Stephanie Ruff

Stephanie Ruff has spent her entire career in various facets of the equine industry. She was a freelance writer for many years, was the owner/editor of Arabian Finish Line, managing editor of Arabian Horse Life and content manager of Practical Horseman and Dressage Today before moving to The Horse. She has ridden many different disciplines, but for the last 20 years has focused on dressage. Stephanie has both a B.S. and M.S. in Animal Science from the University of Kentucky and has always had a keen interest in equine health, science, and research. A native of Pennsylvania, Stephanie enjoys hanging out with her Arabian and Half-Arabian mares, two German Shorthair Pointers, traveling and embracing the Florida lifestyle where she currently lives.

Articles by: Stephanie Ruff

Oldest Horse Is Living On Love

After a nationwide search by Purina Mills in 1994, Flicka was declared the oldest horse in America. Five years later at age 52, he is still owner Sara Spanial’s best friend.

As a rough rule of thumb, horsemen figure one year in a horse’

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Feeding Horses Cattle Feed: Just Ruminating

On the surface, cattle feeds might look like an appropriate choice for your horses, but nutritionally, there are a number of important differences. They have major digestive and metabolic differences that make their dietary needs quite diverse.

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Gait Analysis

Ever since the 1880s, when Edweard Muybridge set up a series of cameras to capture the character of footfalls of a racehorse, we’ve been fascinated by how horses move. No doubt you’ve seen that early sequence of photos, which demonstrated that

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Cryptorchid Surgery

It’s time to have your young colt gelded, so you make an appointment with your veterinarian. He arrives on the designated day and examines the colt prior to the surgery, then informs you that your colt is a bilateral cryptorchid and will need

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Foal Diarrhea

I am a new owner of a broodmare who just had her first foal, which now has diarrhea. How serious is it for him?

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Antibiotics: Use And Abuse

Science, as well as all of mankind for that matter, is engaged in a relentless battle against bacteria. On the surface, it would seem that the human side has the advantage. Billions of dollars are available for research, and some of the best

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When Tack Hurts

Your horse can’t tell you where tack hurts, but he can express sensation through his movement. Any sort of tack can impact the horse’s attitude and well-being. Tack can cause discomfort or pain by undue pressure, or even its presence against skin

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Sheared Heels: Nature or Nurture?

Have you ever paid attention to the way people walk? Some are pigeon-toed, others are duck-footed. Some wear the insides of their shoe heels; others do just the opposite. Yet, most are perfectly sound and healthy.

The same principle”P>Have you ever paid attention to the way people walk? Some are pigeon-toed, others are duck-footed. Some wear the insides of their shoe heels; others do ju”>Have you ever paid attention to the way people walk? Some are pigeon

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Reconditioning After Lay-Up

A small-animal orthopedic veterinarian once told me, The athlete that heals slowly heals best. In other words, although some physical therapy might be recommended as the body heals, the body’s soft and hard tissues need to recover wholly from”P>A small-animal orthopedic veterinarian once told me, The athlete that heals slowly heals best. In other words, although some physical therapy might be recommended as the body heals, the “>A small-animal orthopedic veterinarian once told me, The athlete that heals slowly heals best. In other words, although some physic”A small-animal orthopedic veterinarian once told me, The athlete that heals sl” small-animal orthopedic

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Summer Drought Affects Retirement Home For Horses

Ryerss Farm, a home for retired horses, is feeling the affects of this summer’s drought that is affecting much of the United States. According to farm manager Tim Blevins, 70% of their feed and cash crops are ruined. “If you

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EEE Found In Michigan Horse

Michigan Department of Agriculture (MDA) Director Dan Wyant today announced that the first reported case of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) this year has occurred in a horse in Barry County. This diagnosis was based on

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New Zealand Declared EIA-Free

New Zealand has been declared free of equine infectious anemia after a recent mishap allowed an EIA positive horse into the country from Australia. On May 24 an EIA positive broodmare was imported to the Waikato region, North

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