Latest News – The Horse

Raptors will take flight in the new Agnes Varis Auditorium and an expected crowd of thousands will gather to learn about all the furry, galloping, and ruminating animals at Tufts University’s Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine annual Open House, Sept. 12 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m in Grafton, Mass. The event is free and open to the public, rain or shine.

Canines of all types wil

State game lands can be beautiful places to ride horses. However, riding (along with hiking, biking, and other uses) is permitted or restricted by individual state’s policies. The purchase and maintenance of these lands is generally funded by the sale of licenses and sporting goods purchased by anglers and hunters. If equestrians wish to ride on state wildlife management areas, they must

The New York State Racing and Wagering Board clarified July 28 that horses are banned from being entered in races if they have received hyperbaric oxygen therapy treatment within one week of post time. The therapy is permitted otherwise.

The directive, explained in a release, clarifies existing state rules and is endorsed by the New York Racing Association, the Wagering Board said.

Monmouth Park in New Jersey is the sixth racetrack to be accredited by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association Safety and Integrity Alliance.

Monmouth, host of the grade I Haskell Invitational Aug. 2, was reviewed by alliance officials July 9-10. Ronald Jensen, DVM, racing official Richard Lewis, and alliance executive director Mike Ziegler were on the review committee.

“The

The investigation into a series of Florida horse poaching incidents expanded again Sunday when another horse was found dead in its pasture, apparently slaughtered for its meat.

A caretaker discovered the horse’s carcass in a pasture near its stable. Flesh was missing from its chest and one of its back legs, a Miami-Dade County Police report noted.

The incident is the latest among 17

A horse’s risk of impaction colic might be elevated by decreased exercise, restricted water intake, administration of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications, and poor dentition, said Amy E. Plummer, DVM, Dipl. ACVS, in a recent Veterinary Clinics of North America: Equine Practice review of intestinal impactions.

Preakness Stakes winner Rachel Alexandra had her final workout July 27 at Saratoga as she continues to prepare for her next start in the $1.25 million Haskell Invitational at Monmouth Park on Sunday, Aug. 2.

Over the training track at Saratoga, Rachel put in a four furlong breeze of :49.26, sixth fastest of 23 works this morning. She is scheduled to ship down from Saratoga to Monmouth

A program to collect obsolete pesticides is being expanded this year to also provide farmers with safe disposal for unused animal health products and sharps. Taking place this fall, the program is part of an Ontario government-supported Great Lakes Basin water quality initiative that offers farmers a way to recycle these items.

As part of this project, farmers will be able to bring their

The Back Country Horsemen of America (BCHA) and the Equine Land Conservation Resource (ELCR) have formed an alliance.

Back Country Horsemen of America is a national membership organization whose mission is to preserve horseback riding and recreational stock in America’s backcountry and public lands. BCHA work to achieve this through offering time, equipment, and stock on projects with

A third horse that tested positive for equine piroplasmosis was illegally removed from quarantine in June, stated a report issued to the World Organization for Animal Health (Office International des Epizooties, or OIE) by John Clifford, DVM, deputy administrator of the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

Veterinary preparations for the 54th running of the Tevis Cup, a 100-mile horse race, have kicked into high gear as the Aug. 1 race day approaches.

Head veterinarian Greg Fellers, DVM, has been working on recruiting and organizing the 17 veterinarians charged with manning the nine equine checkpoints scattered between the starting point near Lake Tahoe and the finish in Auburn, Calif.

An equine advocacy organization is criticizing new wild horse and burro management legislation, saying it fails to make efficient use of public land.

HR 1018, the Restore Our American Mustangs Act, amends the Wild Horse and Burro Act of 1971 to allow the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to

Recent reports of several horses dying from Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) serve as a reminder that horse owners should make sure their horses are vaccinated.

“We’ve always recommended that horse owners in Oklahoma vaccinate for it as a preventive measure,” said Carolynn MacAllister, DVM, Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension veterinarian.

EEE is spread by mosquitoes.

A congressional committee recently held a hearing on a bill that proposes severe restrictions on the use of antibiotics in food animals. The Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act of 2009 would ban “non-therapeutic” uses of antibiotics that are also used in humans. It is hoped that this would prevent antibiotic resistance and preserve these drugs to treat human infections.

Equine Veterinarians Australia, which representes more than 1,000 equine practitioners in that country, honored the Chief Veterinarians for New South Wales and Queensland for their efforts in eradicating equine infuenza from their states during the massive outbreak last year.

Dr. Bruce Christie from New South Wales and Dr. Ron Glanville from Queensland received the 2009 Equine