Latest News

Funny Cide Hits the Road

Marsha Hayes July 13, 2009

Kentucky Derby winner Funny Cide, currently a resident of the Hall of Champions at the Kentucky Horse Park, expanded his résumé Saturday when he traveled to Ellis Park Race Track in Henderson, Ky.

The track star and ambassador found a new role as promoter of Funny Cider, a beverage from Park neighbor Evan Orchards, marketed by Jack Knowlton, one of the horse’s owners. Part of the proceed

Study: Rein Modifiers Helpful for Novice Riding Lessons

Nancy Zacks, MS July 13, 2009

A training martingale–a piece of equipment with rings on either side of the horse’s neck to stabilize rein position–might provide a more comfortable experience for lesson horses in novice riding programs.

In a study at Michigan State University, Camie Heleski, PhD, and her colleagues observed novice riders mounted on horses fitted with and without adjustable training martingales to see

Third Calgary Stampede Chuckwagon Horse Dies

Pat Raia July 13, 2009

An outrider horse competing in the GMC Rangeland Derby chuckwagon race at the Calgary Stampede in Alberta, Canada, died Friday following a pulmonary embolism.

The Thoroughbred was the second chuckwagon race horse to succumb to a cardiac issue, and the third to die at the event in six days. A chuckwagon team horse died from a cardiac episode following a race on July 1. On July

Qu?bec Eastern Equine Encephalitis Outbreak of 2008 Reviewed

Equine Disease Quarterly July 13, 2009

Following is a report by the animal health surveillance network (RAIZO) of the Minist?re de l’Agriculture, des P?cheries et de l’Alimentation du Qu?bec.

Only two cases of Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) had been reported in Qu?bec

Ranch Hand Arrested in Texas Horse Deaths

Pat Raia July 13, 2009

A ranch worker was arrested on multiple animal cruelty counts for the heat-related deaths of 11 horses in Weatherford, Texas.

Parker County law enforcement

Detecting Tapeworms, Reducing Resistance through ‘Diagnostic Deworming’

Stacey Oke, DVM, MSc July 12, 2009

Diagnostic deworming of horses with anti-tapeworm drugs could play an important role in reducing resistance to antiparasitic drugs, report veterinarians from Japan and North America.

VS Cases: Special Health Papers Needed for AQHA Youth World

Press Release July 12, 2009

Due to the recent outbreak of vesicular stomatitis (VS), the Oklahoma State Veterinarian has instituted new regulations for horses entering Oklahoma from several states. All horses attending the 2009 Ford AQHYA World Championship Show must have a

Thoroughbred Stallion Lawyer Ron Euthanized

Ron Mitchell/The Horse July 12, 2009

Lawyer Ron, the 2007 champion older male, was euthanized July 10 at Stonewall Farm Stallions near Versailles, Ky., due to complications from a recent colic surgery

A 6-year-old son of Langfuhr, Lawyer Ron was standing his second season at stud

Poll: West Nile Virus Vaccine Choices

Megan Arszman July 11, 2009

Almost 480 readers of TheHorse.com responded to a poll asking, “Do you know which WNV vaccine your veterinarian uses on your horse(s)?”

Rider Pressure Affects Horse Tack Evaluation

Marie Rosenthal, MS July 11, 2009

The force a rider exerts on the horse’s back will shift depending on his or her position and should be included in any evaluation of tack pressure, researchers recently reported.

“You need a force that is distributed over a certain area to

London 2012 Olympic Equestrian Events to Tread Lightly on Land

Jennifer O. Bryant July 11, 2009

Not one tree will be removed from London’s oldest Royal Park, the 183-acre Greenwich Park, in converting the space to the site of the 2012 Olympic equestrian and pentathlon events, said Tim Hadaway, equestrian manager for the London Organizing

Proposed Mongolian Horse Race Raises Welfare Concerns

Sharon Biggs Waller July 11, 2009

A planned horse race over the Mongolian Steppes has raised the ire of several equestrian groups concerned about the welfare of the more than 700 horses that will take part in the 1,000-kilometer Mongolian Derby.

The League of Adventurists

26,000-Year-Old Horse on Display at Canadian Museum

Edited Press Release July 10, 2009

In September 1993, placer miners working a claim in the Klondike found a fossil that has been radiocarbon dated and identified as a 26,000-year-old Yukon horse that once roamed the plains of Eastern Beringia (an area encompassing parts of

Soft Tissue Injury Prompts Retirement of Pioneerof the Nile

Edited Press Release July 10, 2009

Zayat Stables’ Pioneerof the Nile, winner of four consecutive graded stakes and second in the Kentucky Derby, has been retired due to a soft tissue injury to his left front leg.

One of the top colts of his generation, the homebred son

Guilty Plea in Oklahoma Starved Mustang Cruelty Case

Edited Press Release July 10, 2009

A criminal case involving the starvation of two wild horses adopted from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) ended with a guilty plea in Rogers County, Okla., the Bureau announced yesterday.

Adopter Shannon J. Smoke of Broken Arrow,

Hay Herbicides Not a Risk to Horses, Despite Manure-Fertilized Crop Loss

Rhona Melsky July 10, 2009

Recent reported crop losses in North Carolina and several other states are linked to certain broad leaf herbicides containing aminopyralid, clopyralid, and picloram, according to researchers. In North Carolina, people with gardens and organic