spring of 2021, horses at a North Carolina show and lesson facility began showing signs of gastrointestinal illness, including colic, diarrhea and lethargy. As more horses became ill, local veterinary authorities launched an investigation. Ultimately, researchers tested manure samples from 54 horses using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology and found 43 (79.8 percent) were positive for ECoV, although…

The American Saddle-bred is an intelligent, spirited and highly athletic breed. All Saddlebreds are capable of walk, trot and canter and some, in addition, can “slow gait” and rack. But what is a rack? What is a “slow gait”? Changes have occurred over the past century in the way all five gaits are presented. For my research, I have combed through hundreds of historical photos. Some are so damaged by the vicissitudes of time or the shortcomings of the printing process that, to bring them to readers, I have had no choice but to convert them to color paintings. Nonetheless, in creating these—like all the others I have presented in this series concerning the history of American horsemanship—I have scrupulously preserved factual content. Since the date associated with most of…

The basics of good grooming know no particular season. Daily currying, brushing and the occasional bath help ensure a shiny coat year-round. And, of course, elbow grease is always part of the equation. Using short, vigorous strokes with clean brushes not only eliminates dirt and scurf but distributes coat oils and stimulates circulation. But what to do when the temperatures soar to three digits, the bugs start biting and the air feels like a soggy sponge? You’ve conquered the shaggy hair and shedding of seasons past, but summer presents a whole new set of challenges. To help you find solutions, we conducted an informal survey of professional groomers from across the equine industry. Here are 8 tips from the pros to help keep your horse’s skin healthy and his coat…

In the early morning hours of April 8, 2019, the love of my life walked out of a trailer. He had big brown eyes, rippling muscles and a strutting walk. And, oh, those flowing locks of beautiful, thick black hair! Nothing would ever be the same again. I am a 15-year-old United States Pony Clubs member and I’ve been riding horses since I was 3. After I outgrew my beloved first horse, my mom and I spent more than six months looking for my next mount. However, most of the horses within our budget were off-the-track Thor-oughbreds standing 16.2 hands or taller. At the time I was 12 years old and weighed about 90 pounds, so these horses were too big and too green for me. Enter Captain Jack Sparrow…

New research from Brazil finds that amnion dressings can be useful in supporting wound healing in horses, particularly for in-juries on the lower leg and other vulnerable areas. Equine amnion, also called equine amniotic membrane (EAM), is the strong, flexible layer of tissue that envelops a fetus as it develops in utero. Amnion has been increasingly used in human regenerative medicine as it can serve as a “scaffold” of sorts for new tissue growth. Amnion tissue also has anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties. To test the potential of EAM in treating equine wounds, researchers at the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro collected amnion from six healthy mares. “The membranes can be collected from any healthy mare [immediately after foaling] and can be used in any horse,” says Marcos Vinícius…

A study from Germany unders-cores the potential dangers that bacteria-laden arena dust pose to horses and riders alike. Although recurrent airway obstruction and inflammatory airway diseases in horses are caused by many factors, “exposure to inhaled dust and attached bacteria and fungi is a major contributor to respiratory problems,” says Nina Volkmann of the Institute for Animal Hygiene, Animal Welfare and Farm Animal Behavior of the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover. To determine the levels of bacteria in arena dust, the researchers collected air samples from four indoor riding arenas monthly over a one-year period. On each occasion, a preliminary sample was taken before a riding session began—when the footing had been undisturbed for 10 hours—and a second one was taken immediately after riding concluded. Researchers collected samples at four…

I’ve been shoveling manure and hollering "Whoa" for as long as I can remember. I have owned, cared for and trained countless horses and ponies over the years. After living with them, studying them and publishing numerous stories about them, I thought I knew just about all there was to know about horses. Recently, however, I realized that wasn’t quite true. I had decided to write a story about the ponies used by Sir Ernest Shackleton in his quest to reach the South Pole some 116 years ago. Going into my research I knew that the ponies, mostly of Manchurian and Siberian descent, had been selected because of their strength and hardiness. But soon I discovered something shocking: The ponies were also prized for their ability to subsist on a…

EPM: Three letters that horse owners have come to dread—and for good reason. Equine protozoal myeloencephalitis is one of the most frustrating diseases a horse can contract. Called a “master of disguise” by the American Association of Equine Practitioners, EPM can mimic many other health problems, with signs ranging from mild to severely disabling to life-ending. The disease that eventually came to be called EPM was first recognized in the 1960s and since then researchers have made steady progress in understanding the responsible organisms, modes of transmission and the physiological effects on horses. Most importantly, three Food and Drug Administration-approved medications have been developed to treat EPM in horses: Marquis (ponazuril), Protazil (diclazuril) and ReBalance (sulfadiazine/pyrimethamine). Nonetheless, EPM remains a major horse health concern and questions persist—among owners and researchers…