Latest News – The Horse
Positive Reinforcement
Can you explain the concept of positive reinforcement training? What exactly does it mean? I was recently in New Zealand, where I was with a group that seems “converted” to what they call “all-positive training.” It sounds like good old-fashioned
Research… Missing Dollars
Leaders in veterinary research and the equine industry should develop policy initiatives that recognize needed changes in the research landscape. Equine medicine remains grossly underfunded. As companion animals, horses receive few government
Understanding Horses Part 7: Yielding to Pressure
I’m going to start discussing ground manners by talking about a 2-year-old colt from Arkansas who hadn’t been handled much. He wasn’t mean, he was just uneducated.
I use a rope halter to give me a little more leverage and “bite” if the horse
Corneal Infection Treatment
Silver sulfadiazine (a topical drug frequently used to treat burns) could be an effective treatment against common corneal fungal infections, according to researchers at Purdue University.
Fungal keratitis is a serious, painful corneal
Beyond the Surface: Imaging Referral Practices
He’s been poked and prodded, trotted in straight lines and flexed, hoof-tested and blocked, and yet there’s nothing standing out in these examinations or on his X rays that would explain your horse’s intermittent lameness. There are no obvious
Foals of the Future: Legal Ramifications of Cloning and Other Breeding Technologies
Two-time Thoroughbred Horse of the Year John Henry enjoys the life of Riley at the Kentucky Horse Park, munching grass and making occasional appearances for park visitors. It’s a well-deserved retirement of one of the best horses ever to set foot o
Slimming Down
Couple consistent exercise with controlled calorie intake to promote weight loss in overweight horses.
Older Horses: Dental Problems
The type and severity of age-related dental problems often are determined by the type of dental care the horse has had during its lifetime.
Lessons Learned, Again
Sometimes we need to hear the same things again in order to learn them. Or maybe it’s not the learning, but the applying what we’ve learned. I had to call Dr. Andy Anderson after reading his column this month and put his lessons into practice at
Thirst for Knowledge
Horse people are always searching for new ways to learn about their passion: the horse. Perhaps it is because our relationship with the horse is just that–a passion–that we are continually looking for ways to expand our knowledge base. It can be
All Stocked Up
It happened again: Your horse was fine for the entire weekend of riding, but when you got him ready for another weekend packed with activities, you discovered his hind limbs were swollen. You know it’s not overuse; the boarding barn provides
Tapeworms
Tapeworms are becoming more of an issue in horses as we learn more about how they affect horse health. Some regions of the country have a greater risk of equine tapeworm problems. In the upper Midwest (Wisconsin and Minnesota), for instance, studie
Fireworks and Horses: Preparing for the Big Boom
Learn how to help prepare your horses for the inevitable flashes of light and deafening noise of fireworks.
Two Plead Guilty In Horse Doping Case
Two Ballston Spa, N.Y., men accused of trying to fix races by injecting harness horses with substances designed to deaden pain or improve performance pleaded guilty today to felony charges.
District Attorney James Murphy says 68-year-old
Researchers Test WNV Vaccines
In a recent study, University of Florida researchers evaluated the effectiveness of three commercially available equine West Nile virus (WNV) vaccines. While all vaccinated horses, irrespective of the vaccine administered, did not develop viremi
Avoid Mayflies to Minimize PHF Risk
Minimizing your horse’s risk of contracting Potomac horse fever (PHF) might be as simple as shutting off the lights.
