Latest News – The Horse

Immense knowledge of equine health issues and an equally remarkable willingness to share their know-how distinguish the newest inductees to the International Equine Veterinarians Hall of Fame. Ted Stashak, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVS, professor of veterinary medicine at Colorado State University, and J.D. Wheat, DVM, professor of equine surgery at the University of California-Davis School of

The Associated Press reports that five American Saddlebreds in Versailles, KY, including one former five-gaited world champion, suffered life-threatening injuries after their pasterns were injected with an unknown substance.

Two veterinarians who have had significant impact on Florida’s equine veterinary community were recently honored through the University of Florida (UF) College of Veterinary Medicine’s 2003 Distinguished Awards program. Lisa Conti, DVM, Dipl. ACVP, Florida’s state public health veterinarian, and Ellis Greiner, PhD, UF professor of parasitology, an individual whose enthusiasm and support for

Maryland state veterinarian Phyllis Cassano, DVM, announced today that an Anne Arundel County, Md., horse has tested positive for rabies. The 7-year-old Quarter Horse mare named Coup de Harmony had recently competed at the East Coast Barrel Bash in Harrington, Del., June 19-21.

The mare began showing clinical signs July 20, while still at the show. According to the owner’s report, she

There are many factors that veterinarians and owners consider when a surgical treatment is recommended for a horse.

As a horse owner, you are regularly bombarded with advertisements for various products that will supposedly cure your horse’s arthritis. On the other hand, you might have noticed that your veterinarian uses pharmaceutical products that are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and you only have access to them through a veterinarian’s administration or prescription. It is

Are there health risks simply from the anesthesia for a horse undergoing surgery? If so, what are these risks, and how common are complications from them?

This year I have a colt which was born with a urinary problem. He keeps dripping urine, especially when he lies down. His genital area will be wet, just like kids when they sleep and just forget to wake up. Can you help me?

We just started using a 3-year-old Quarter Horse stallion for breeding. He is sort of interested and will rub his head on the mare a bit, but he drops about half-way, then up, down, up, down. He doesn’t seem shy or anxious, just lazy, like a gelding. Sometimes he’ll just stand for a long time, even with his head in the mare’s tail, or he’ll ditz around with her tail like a foal does with its

Back when the sound of heavy, steel-shod hooves rang out on cobblestone streets, every horse owner was familiar with the signs–heat, swelling, shortened or shuffling stride, and the bony ridges developing where all used to be smooth and sleek. Ringb

Whether you have a large barn or a small one, an inexpensive pre-fab building or an elaborate construction, you can equip it to make it more “user-friendly” for you and your horses. At the very least, your barn should provide safe shelter during inclement weather. At best, it can be a showplace designed for human convenience as well as horse health.

When building a new barn or fixing up

The question of whether to feed foals concentrate separate from mares (called creep feeding) has often posed a dilemma for horse owners. On one hand, owners want to be certain that foals are getting all required nutrients and growing to their genetic potential. On the other hand, there is concern that too much rich feed can cause bone and joint growth problems. Is there a correct approach to

Diagnosis of equine protozoal myeloencephalitis (EPM) involves a technique called Western blotting (WB), which identifies antibodies against Sarcocystis neurona, the parasite responsible for the disease. A positive result on WB does not guarantee current infection, but rather exposure, since antibodies and not organisms are being identified.

Currently, young foals with neurologica

Penetrating injuries near the fetlock can be very serious because of their proximity to the deep digital flexor tendon (DDFT), which flexes the lower limb joints, and its sheath. While a horse might have only a small cut or puncture wound, the internal injury can create severe or even non-weight-bearing lameness. If left untreated or undertreated (with only administration of antibiotics,