Latest News – The Horse

A horse in Harnett County, N.C., is recovering after allegedly being beaten with a shovel, according to news stories on the Dunn’s online edition of The Daily Record. Local horse trainer Michael Joseph Nugent, 26, of Anderson Creek, is accused of abusing the horse, and felony charges are pending.

Nugent was found guilty of misdemeanor cruelty to animals in Lillington District

The West Yorkshire Police in the United Kingdom have made a public appeal for new horses for the unit, according to a report in the online edition of Horse and Hound. This is the third time the force has requested “gift” horses, and this request follows budget cuts and a number of retirements of police mounts.

West Yorkshire Police horses are used for high-visibility patrols,

The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) recently released a brochure about vesicular stomatitis (VS) for the horse owner. VS is a contagious disease that afflicts horses, livestock, wildlife, and humans. Although the virus that causes VS is rarely life-threatening, it can have a significant financial impact on the horse industry because symptoms resemble those of foot-and-mout

Ray Paulick, editor in chief of The Blood-Horse and executive vice president and editorial director of Blood-Horse Publications, has been selected as the American Association of Equine Practitioners’ (AAEP) equine industry representative on the group’s board of directors. His term will begin during the AAEP’s 49th Annual Convention in New Orleans, La., November 21-25, 2003, and run

Old Friends, the Kentucky-based operation that hopes to give the public access to visit retired Thoroughbred stallions, could open its doors at Afton Farm near Midway, Ky., as early as next March.

Maryland horses fared well during Hurricane Isabel’s sweep across the state Sept. 18-19 and in the aftermath. Rob Burk, executive director of the Maryland Horse Industry Board in Annapolis, Md., believes that due to advance warning and education on disaster planning, Maryland horse owners were well prepared for the arrival of the storm, which ended up striking the state with less intensity

An international gathering of over 2,400 veterinarians is expected to explore the latest advances in equine veterinary care and research during the American Association of Equine Practitioners’ (AAEP) 49th Annual Convention in New Orleans, La., Nov. 21 – 25.

As the world’s largest continuing education meeting devoted to equine veterinary medicine, the convention will offer scientific

The luck of a proactive passerby helped save the lives of eight horses in a burning barn early Sept. 10 at Equestrian Park in College Station, Texas. Sixteen died in the fire due to burns and/or smoke inhalation, said property owner Brazos Joe Varisco, and three more were euthanized shortly thereafter due to their injuries. Ten of the barn’s inhabitants were racing Quarter Horses (all of whic

Hurricane Isabel announced her landfall by hammering coastal North Carolina on Sept. 18. Some of the storm’s worst damage was seen in that state. However, due to meticulous disaster planning, most North Carolina horses were out of harm’s way before the storm hit.

Jodi Jackson, executive director of the State Animal Response Team (SART), said, “I’m very pleased to report that the horse

Members of the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) and other individuals are invited to submit an abstract for consideration for presentation during the 2004 Focus meeting in Louisville, Ky., July 22-24. The topic of the meeting is joint disease.

The purpose of this meeting is to being together researchers and clinicians to discuss, disseminate and enhance the current

One horse was hit and killed by a school bus after traveling onto a Bahrain highway, according to the online edition of the Gulf Daily News. The stallion and another horse appeared to have escaped from a nearby stable and run onto the road.

In Bucyrus, Ohio, an Indiana trucker hit a horse on the west end of the U.S. 20 bypass on the night of Sept. 22, according to the online edition of the Telegraph-Forum. The westbound semi reportedly hit the horse around 8:30 pm, throwing it into an eastbound car.

According to the article, “Albert R. Bell of Logansport, Ind., was driving the semi, hauling for Pasquale Truckin

Animal control officers in Tift County, Ga., responded to reports of a dead horse found floating in a creek off Wiley Branch Road on the afternoon of Sept. 23, according to the online edition of the Tifton Gazette. When the officers searched the area, they also found a dead dog. Both animals had been shot in the forehead. The area will be searched for more animals, and officers will

A couple of Przevalski’s horses arrived Sept. 23 from Switzerland to the freshly opened zoo in Dobrich, Bulgaria, which is 486km northeast of Sofia. The rare breed has not been seen in the wild since 1968, and only 500 specimens can be counted in Europe and America, according to the Bulgarian News online.

The newcomers–Igor and Kuni–had a good trip from Switzerland and are

Funding figures from the University of Kentucky and non-university sources for research on mare reproductive loss syndrome (MRLS) were recently made available. The problem is estimated to have cost the horse industry in Kentucky nearly $500 million in 2001 and 2002.

The KTA/KTOB and Ag Development Board funded $694,615; the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation funded $295,938; the

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) has approved $5,407,739.00 in low-interest loans for breeders in Central Kentucky who were negatively impacted by mare reproductive loss syndrome.

The program was developed by the Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners & Breeders and the American Horse Council. The organizations worked closely with members of Kentucky’s