My 12-year-old daughter’s 9-year-old Welsh Pony gelding (named Taffy) was moved to a new stable about eight weeks ago. Six weeks after the move, Taffy was introduced to the mares and allowed to graze and socialize with them. Since four of the 16 mares had two- to four-month-old foals, we were more than a little nervous that the mares would not take well to Taffy. However, one mare and
Whether you are an endurance rider, on the show circuit, or out for an adventure in the woods with friends, owning a trailer and having a vehicle to tow it offer unlimited possibilities to a great many horse owners where once equine travel was restricted to an elite few.
Lower airway disease is all too common among the horse population–the occasional cough in the young racehorse that belies serious disease, the wheezy horse which can’t tolerate his barn, the backyard horse which always seems to have a cough or nasal discharge. It’s no surprise that researchers around the world are engaged in finding the causes and cures of inflamed airway passages. Efforts
There was a time when trail riding was pretty much confined to where one lived. The choices might include a country road or a ditch along a busy highway. That, however, is in the past. Powerful trucks and sophisticated trailers have opened endless windows of opportunity for the horse owner who wants to travel. However, there is more to it than just loading up a horse and heading off across th
Cushing’s disease has been around for a long time in people, horses, and other animals. For years, theories and information concerning the affliction all centered on one source for the problem–tumors of the pituitary gland, which is located at the b
Today, it is primarily through Poco Bueno’s bloodline, say researchers at Mississippi State University and Cornell University, that the recessive gene that causes hyperelastosis cutis (HC) has passed. In some scientific circles, the disease is called hereditary equine regional dermal asthenia (HERDA).
Two of my equestrian dreams came true in August 2001 in Nova Scotia, at the beautiful 350-acre Beaverdam Farm owned by Arthur and Carol Rivoire. Our family vacation is usually spent at Chincoteague, Va., where the wild ponies roam on nearby Assateague Island, but after reading about the Beginner’s Driving Vacation in Nova Scotia, I convinced certain members of my family that we should head
WNV isn’t the only threat posed by the common mosquito. All forms of arboviral encephalitis (arthropod-borne neurologic disease)–some of which, like WNV, can afflict both horses and humans–are mosquito-borne, as are malaria, dengue fever, and deadly canine heartworm disease.
What the research findings suggest is that young, growing foals, horses that are prone to tying-up or laminitis, those with Cushing’s disease, and some that tend to be excessively ‘hot’ mannered could possibly be managed better on low-glycemic diets.
When it comes to pest control products, the safest choices lie with EPA-approved chemical formulations developed for horse use, such as DEET, pyrethrins/pyrethroids, and organophosphates, or the EPA GRAS (“generally regarded as safe”) products like citronella and geraniol.
On many breeding farms, Parascaris equorum (roundworms) and other intestinal parasites in young foals are now controlled with one class of dewormer. This has become common because of the belief that certain drugs, like ivermectin, are highly effective and free from parasite resistance. However, a recent report from Ontario, Canada, describes foals from a breeding farm with fecal egg
It is tempting for veterinarians to use laboratory reference ranges collected from full-sized horses when treating miniature horses. This is not always appropriate, however, as miniature horses have some breed characteristics that are only now becoming apparent. In fact, researchers at Michigan State University (MSU) have been diagnosing ocular abnormalities in miniature horses more frequentl
Horses certainly are not immune to the physical problems associated with geriatric living. As the average lifespan for a horse increases, how do we make retired life as comfortable as possible for our faithful friends?
Wobbler, also known as wobbles, takes its name from its primary sign–a wobbling or uncoordinated gait. In technical terms, the horse has a “proprioceptiveness deficit,” or a lack of physical awareness of his limbs and their placement.
No matter your position on equine slaughter, there is a question in the minds of horse owners of whether a penetrating captive bolt is a “humane” form of euthanasia for horses. Many individuals and groups are dismissing captive bolt as inhumane, even if they have not researched the method, have not discussed it with someone knowledgeable in equine euthanasia, or haven’t witnessed it first-han
“West Nile virus (WNV) is coming to a state near you if it hasn’t already arrived,” said Eileen Ostlund, DVM, PhD, head of the equine/ovine viruses section at the Diagnostic Virology Laboratory, National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa, during the Western Veterinary Conference held Feb. 15-19 in Las Vegas, Nev. In a comprehensive overview of WNV’s activity in the United States
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